We’re thrilled that Alejandro Escovedo will be headlining our next WFPK Waterfront Wednesday on June 26th! He’s currently touring in support of his latest album, Echo Dancing, a radical re-imagining of songs from his vast catalog. His classic rocker “Castanets,“ always a favorite at his live shows, gets turned inside out and re-titled “Castañuelas.”
Speaking of “Castañuelas,” Escovedo shares: “In 2019 we discovered a movie called Ya No Estoy Aqui which is a film about kids enamored with cumbia. They created a way to slow down the rhythm to create new dances in the community built around this music…much in the same way dub music was created. When I chose “Castanets” as a song for the record; I showed Don Antonio and Nicola Peruch this movie and I proceeded to play a riff and a little skank and they joined in for us to create “Castañuelas.” It’s not a pure cumbia but a dub cumbia. Cheers!”
Listen below.
Explaining the genesis of the new album, Escovedo says: “I was planning this record just prior to boarding a plane to Italy to record with Don Antonio and Nicola Peruch. My original idea was to record an album of new material. But then I changed my mind and thought that revisiting songs from my various albums would be more interesting. I always feel that a well-written song can withstand a lot of abuse. Turning a past song inside out leads to discovery of new ideas you might not have understood. The songs never seem to be complete. They are always evolving.”
WFPK Song of the Day spotlights a song we love - weekdays at 11:10.
