Alejandro Escovedo
's father was born in Mexico but left home as a young man to come to the United States in search of a better life for himself and his family. The victories and defeats that came his way are a vital part of
Escovedo
's backstory that has informed much of his work, and never as strongly as on his 2018 effort
The Crossing
.
is a concept album that follows two young men -- Diego from Saltillo, Mexico and Salvo from Southern Italy -- who were drawn to America through the images they saw in punk rock, film noir, and beat literature, only to find the land of their dreams far more complex and less forgiving than they imagined. A thoughtful, deeply powerful meditation on the immigrant experience,
is one of the finest albums in
's illustrious catalog, and in 2020 he offered a different take on the material with the release of
La Cruzada
. For
,
worked with
Alex Ruiz
, leader of the Texas-based Rock en Espanol band
Del Castillo
, to translate the songs into Spanish, with
Ruiz
then cutting new Spanish-language vocals for
's backing tracks. (
believed that
would sing the Spanish lyrics with greater fluency than he could.)
has a different feel than
that goes beyond a simple Spanish translation;
's vocals are strong but give the characters a different, more dramatic tone than in
's slightly more nuanced performances, and by putting these stories into a different tongue, it puts Diego and Salvo's otherness in America into far stronger relief. It also adds layers to the album's interpretation of
Joe Ely
's "Silver City," as
trades off verses sung in English with
's responses in Spanish, making the protagonist's disappearance into a land of broken promises deeper and more cutting. Even if the music remains the same -- a superb collaboration between
and the Italian rock band
Don Antonio
--
is something deeper and more resonant than a simple Spanish-language retread of a two-year-old album. It tells the same story, but with just enough differences to make it connect in a genuinely different way, and this variation adds layers to the already satisfying themes of the original album. Even fans not fluent in Spanish will find it a rewarding experience. ~ Mark Deming