This Time

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Product description ------------------- Los Lobos: David Hidalgo, Cesar Rosas, Steve Berlin, Conrad Lozano, Louis Perez. Additional personnel: Mitchell Froom (keyboards); Alex Acuna (drums, percussion); Pete Thomas, Aaron Ballesteros (drums); Victor Bisetti (percussion). Producers: Mitchell Froom, Tchad Blake, Los Lobos. Recorded at Sunset Sound Factory, Hollywood, California. This is a hybrid Super Audio CD playable on both regular and Super Audio CD players. Los Lobos: David Hidalgo, Cesar Rosas, Steve Berlin, Conrad Lozano, Louis Perez. Additional personnel: Mitchell Froom (keyboards); Alex Acuna (drums, percussion); Pete Thomas, Aaron Ballesteros (drums); Victor Bisetti (percussion). Producers: Mitchell Froom, Tchad Blake, Los Lobos. Recorded at Sunset Sound Factory, Hollywood, California. All tracks have been digitally remastered using Gain 2 technology. Given all the extracurricular projects members of Los Lobos pursued during the three years separating Colossal Head and its followup, it's not surprising that they've decided to show off what they've learned on This Time, resulting in a record that vacillates between songcraft and sonic sculptures. It could be said that Kiko and Colassal Head were like this as well, but the difference is that This Time has the structure of a straight-ahead rock & roll record, clocking in at 38 minutes with 11 short tracks. While that conciseness is welcome, it also points out the flaws in the post-Latin Playboys Los Lobos -- Cesar Rosas' fine rockers are obscured by a layer of studio gauze, and David Hidalgo's songs can seem like excuses to run wild in the studio. If the production was truly evocative or innovative, that wouldn't be a problem, but This Time is another in a long line of murky, self-conscious productions from Froom, Blake, and Hidalgo, where creating sound is more important than making music. This is especially frustrating, since This Time has elements of a very good record -- it's paced well and boasts strong moments from both Hidalgo ("This Time," "T .com ---- Most bands who've soldiered on for as long as Los Lobos find that middle-age brings a laissez-faire bargain between fame and nostalgia that makes it all too easy to coast into the sunset comfortably seated on their laurels. What's so compelling about Lobos in the 1990s and beyond is their steadfast refusal to succumb to any such temptation. This Time marks the third chapter in their collaboration with producers Mitchell Froom and Tchad Blake that yielded the outstanding and surprising Kiko and Colossal Head. It's easily their most adventuresome, category-confounding outing yet. Time often bravely veers into the strange, liberating ethos espoused by Blake, Froom, and Lobos mainstays David Hidalgo and Louis Perez on their deliciously skewed side-project, Latin Playboys. The title track seems to slyly segue in from nowhere, "Oh Yeah" lopes into a dreamy jazz subtly punctuated by Blake's studio percussion, and "Some Say Some Do" manages a dark new techno-twist on the blues. The gritty riffing on "Viking" and "High Places" prove that the band's love affair with Hendrix is no passing fancy. Even the Latin stylings of "Cumbia Raza," the sexy "Corazon," and the playful "La Playa" get a good studio tweaking. Those who expected Los Lobos to churn out endless permutations of "La Bamba" may be disappointed at this stereotype-resistant exploration. But those who relish true adventure and master musicianship are going to very happy indeed. Que corran para siempre --Jerry McCulley