Classifying Los Lobos into narrow pigeon hole styles has always been an exercise in futility. When I first started listening to Los Lobos, they were played extensively on Washington's "progressive rock" station, WHFS. They fit in just fine with that format, but it sometimes seems strange to me to apply the label "progressive" to a group whose sound is so clearly "retro rock," in the big, fast, hard-driving style of the Blasters. (If you liked Dave Alvin and the Blasters, you'll absolutely love Los Lobos!)

I've also heard people say that Los Lobos is "fusion rock" -- whatever the heck that is supposed to mean. I guess its a reference to the way they seemlessly meld rock with elements of zydeco, soul, and rockabilly. I've heard critics say that Los Lobos also incorporate elements of norteņo and banda into their music, but I think that's a load of B.S. from folks who don't know what norteņo and banda sound like. When Los Lobos do songs in spanish (like Prenda del Alma on this CD, or basically everything on La Pistola y el Corazon) the songs are invariably older, traditional songs -- they're the kinds of things you'd hear a mariachi singing.

Why By the Light of the Moon Rocks...
I love the snappy guitar plucking on the opening of One Time One Night, but I really love the gritty, blue-collar feel of the lyrics. It reminds me of some of the great Jersey bands of the 80s. I could easily see guys like Springsteen or Southside Johnny belting out powerpacked verses like "A lady dressed in white with the man she loved, standing along side of a pickup truck, a shot rang out in the night, just as everything seemed right, another headline written down in America..." It's powerful. It's emotive. It's gritty. It's reality. It's great stuff! The song is filled with little snapshots of life twisted wrong some place, some time in America. It's enough to make a guy cry if he listens too long...

Everybody who loves straight-ahead rock loves Shakin Shakin Shakes! It smacks of the best house-rocking tunes of the Blasters with a sort of retro rock edge to it. Great stuff!

Set Me Free (Rosa Lee) is another big, house-rocking tune. I love the percussions on this with its juxtaposition of crashing cymbals and softly thumping marimbas. (By the way, if you like this song, you'll also like The Mess We're In, which shares some of the same kind of sound elements.)

I wish I could put my finger on the reason that My Baby's Gone always seem to conjur up images of Elvis Costello in my mind, but that's who I think of when I listen to it. Maybe it's the opening, which kind of reminds me of Costello's Watching the Detectives... Maybe not...

River of Fools is softer and slower than I usually like, but I really think it works in this tune, which shows off some R&B influences, but melds it and molds it with powerfully deep lyrics filled with natural imagery of winds and flowing waters and a tear-streaked face dimly lit by the light of the moon. It's cerebral and emotive, and it speaks to the heart of the amazing creativity of Los Lobos.

I know that most English-only fans of Los Lobos tune them out on their spanish language tunes, but some of those are among my favorites. They have a strong traditional sound, and most of them are in fact, old favorites played by traditional mariachis south of the border. The only song like that on By the Light of the Moon is Prenda del Alma, which is slow and romantic and filled with the soft strumming of guitars. I love the poignant refrain of questions that permeate this powerful song: Como quitar el brillo a las estrellas? Come impedir que corra el manso rio? Como negar que sufrir el pecho mio? Como borrar de mi alma esta pasion? (Translation: "How do you take the shine from the stars? How do you stop a river from flowing? How do you keep your heart from breaking? How do you erase this passion from my soul?")

Tunes like Prenda del Alma are really what separate Los Lobos from a huge pack of great rock acts. Anybody can belt out a tune, but not many have the ear and the talent to fuse styles as disparate as traditional Mexican folk music with hard-driving retro rock -- Los Lobos does, and that's what makes them an American original! That's why I've been listening to them for more than 20 years, and hopefully I'll still be listening to them in another 20.

How Does This CD Compare to Other Los Lobos Discs??
I don't think many Los Lobos fans pick By the Light of the Moon as their favorite album, even though it's an unquestionably strong album with a lot of great tunes. Most folks seem to regard either Kiko or Will the Wolf Survive? as being the works that best define Los Lobos. The recently released Good Morning Aztlan will probably also stand as one of Los Lobos best, particularly with its blisteringly hot Done Gone Blue and the house-rocking riffs of the title track.

In some ways, it's a shame that By the Light of the Moon isn't the group's biggest selling album. It is a mature sounding CD, and it includes some blockbuster hits like Set Me Free (Rosa Lee). With guest vocals and production by T-Bone Burnett, By the Light of the Moon is a definite "must buy" for any serious Los Lobos fan.

Tracks on Plastic...
11 tracks -- 10 in English 1 in Spanish, just over 40 minutes total running time:

1. One Time One Night
2. Shakin' Shakin' Shakes
3. Is This All There Is?
4. Prenda del Alma
5. All I Wanted to Do Was Dance
6. Set Me Free (Rosa Lee)
7. The Hardest Time
8. My Baby's Gone
9. River of Fools
10. The Mess We're In
11. Tears of God

About Los Lobos...
Los Lobos got their start in 1973 when Cesar Rosas, David Hidalgo, Louie Perez, and Conrad Lozano were students at East L.A. High School. They toured with the Blasters in 1981, and Blasters saxophonist Steve Berlin eventually jumped ship to join Los Lobos. The group had a string of successful album releases in the 1980s and early 1990s, and several tracks were included in films. In the late 1990s, David Hidalgo and Cesar Rosas played in Los Super Seven, along with Freddy Fender, Flaco Jimenez, Joe Ely, Rick Trevino, and Ruben Ramos. Los Lobos just released a new CD, Good Night Aztlan and are currently touring with upcoming dates in New York, Washington, New Orleans, Denver, and more...

More info about Los Lobos is on their web site: www.loslobos.org

Bottom Line
If you like straight-ahead, hard-driving, retro rock -- like the sound of the Blasters or the Stray Cats -- or you like some of the gritty straight-up rock of the 1980s -- like Springsteen's The River -- then you'll probably love Los Lobos, and I think you're probably the kind of listener who would enjoy By the Light of the Moon. No, it's not the latest stuff, nor is it necessarily the group's greatest hits, but it is a classic album that stands up to the test of time, and it's a great listen. Highly recommended!




Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Hanging With Friends