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We all know that the best nights out are often those we don't even plan to have, and the Los Lobos Gig at the Liquid Room on October 8th was no exception. I had far more boring things planned for my Thursday night until I had a chance encounter with Victor Bisetti, one of the Los Lobos Drummers (they have three, and apparently need them) who kindly invited me along to the last night of their Japan mini-tour. So I headed off to see what Los Lobos could serve up at the Liquid room, recently relocated in Ebisu. Well it turns out that Los Lobos can serve up one of the most lively and rocking set of tunes I have heard in a long time, but first a quick word about the venue, the Liquid room in Ebisu. The bar inside the hall is WAY TOO SMALL. OK? Get it sorted people!! Right, back to the gig. |
 The mini tour was to promote their new Album, The Ride, the set opening with Someday and featuring a few other tunes from that album, namely Charmed, Rita, Is This All There is?, and Hurry Tomorrow. And while this gig wasn't the star-studded affair of the actual album, it didn't really need to be with the on-stage energy levels as high as they were for most of the evening. 
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The first thing that grabs your attention is the percussion all over the stage. Well Los Lobos did originally start out over 30 years ago as a Tejano and Mexican folk outfit, and those rhythmic roots are still strong in their music, but don't be fooled into thinking that Mexican is all you get with Los Lobos. Not by a long squawk. These days Los Lobos are one of the most rocking R & B bands playing these intimate venues, and this was to be a great night. 
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| The melodic bass driven Rita worked particularly well in the closeness of the liquid room, but personally I felt the band were really starting to slip into another gear and enjoy themselves once the rockier tunes were wheeled out, such as Hendrix's Are You Experienced, and when the accordion was fired up a few times by David Hidalgo. At one point the band were also joined on stage by Hidalgo's son, who I understand is also his guitar tech, for the somewhat heavier tune Viking. Heading towards the end of the main set, Hidalgo eventually traded in what looked from a distance like a white Gibson Thunderbird, but probably wasn't, for the Telecaster he is more often seen with, and managed to squeeze out of it the fattest sound I have ever heard from a Telecaster as things started really thundering along with Cumbia de Raza. At least I think it was Cumbia de Raza, but I can't be at all sure as I was thundering along myself at this point. It was somewhere during this raising of the fun factor that Moto joined the band onstage, adding his own bluesy flavor to the mix. |
 report by sean and photo by yusuke |
Normally at these gigs, there tends to be a mandatory encore, usually pretty short, after which the crowd files out knowing they've had their lot, but Los Lobos were on fire for the encore, and after that this audience was going nowhere. It was great to see them insisting on still more, and they were duly rewarded with a few more tunes, including Neil Young's Cinnamon Girl, and the appearance on stage of Yoshi and Chris, barely visible at the back. Any way you look at it, a great night out from nowhere. 
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 mag files : Not just along for The Ride (04/10/07 @ Liquidroom Ebisu) : review by sean, photo by yusukeテキーラ・ショットガン！ (04/10/07 @ Liquidroom Ebisu) : review by taiki, photo by yusukephoto report (04/10/07 @ Liquidroom Ebisu) : photo by yusukeRiding with Los Lobos (04/10/04 @ Shinsaibashi Club Quattro) : review by jab, photo by yeggphoto report (04/10/04 @ Shinsaibashi Club Quattro) : photo by yeggphoto report (04/10/03 @ Asagiri Arena) : photo by hanasan |
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The official site of LOS LOBOS is; http://hollywoodrecords.go.com/ loslobos/ The latest album  "THE RIDE" ( 国内盤 / US import / UK import )
*Never now the reason why, but the US import of the above album is pretty expensive in Japan. It might be damaged by the newly broght law to ban importing CD, DVD as such, but if you jump to amazon.com, you may find the same product with low price. Sometimes, it is cheaper to buy CD and DVD from amazon.com than at a shop in Japan if you buy certain amount... even including the shipping cost. The Ride Ride This Kiko Just Another Band from East L.A. Mas Y Mas: The Los Lobos Box (4CD box set) |
previous works ;
"Good Morning Aztlan" ( 国内盤 / US import / UK import ) "This TImen" ( 国内盤 / US import / UK import ) "Colossal Head" ( 国内盤 / US import ) "Los Lobos Collection" ( US import ) "Kiko" ( US import / UK import ) "The Neighborhood" ( US import ) "La Pistola y El Corazon" ( US import ) "By the Light of the Moon" ( US import ) "How Will The Wolf Survive?" ( 国内盤 / US import / UK import ) "Del Este de Los Angeles" ( US import / UK import ) "Just Another Band from East L.A" ( US import ) and more... check the albums? |
previous works by sean  2004Not just along for The Ride : LOS LOBOS (7th Oct. @ LIQUIDROOM EBISU) |