Escovedo's latest takes close look at mystery of love

With each record that Alejandro Escovedo puts out, fans of the Texas-based singer-songwriter marvel at the fact that he doesn't have a bigger audience.

Escovedo doesn't mind at all.

“I'm really happy with how things have gone,” Escovedo said during a phone interview. “I'm blessed to have received critical praise for my work, and I have a following that gives me the freedom to make the music I want to make.”

Escovedo released his 10th solo record, “Street Songs of Love” (Concord Music), last year. Like most of his solo work, the album hits on different genres, moving from gritty, Stones-style raunch to glam rock to country-inflected ballads.

Escovedo will perform songs from the new record and older material during an intimate acoustic show this weekend in Rosemont.

“I'm looking forward to giving these songs the acoustic treatment,” he said. “It should be a great show.”

There's a common theme running through “Street Songs”: the unpredictable and mysterious nature of love. That theme emerged unexpectedly during the writing process, Escovedo said.

“My last record (2008's ‘Real Animal') was autobiographical, so I knew ahead of time what kind of shape it would take and the writing went very easy, almost like storyboards for a movie,” he said. “I didn't want that with this record. I wanted to go into it without any notion of theme or structure.”

Gradually, though, as Escovedo and his songwriting partner Chuck Prophet started working on the songs, Escovedo noticed that the record was turning into a rumination on love.

“I was going through a breakup at the start of that process, which probably influenced things,” he said. “But the songs aren't about a specific situation. It's more a look at love itself, at what it does to people, good and bad.”

Musically, the record delivers plenty of loud guitar rock that wouldn't sound out of place on albums by the New York Dolls or 1970s-era Bruce Springsteen. (Springsteen, a big Escovedo fan, provides guest vocals on the song “Faith.”) Producer Tony Visconti gives the songs a sheen that begs for them to be blasted from car speakers while cruising down a highway.

There are quieter moments, too, like “Fort Worth Blue,” a gorgeous instrumental that closes the record with mournful, rootsy guitar.

“I really love how the record turned out,” Escovedo said. “We've had a great time with these songs on the road.”

Escovedo's life in music began in the 1970s with a punk band called the Nuns, part of the raucous San Francisco music scene of the day. In the 1980s, he played in Rank and File, a band that fused punk with country.

His solo career got started in the 1990s, and that's when critics and discerning fans noticed not just his instrumental prowess, but also his literate, heartfelt songwriting and soulful voice.

Escovedo has garnered a devoted following on the strength of his records and his relentless touring schedule. He says he still loves going out on tour, even if the travel gets wearying sometimes.

“We're a live band,” he said. “Our bread and butter is playing on the road.”

The support that his fan base gives him on the road has helped insulate Escovedo from the ongoing chaos of the music industry, he said.

“Really, what is the industry now? There's so much uncertainty out there,” he said. “But I'm grateful because I'm able to count on a certain amount of fan support, which makes it possible for me to do my kind of music. That's a wonderful gift to have.”

<b>Alejandro Escovedo (with Nicholas Tremulis)</b>

<b>When:</b> 8:30 p.m. Saturday, March 26

<b>Where:</b> Montrose Room, inside the InterContinental Chicago O'Hare hotel, 5300 N. River Road, Rosemont, (847) 544-5300

<b>Tickets:</b> $ 20, available at ticketmaster.com