This weekend in Austin we are blessed with not one, but two back to back nights with Alejandro Escovedo at the legendary Continental Club on South Congress. Escovedo is a music icon and a real genuine dude. I only hope I'm half as cool as he is one day. I admit I didn't much care for his music until Boxing Mirror came out, but wasn't totally won over with his latest album came out, Real Animal.
The first time I got to see Alejandro live in concert was at the legendary Gruene Hall in Gruene (pronounced like "green") right outside New Braunfels in 2008. It was also my first time seeing a show at Gruene Hall. My dad and I went and had a blast. Afterward, Alejandro stayed and signed autographs, took pictures with fans, etc. I bought my vinyl copy of Real Animal that night and had him sign it. I snapped this photo with him for the scrap book.
Just to briefly touch upon his music for those who don't know, it is very modern rock meets alt-country. It leans a little on the American side at times, but then kicks ass '60s rock style. He is an old school punk rocker, world traveled and made what is being called his "debut to the world" by sharing the stage with Bruce Springsteen. He often gets comparisons to The Boss more than any other known artist. Although I don't agree with the comparison, I know The Boss's fans will no doubt love Escovedo.
He does draw, and forgive my honesty and age here, an older crowd most of the time. There's always a few of us 20 something, in the know music geeks in the crowd. I am hoping that changes over time and believe it will as more people hear Real Animal and attend his shows. You may even get to hear him cover "All The Young Dudes" or see him share the stage with some talented musician friends of his.
When I was surfing around for a good live clip to embed in this post, I came across some great live footage on Vimeo of Alejandro performing "Always A Friend" live at SXSW this past March. Turn it up and give it a listen, then thank me later. There's some helpful links for the show as well as my interview with Alejandro I did this spring for Austin Vida. It was one of the highlights of my career.
Friday Night's with Two Hoots and a Holler! Show info here.
Saturday Night's Show with Amy Cook. Show info here.
Alejandro Escovedo: Life After Real Animal
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