O'toole Black Light

Deeper and richer than their debut, Spoke, Calexico's second album expands upon the sun-baked, cinematic sound of before with the addition of Latin jazz rhythms, mariachi trumpets, and pedal steel; in and of themselves, the group's songs are not exactly compelling, but they're produced with such a fine sense of texture and atmosphere that The Black Light still makes for intriguing listening. Allmusic 4,5/5.

"Red & Black Light" is an ode to the woman of today and her founding and fundamental role in hoping for a better future. Centred on an aesthetic that's more contemporary, more electro (or even pop), this album is made up of Ibrahim's compositions, plus one song from today's diva Beyonce. Recorded in France in Ivry-sur-Seine with Eric Legnini (keyboards), François Delporte (guitar) and Stephane Galland (drums), this album is above all a desire to represent the importance and necessarily complex nature of things and persons that are essential.

Firmly rooted in the style of the masters of the Berlin School (most notably TD), these ten tracks certainly manage to retain their own identity and are good for more than an hour's listening pleasure. The somewhat macabre opening of "If I Have To" is quickly filled with one of his many wonderful sequences that, in turn, evolves into a more complex whole. Flowing over this come a couple of delicate melodies and then the piece settles down for a stately and peaceful end. The deeper personal emotions of Mac himself are often audible - as is the case in "Blade of Loneliness"; the pain and the will to heal, along with the desire to rediscover the good things in life are beautifully portrayed here. The build-up of "All Wrong" also matches the best of TD at the beginning of the eighties. Of course this isn't quite the same level of originality as TD, but "Black Light" is absolutely no 'dumb copy' and is a breath of fresh air in today's market.