Think of Raul Malo as the polka-dotted elephant – or maybe even the train with square wheels – in the classic cartoon ‘Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.”
He uses those examples from the fictional “Island of Misfit Toys” to explain where he fits into the music spectrum these days, especially since he left the much-heralded Mavericks. Now as a solo artist, Malo follows his own musical impulses. That leaves some music insiders scratching their heads a bit wondering where to place his lush, dynamic sound
“You get invited and you take it. That’s about as honest an answer I can give you,” said Malo of his recent appearances at the Americana Music Festival in Nashville. “Plus, I feel Americana should be, and it is to many degrees, a land of misfits. It’s like in the old cartoon, the ‘Island of Misfit Toys.’ And that’s ok. What a wonderful thing.”
Interesting that Malo’s latest album – the richly textured and intricately arranged Sinners and Saints – seems to put him squarely into that misfit category. The sound is clearly a major departure from the Mavericks traditional country infused with rock that won popular and critical acclaim for Malo and his band mates in the 1990s.
Sinners and Saints is a mix of Latin tunes such as “Superstar” punctuated with a hint of Alt Country in Rodney Crowell’s ‘Til I Gain Control Again,’ and “Saint Behind the Glass,” from Los Lobos and Tex-Mex in “Sombras.”
Malo approaches music much as an author would approach a book. In Malo’s case, each song is a chapter. In this musical book, he tackles tough issues about planning for the future, looking beyond “today,” and collaboration for the common good. He also explores his earliest musical roots including the Spanish songs with flamenco touches his mother tells him he first experienced as a baby.
“I went back and started listening to some of those old Spanish recordings,” he said, adding the strong lyrics that tell stories are often accented by playfulness.
“I thought what a beautiful approach to creating music – it’s an empty canvas. There are no rules for the listener. I’m sure the performer and players have rules, but I came at it as a listener.”
From there, Malo started experimenting with his own songs, first on classical guitar and then on electric eventually adding horns, percussion and other instrumentation. Although it was a new approach to his creative process, Malo found it oddly comfortable as well.
“I found my music has a lot of those elements already in it especially my solo work,” he said. “I never knew where it came from…To me, it is all a cohesive unit. I basically used all the same instruments on each track – changed a beat here and there and changed the groove and boom — it makes it a completely different thing. “
To Malo’s mind, though he doesn’t mention the Mavericks, there are many sections of the population that are looking for sounds akin to those on Sinners and Saints. in their music. Although many musicians now put equal emphasis on the high-tech effects that are embraced during arena shows, Malo is aiming toward a different target that puts the emphasis on the music.
“There’s a whole section of the population that popular culture does not address or reach out to,” he said. “Instead they just talk about living for today, which is a broken model…We are seeing a cottage industry really starting to grow a bit. Look at house concerts. People are setting up concerts away from Live Nation and Clear Channel and TicketMaster because they are tired of [such homogenization]. I’m personally glad I’m in Americana.”
Certainly the crowds at the Americana Music Festival embraced him, especially his newest music. Although Malo approached the album – which he completely wrote, engineered and produced with help from a few players along the way — as an experiment, he seems quite satisfied with the final work. Perhaps that’s because it truly is all from his viewpoint.
“I decided early on that this record was going to be truly from my perspective and I didn’t want the usual feedback,” he said of the pursuit. “I didn’t want to be swayed one way or the other. When you’re working with somebody, there’s always a little bit of give-and-take and that’s ok – that’s part of the creative process and I love that creative process. It’s been like that all my life…This record, though is a bit more personal….I thought ‘Why not just go all the way?’”
