There are never-ending tours — the ones that spirit bands around the world for months and months at a time — and then there are Los Lonely Boys tours.
The Grammy-winning Texas trio, best known for its bouncy 2004 breakout single “Heaven,” has been on the road more than six years with only a few weeks off between gigs.
“We really don’t get much time at home, man,” said bassist JoJo Garza, who plays in the band with siblings Henry (guitar) and Ringo (drums). “Most of the time we’re home is around late October or November and we’re either cutting tracks or getting ready to tour again.”
The group’s most recent jaunt, the appropriately named “Acoustic Brotherhood Tour,” has welcomed a who’s who of Latin-rock crossover acts, including Los Lobos, Ozomatli and Kinky.
“Of course, it comes from brotherhood, but Latino roots are another thing that unites the bands,” Garza said. “It has to do with the intertwining of Latino music and rock, as well as something a little different like hip-hop or R&B.”
The tour plays five Colorado dates starting tonight, including a stop at the Boulder Theater on Monday with legendary Texas songwriter Alejandro Escovedo and Mexican-American fiddle player Carrie Rodriguez.
The latest leg began two weeks ago and will wind from Portland, Ore., to Atlanta through April. It’s just another extension of the band’s intimidating tour schedule, which last year took them as far as Iraq and Kuwait to play for American troops.
Garza was humbled by the experience and thinks about it every day.
“Once you see a person or know a person who’s there, it brings more awareness of what’s involved,” he said. “At some of these gigs we’re paying respect to local heroes, from people who served in war to heroes who do things for the community.”
They are bringing that feeling along on tour. Fans can nominate soldiers and community members on the band’s website (loslonelyboyscom), and winners will receive four tickets to the show, as well as a short, on-stage honor ceremony, in which the band presents them with a custom-made “challenge coin.”
But despite the band’s support for military men and women, and their devout Christianity (one side of the coins read “Texican Rock-N- Roll: God Bless-Thank You” while the other says “In Jesus’ Name We Play”) the band’s emphasis at the shows is loose, stripped-down fun.
“We’re doing a lot of stuff from the first record, a couple of songs from ‘Sacred’ and a few songs from ‘Forgiven’ — just mixing it up,” Garza said. “It’s just an acoustic guitar, acoustic bass and drums, but sometimes Ringo breaks it down with just congas and little beats and stuff.
“It’s a more raw energy where we’re able to connect with the crowd differently. We connect with the crowd when we’re playing (electric) too, but this enhances it that much more. You can talk and hear a little more because it’s an up-close-and-personal thing.”
John Wenzel: 303-954-1642 or jwenzel@denverpost.com
LOS LONELY BOYS.
Tex-Mex rock. Avalon Theatre, Grand Junction, (today); Vilar Center, Beaver Creek (Saturday); Wheeler Opera House, Aspen (Sunday); Boulder Theater (Monday); Pikes Peak Center, Colorado Springs (Tuesday). With Alejandro Escovedo and Carrie Rodriguez. Various time and prices. Visit loslonelyboys.com for tickets.
