Given the political rhetoric surrounding borders, nations, and belonging, Mexican-American singer-songwriter Alejandro Escovedo’s concept albumdelivers a formidable response. Soft, string-backed piano opens The Crossing, but that’s the last soothing moment across the lengthy Americana- and country-leaning LP. In the tradition of protest singer-songwriters like Woody Guthrie and Bruce Cockburn, as well as more recent groups like A Tribe Called Red, Escovedo lays bare the challenges Mexicans and Mexican-Americans face throughout thumping tracks. Backed by a chorus of fervent voices on “Fury and Fire,” he challenges Donald Trump’s threat with one of his own: “The TV says that they’re gonna run us out/Call us rapists, go and build a bigger wall/We’re gonna tear it down.”