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Los Lobos
As a band, Los Lobos have been able to retain, and even strengthen, their artistic integrity for twenty years, and they still rock!!! After a lengthy foray into elliptical experimentalism, Good Morning Aztlan proves that this band is still as fierce and roots-oriented as ever.
Their roots are both Mexican and American; while "Luz de Mi Vida" and "Malaque" accentuate the former, "Done Gone Blue", "Get to This" and the title song are all influenced by American blues. "Hearts of Stone" is a slow-burning R&B number that sounds like an updated version of Squeeze’s "Tempted" (and just as expertly executed). "Good Morning Aztlan" is probably the best ‘encore’ song I’ve heard in years, presuming of course, that the band chooses to use it as such. It rocks the house like a good roadhouse band, full of guts and confidence. "Big Ranch" and "Tony y Maria" straddle both cultures, conveying the emotional complexity of bicultural living in the new millennium.
One of the most amazing things about this album is the resolve that they employed, especially Cesar Rosas. Caught in the glare of the tragic murder of his wife to a kidnapping brother-in-law, it only seemed natural that the band would sound distracted and in disarray. Instead, they’ve never sounded better. The band handles this incredible horror with dignity and grace, without sounding at all burdened or vengeful. Good Morning Aztlan addresses issues of crime and morality directly on two occasions, in "Big Ranch" and "The Word," but they never pontificate. Instead, they rock hard and ask valid questions about where society is headed.
Good question. In the twenty years that they’ve been around, Los Lobos have covered a lot of ground, and they’ve handled most of it well. Good Morning Aztlan is the band operating at their best, and that’s why I figure this to be one of the top ten albums of 2002.
There’s a bonus disk, too, with two extra songs (both very good) and some QuickTime video stuff containing a documentary of the album – It took a bit of coaxing to open the video on my PC, but was worth the effort.
Grade: 
 
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