With "Chelsea Hotel '78," he has our complete attention as he clearly and intimately paints a picture of living the punk rock dream and nightmare. The band layers and alternates the chorus: "and it makes no sense" ... "and it makes perfect sense" to a hypnotic end. It is more than good rock and roll; it is good theater.

As the opening bars of each song play, people cheer as if that was the song they've been waiting to hear. Perhaps they recognize tunes off the album, two days after the release. More likely they've heard them before, here at the Continental Club. Alejandro had a four-month Tuesday night residency with fellow musician David Garza while he "learned these songs."

But the Continental Club is not the only crucible which forged this band. They played Carnegie Hall too, as a string quartet. Brian Standefer (cello) and Susan Voelz  (violin) have contributed to Alejandro's albums and tours for over ten years. Watching Susan in her elegant black dress, red boots stomping the distortion pedal, I become certain we should lobby for a new Grammy category for "Best Rock Violin."

In the middle, Alejandro is the conductor the band, subtly giving five people cues and blending the strings and hard-driving guitar rock into a cohesive whole. His cues to the audience are not so subtle. After the ballads and stories in the middle of the set, he brings the mood back to rocking, hard. He exhorts us to release our inner animal as they start up "Real as an Animal". The audience is a sea of waving arms, then closes with another radio favorite with a strong guitar hook, "Castanets."

The audience demands more, and the band returns for a three song encore. Alejandro's rock star charisma is at an all-time high. They play an arena-worthy cover of "All the Young Dudes," where he reaches out to the audience. He invites a friend from the audience, Gordie Johnson to take his guitar during "Beast of Burden," freeing him to flirt and tease the audience without a care in the world. He even makes a rock-star exit, leaving the stage after the vocals are over and leaving Gordie and David to trade guitar licks until we are all satisfied.

You don’t have to travel to Austin to share the experience of this great show; the tour supporting Real Animal, has fifteen July dates taking him to Chicago, Toronto, New York, Asheville, Atlanta, New Orleans and points in between.

Hearing the songs live made it easier for me to hear the nuances of the cello and the violin on the album. The rich full sounds of the strings and powerful guitar work fill the room, and the band’s joy in their work is infectious. If you cannot catch a live show, they will perform a show scheduled for broadcast August 8th, 2008, on David Letterman.

You can find the complete setlist by going to Rolling Stone's website. You'll also find video by going here.