LOS LOBOS

Aztlán is the mythical birthplace of the Aztecs. Legend has it that this ancestral Eden lies somewhere in the territories claimed by the U.S. in the Mexican-American War. In East Los Angeles, a thousand years after the Aztecs set out to find their place in the world, four high school pals started playing music that would lead them to do the same.

Their music was a unique take on the history of rock and roll injected with the Mexican traditionals they grew up with, winning them countless awards and accolades.

"This record covers everything we're about," Louie Pérez says of Good Morning Aztlán. This is a tall order, as Los Lobos has been about everything from traditional Mexican music (La Pistola y el Corazon), to a crossover hit ("La Bamba"), to later records that beguilingly played with form and narrative (Kiko, Colossal Head). But Los Lobos has always been  about more than music, reflected in the fact that the Los Lobos  of 2002 that started the band in 1973, with the addition of Steve Berlin, who joined in 1983. This staying power has more to do with a personal bond than just music.

For instance, with most bands, members stepping out to work on side projects usually causes friction. But Los Lobos internal bonds are such that they revel in any of their successes, with or without the rest of the lineup. This in-band support has led to many successful outings, including Latin Playboys, Houndog, Soul Disguise and most recently, Grammy award winning Los Super Seven. Additionally the band remains actively involved in film and television, scoring including last year's Spy Kids.

"Its been a long, tough road for us," Louie says. And by us, he means himself, David Hidalgo, Conrad Lozano, Cesar Rosas, and Steve Berlin. But no matter how grueling the haul, they continue to make the music they make because that's who they are, and what they've grown to be. How else do you explain a band still creating exciting work some 20 years after they started - when most groups are broken-up, broken down, or humping it out on the oldies circuit? As Louie says, "What it comes down to is friendship. We make music because that's what we were put on this earth to do. It's what we're good at."

And what they're good at has resulted in a beautiful soulful album. That musical intuition and trust shines through on Good Morning Aztlán in the R&B of "Hearts Of Stone," featuring the backing vocals of Quetzal's Martha Gonzaléz, the dreamy "Round And Round," the sprawl of "The Big Ranch," and the chugging rocker of the title track. David and Cesar's vocals are extraordinarily expressive, allowing Louie's lyrical narratives to pool into poignant observations on modern life. "Tony y Maria" revisits characters we first met back in '85 on their album How Will The Wolf Survive, and finds their life as immigrants in America to be one of fading hopes. And amid the Curtis Mayfield-like sounds on “The Word”, "Time has no mercy on me" is balanced with "Love... gives us everything we want for free."

But it wasn't easy. "I was nervous, for the first time in a while," Louie says of going into the studio. After a long and fruitful partnership with Mitchell Froom and Tchad Blake, the band decided to try a different direction in production, bringing in veteran producer John Leckie (XTC, Robyn Hitchcock, Radiohead's The Bends).

One thing that didn't change for the band is that much of the record's shape wasn't determined until they entered the studio. "We don't plan a lot," Louie says. "The saying is that the Los Lobos clock has no hands. It drives everyone else crazy."This spirit is exemplified with the group's last minute decision to cut a new song which was to become the title track."We were in the last phase of mixing the record," Louie relates "when David came in with a cassette tape of a new idea. After playing it, we looked around at each other and said, "oh boy, here we go."

After a few phone calls and a scramble for the necessary equipment to perform the task, the song was recorded within two days of the scheduled deadline.

The beauty of Good Morning Aztlán is its randomness and sense of purpose. "As musicians and artists, we're part of something that's larger than ourselves," Louie says. It's this combination of the mystical and the practical that explains Los Lobos.

"I've got a great job. I get to run around the world with my best friends. What could be better than that?" Louie says of Los Lobos, too humble to acknowledge the legend that still grows. For now, it continues with Good Morning Aztlán.

"What really amazes me after this long, we've not only becoming stronger as a band, but we've been able to maintain a sense of enthusiasm and discovery about ourselves and our music."