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Zero replies and 30 views - now that perfectly sums up the mass appeal of Giant Sand.
I've got almost every GS album - some only on vinyl - and love Howe Gelb even though it's totally frustrating being a fan. The guy is fully capable of greatness, and sporadically attains it, but for the most part he's content to diddle around making songs and albums out of loose improvs.
There's two eras of Giant Sand - the early years ('85 - mid '90s) when it was still a band - a twisted alt.country band, at that (and alt.country in the exact same way the Meat Puppets weren't) - and the last decade when it's been primarily a Howe Gelb solo project.
For the former, start with the Ballad of a Thin Line Man/ Valley of Rain two-fer. It's their first two reckids, and they're both the closest Gelb ever got to conventional songwriting.
For the latter, go with Chore Of Enchantment, which almost sounds like a Leonard Cohen album, if Leonard had let a drunk dude with a cheap guitar into the studio. And then got drunk with him. And then suddenly developed ADD.
Also, out of print but around, Glum is pretty awesome.
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