Earlier this month, during a truly next-level show at Pappy & Harriet’s, Kid Congo Powers said that his collaboration with French musician and composer Naïm Amor was “a conversation between our guitars.” Live with their full band, it sounded like a conversation that happened at four in the morning after sharing a couple joints, binge-watching Twin Peaks, and putting on an album by The Cramps. In fact, you know Kid Congo Powers’ sound from his time with The Cramps (Lux Interior named him, after all), Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and Gun Club, and the influences are definitely there. Amor’s completely different style combines with that insane pedigree to create a sound like you’ve never heard. On Tucson Safari, Powers and Amor didn’t record with a band, but adding Miles Bartlett on six-string electric bass and Chris Carlone on drums was no mistake. If you’ve listened to the album a hundred times (which I suggest you do), the live show is a whole new experience, with two new musicians adding to this incredible stew that is Amor y Powers.
Most journalists who have covered Tucson Safari seem to struggle to pin it down to one or even two genres, because it’s a sound that jumps out of any box you try to shove it in. In songs like “Murder We Wrote” and “Ouch,” the influences of rockabilly and punk are clear and present. Then you hit songs like “Kid’s Stroll” and “Showdown” and get transported to a solid groove in the most surreal soundscape you’ve ever grooved in. Naïm Amor’s background composing soundtracks for films and documentaries definitely set him up for success here—he knows how to create and maintain a vibe that doesn’t quit.
It’s surfy, psychedelic, and has enough edge to remind you that Powers, like most guitarists, started his career in a garage. It makes you want to close your eyes and dance, smoke cigarettes in a dimly lit diner, lie on the floor with the record spinning above your head, and howl at the moon all at once.
If you’re missing this record, you are missing out. The desert vibes of Tucson mixed with the incredible talents of Naïm Amor and Kid Congo Powers create an album that’s truly an experience, and with most artists putting out single after single to work the algorithm, that’s a rare treat. You can enjoy it on your streaming service of choice, but you can also just buy the fucking record and throw some actual cash at these incredible artists.
