UCSB Arts & Lectures will present soulful songwriter José González with special guest, recording artist Bedouine, at 8 p.m. Wed., Jan. 31, at UCSB Campbell Hall.
González gained a loyal following worldwide, wooing his audience with probing lyrics, intricate guitar melodies and, said Spin.com, a “beautiful yet haunting voice.”
Born in Sweden to Argentinian parents, González seamlessly integrates the sounds of his Latin American roots with introspective folk punctuated by rock panache.
“A spellbinding talent” according to The Telegraph, U.K., González returns with special guest Bedouine, whose ’60s folk meets ’70s country funk with a glimmer of bossa nova cool, UCSB Arts & Lectures reports.
González’s latest album, Vestiges & Claws, has a unique and quietly visceral power, UCSB Arts & Lectures said. Like his previous releases, it was recorded largely in his home and partly at Svenska Grammofon Studion, both in Gothenberg, Sweden.
González played in hardcore punk bands through his teenage years before forming Junip in 1998 with childhood friends Tobias Winterkorn and Elias Araya. However, it was his first solo album, Veneer (2003), that put him on the map.
He has since recorded two more critically acclaimed solo albums — In Our Nature (2007) and Vestiges & Claws (2015) — as well as two albums with Junip, Fields (2010) and Junip (2013).
González also contributed to the film soundtrack for The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013).
Bedouine is the moniker of Azniv Korkejian, a Hollywood music editor turned recording artist who released her self-titled debut this year.
Bedouine was made with the help of Spacebomb session musicians, and though it’s primarily a folk album, this collection of songs shapeshifts and collects new influences along the way.
These are plainspoken songs written for quiet moments alone and long walks home, and though the entanglements Korkejian sings about don’t lead to mind-bending revelations, they do leave you feeling a bit more grounded, Arts & Lectures reports.
Tickets are $25-$40 for the general public, $18 for UCSB students with valid student ID.
For tickets and more information, call UCSB Arts & Lectures, 893-3535, or visit www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu.
— Caitlin O’Hara for UCSB Arts & Lectures.