Enrique Bunbury tour to include Anaheim, Hollywood Palladium

Enrique Bunbury, the Spanish singer-guitarist whose protean image and cryptic lyrics have caused some to view him as an Iberian Bob Dylan, will make three Southern California stops during his fall tour.

Bunbury will perform Nov. 17 at Viejas Arena in San Diego, Nov. 19 at the City National Grove of Anaheim and Nov. 20 at the Hollywood Palladium as part of his “Licenciado Cantinas” tour (link in Spanish). That’s a major jump up in seating capacity from Bunbury’s May 2010 concert at the House of Blues Anaheim.

On that occasion, Bunbury displayed the haunting baritone voice and slyly poetic wordplay packed with literary allusions that has made him a pop idol in Spain and much of Latin America.

With “Licenciado Cantinas,” the shape-shifting artist reinterprets tunes from the classic Latin songbook, such as Agustín Lara’s “El mar, el cielo y tú “ and “ El día de mi suerte “ by Héctor Lavoe and Willie Colón. David Hidalgo of Los Lobos, the great Cuban guitarist (and Buena Vista Social Club mainstay) Eliades Ochoa and Tejano accordionist Flaco Jiménez are among the guests artist who perform with Bunbury on the record, which includes some exquisitely melancholy covers that go down as smoothly as a shot of Herradura Reposado.

Prior to his U.S. engagements, Bunbury will be touring a number of cities in Mexico, where the newspaper El Universal recently reported (link in Spanish) that he has no plans to get together with members of his old band, Héroes del Silencio, who have supposedly been at work on a new disc.

“You have to know when to close cycles. You have to know to look for new challenges and continue with the different apprenticeships of life,” Bunbury told the newspaper. He went on to praise his old bandmates and wish them well.

“I have a lot of hope for them. I believe in their talent and I believe they can make a great record,” he said.

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