Havalina (or Havalina Rail Co.) has a music output that has been consistently inconsistent over their recorded history. This is precisely the quality which has given them a dedicated underground following. Listening to Havalina's first four studio albums is akin to listening to a cross-section of American popular music of the last century, with everything from jazz to blues to folk to hip-hop being thrown in the mix.
This album adds another category to the mix. With the new influences in the band added by the new members Starry Dynamo (guitar, vocals) and David Maust (hurdy-gurdy, organ), there's a more Latin/Mexican tinge to many of the tunes. Violinist Erick Diego takes over the drumkit with the departure of long-time drummer Jeff Suri, leaving only Matt Wignall (guitar, vocals) and Orlando Greenhill (bass) from the original group. Havalina can now safely claim to be one of the few rock bands to boast a hurdy-gurdy player.
Musically, the new influences do not in any way tone down the variable song styles and flavors. The opening song, "Space and Mexico" has a 60's rock attitude to it, with combined Spanish and English lyrics and a heavier guitar attack than anything Havalina has previously released. The second song, "I Think I'm Losing You" changes tone entirely to a Spanish-tinged little number, as Dynamo and Wignall trade vocals. Starry Dynamo's vocal work is quite beautiful, and is a welcome counterpoint to Wignall's often forced vocals. And so on and so forth. Other standout tracks include "You Got Me Cryin'," the bouncy "Rocketship," the melancholy "Bullfighter" and "Carlos." The whole album, in typical Havalina style, jumps from genre to genre, yet retains a sense of coherence. This is perhaps best demonstrated by the final track, the "Space, Love, and Bullfighting Suite". It pushes more boundaries than any single track Havalina has recorded before. It ranges from folk song to space-rock to recitation to country song to weird modernist composition, all in the space of 6 minutes.
This album not only marks a welcome return to CD for Havalina, but a return to Tooth and Nail, which should ensure that this disc gets the distribution it deserves. In many respects, this is Havalina's best record yet. The overall sound quality is rich and clear. There is a deeper maturity to the songwriting. The new band members fit seamlessly into the weirdness that is the Havalina soundscape.
The only caveat about this album is that if you already have the EP A Bullfighter's Guide To Space And Love the songs "Mexico" "Worst Days" and "You Got Me Cryin'" will sound a little odd at first, as there was a certain sound to the demos that the finished product doesn't have. If anything, the finished tracks are better songs. They just sound strange at first.
If you have never ventured into Havalinaland, this would be an excellent time to start. If you, like me, are a long time Havalina listener, then all I need to tell you about this album is we have more of the same, only much different. And that's what Havalina's about.
5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
Decapolis July 2002Reviewed by Matt ModrichHavalina's first two albums weren't typical Tooth and Nail back when they were Havalina Rail Co. Despite shortening their name and being away from Tooth and Nail for a while, their musical variety remains one of a kind. "Space, Love & Bullfighting" is a concept album with all the songs generally being about those three topics. Although it could be argued that space and bullfighting are simply…The Phantom Tollbooth 2002Reviewed by Dave KerschbaumTeaser: Havalina takes us on yet another field trip: outer space, via Spain and Mexico. Havalina Rail Company have always been quite good at mixing different musical genres effectively -- often genres that seem to otherwise have nothing to do with each other. On Space Love & Bullfighting, Havalina (they have opted for the shortened name) have not stopped at musical genres, but have woven together…Opus 2002Reviewed by Jason MoreheadIf there's any band out there that deserves a break, it's Havalina (formerly Havalina Rail Co.). It's always a shame when a great bunch of musicians undergoes label travails, touring disasters, and seemingly more lineup changes than The Cure, but in Havalina's case, it's just ridiculous. After releasing a couple of albums on Tooth & Nail (which, for some inexplicable reason, got lumped in with…Similar sounding releases
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