It’s something of a surprising pairing, the collaboration between veteran Bay Area singer-songwriter Chuck Prophet and Salinas-based cumbia band ¿Qiensave?. In practice, however, their joint album Wake the Dead feels completely natural—a fluid and thrilling meeting at a musical crossroads, like two drivers meeting for an exchange at a dusty desert intersection.
On the 2024 album, Prophet carries a swagger somewhere between Beck and Jonathan Richman, confident and full of life. His songs are gratifying and hooky with a timeless quality. Sometimes he’s shooting for the storytelling specificity you’d find in a Tom Petty or Paul Simon vignette (“Sally Was a Cop”); other times he tackles emotional and big picture stuff, like the numbness felt when lost love fades into the realm of memory (“First Came The Thunder”). ¿Qiensave? adds enchanting lead lines, rock-solid grooves, and a vocal presence that both responds to and harmonizes with Prophet’s lyrical musings.
“Wake The Dead” achieves two things at once: Listeners looking for a contemplative folksy record will link arms with those looking to dance to a rich, lush, and soulful cumbia record. Prophet and ¿Qiensave? have created a kind of cross-cultural sonic bridge whose goal is to make every listener feel good. It succeeds.
