Live Review: Calexico, Tiny Ruins

New Zealand trio Tiny Ruins warmed the crowd tonight with breathy folk; however, their sleepy vibe was a little too enticing at times. Clearly competent and very sweet (perhaps a little awed too), tunes like Old As The Hills were particularly impressive for their slow burn. Just a little more variety would have really kicked it, though. Those of us with short attention spans were more than rewarded with Calexico, who could never be accused of being genre-trapped or navel-gazing. The seven-piece travelled from mariachi to contemporary country and acoustic semi-electro soundscapes seamlessly. Almost two decades together and counting, tonight we got a good mix of the group's musical career, with highlights including soundtracks, the so called 'Tex Mex' crossovers and sweet little interludes where the big collaboration weren't scared to hold back and let some slowness take over. Promising to allow room to make the gig 'as cinematic as possible', with just a red curtain backdrop in the main concert hall, they took the Opera House through the desert and out across the countryside with Two Silver Trees, Dead Moon and Maybe On Monday especially. Holly from Tiny Ruins returned for a duet on Slowness (simply lovely), and the group also let in a cheeky Joy Division moment with Love Will Tear Us Apart in the mix. Their cover of the band Love's '60s track, Alone Again Or, also raised the roof – with so much in their own back cats to choose from, these gestures were not only refreshing, but really generous. Returning for two encores as well as many a clap and singalong, ringleader Joey Burns apologised for not having had time “to get in amongst it” in town (and in the concert hall, it seemed), before finally leaving on a somewhat unusually slower finale, The Vanishing Mind. Nothing vanishing about this gig anytime soon though.