CALEXICO NEW HOLIDAY ALBUM ‘SEASONAL SHIFT’ OUT TODAY
December 4, 2020
CALEXICO RELEASE NEW HOLIDAY ALBUM
SEASONAL SHIFT TODAY, LISTEN NOW
WATCH NEW VIDEO FOR “HEART OF DOWNTOWN” FEAT. BOMBINO
Today Calexico is releasing Seasonal Shift, their first-ever holiday album. In honor of release day they have also shared a new video for the song “Heart of Downtown” feat. Bombino. Watch it HERE.
“I wrote a chorus in French thinking that it would help bridge the gap from our world to [Bombino’s], hoping he would take whatever lines he connected with,” singer, songwriter and guitarist Joey Burns said of the song’s origins. “Lyrically it is all about that bridge and compassion leading us through life changes. With the news of activist and Congressman John Lewis passing away, I was also thinking about some of the “good trouble” he embraced and the struggles he endured. The music is a celebration. I wanted to have something that reflected my sense of hope regardless of how dark these times can be. Hope is the key word.”
Less of a Christmas album and more of a cross cultural seasonal celebration, the themes of Seasonal Shift are based around that familiar end of year feeling of reflection, of ceremony and of recognition of the year gone by and changes it brought for better and for worse. The record contains a few cover songs as well as a few special guests and a whole lot of good will. “[‘Seasonal Shift’ is] informed by the general spirit of seasonal holidays, which is as much reflective as celebratory,” said Uncut. The album also features Calexico in an assortment of guises, referencing Portuguese fado and old Mexican folk songs, from the stripped back two-man skeleton to the full party of international collaborators, including artists like Bombino, Gaby Moreno, Gisela João, Nick Urata (DeVotchKa) and Camilo Lara.
Reflecting on the album Burns added, “It’s more of a seasonal album and like all seasons they are about change and how those changes in the world resonate inside of you. I never thought this would have gone the way that it did. We were aiming to record a 6 song EP and we kept going. I guess I never thought I would be on semi-permanent hibernation mode either, but I’m super happy and extremely grateful.”
Seasonal Shift digital, LP and CD is available HERE, including a red vinyl available via Rough Trade and a limited edition run of violet LP’s via the band’s local Arizona record store Zia.