Provisions

Howe Gelb is Giant Sand. He is also The Band of Blacky Ranchette, Arizona Amp & Alternator, OP8 and a solo artist. How he determines which umbrella to record under is something only he truly understands. 2008’s ProVisions features the same “Giant Sand” line-up that backed him for the previous album, 2004’s …Is All Over…the Map, since his once steady compatriots from earlier albums decided to make their Calexico side-project full time. In the end, it all comes down to Gelb, no matter how many guests he seats. Neko Case, Isobel Campbell, M. Ward, Voices of Praise Choir, and Henriette Sennenvaldt are on the list and each adds a nice touch. But the overall trajectory here is another typically casual Gelb wander through an anonymous night where a live band brew over some warmly distorted guitar and Gelb sing-speaks rhymes both silly and serious, with a vague sense that either the apocalypse or a sunrise is close at hand. The low-key burn of “Spiral” and “Pitch & Sway” capture this vibe brilliantly. For an extra push, PJ Harvey’s “The Desperate Kingdom of Love” is given a commanding performance with the piano and slide guitar creating a tension that steadily rises.