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| Andalucian Punk Rock | ||
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| Excuse
me, but do you know where the undertakers are rehearsing? Not a comfortable question to ask someone at the side of the road, particularly in broken Spanish. Just have to trust on the handwritten instructions. Trouble was, they only said: station, tunnel, big tree, one house. “Simple,” said Cristóbal Jiménez, the lead guitarist of Andalucian punk rock band The Enterradores (The Undertakers or Gravediggers) in his office where he works as a designer for the local newspaper, Alora. I asked him where the band got its name and he shrugged and pointed at his head. “Loco,” he suggested, staring at his computer. “But isn’t music about life?” I boldly, but perhaps oldly asked. Could it all be a little bit morbid? But the sparkle in Cristóbal’s eye as he turned to face me, his T-shirt loudly displaying the famous Rolling Stone’s tongue, showed that it was a playful joke. Their music certainly was about life, about having fun and I was looking forward to seeing them in rehearsal. In fact the directions to the old house where the group were practising did prove to be simple. There was the station, there was the bar, the tunnel, the big tree and the one house. The problem was that the house looked closed up and deserted. In fact, as quiet as the grave. I had to admit that at this point I wondered if it was all some kind of a joke, one that only an undertaker would really appreciate. Then I discovered a message on my mobe. “Sorry, no rehearsal this week. I’ll contact you later.” Was there life in the story yet? Or had the gravediggers laid it to rest? The next week a text message and two phone calls went unanswered. Were The Enterradores going to rehearse or not? You just can’t find an undertaker when you need one these days! Then the message came through and it was off at sunset into the steadily darkening countryside to visit the undertakers. There was a car at the one house beside the big tree and we parked just around the corner. A heavy burst of thudding music seemed promising, but turned out to be coming from one of two nearby parked cars. The house was still silent, yes, that’s right, silent as the grave. We approached cautiously and then suddenly the roof lifted with the explosion of a powerful beat. I knocked on various doors in vain, then got out my mobe and phoned Cristóbal. It was a desperate attempt to gain entry, the chances of him hearing being slim to say the least, the music loud enough to raise the dead. Eventually we were spotted by a lady who appeared from nowhere and led us round the back, through a kitchen, down a corridor and to a door that was almost vibrating off it hinges. She knocked and as if by magic the music stopped and at last we met the famous Enterradores in the flesh, not with their spades either, but sweating over their musical instruments. Cris offered us a beer and we went outside for a chat with the boys, Pako Nicho, singer and songwriter, Paco Kazaño, bass player, and girl drummer, Delia Kuvva. I returned to the question of the band’s name and the truth came out. Pako explained that in Spanish his name, Nicho, meant ‘grave’ and basically he was the undertaker and the others were the gravediggers. Perfect sense. What bands had influenced the Enterradores? Bauhaus, said Pako instantly, showing their name on his T-Shirt, and Iggy Pop. Cris was a fan of the Misfits, Paco’s heroes were the Sex Pistols and Delia spoke very highly of Siouxsie and the Banshees. Spanish favourites included Paralitikos, Paralisis Permanente and Kante Pinréliko-Raphael. And what are your songs about? Love? No, never, said Pako, they are about horror. Our music is raw punk. But you seem such a nice bunch of boys and girl, I said. Their laughter and their smiles confirmed my suspicion. The band, who have had a CD recorded, which has achieved a fair measure of success locally, have been friends for years, although the group has only been playing together for about a year and a half. They have aspirations for more success, but all admit, in a very balanced way considering the nature of their art, that their music is just a hobby. Having a gig the next night, as one of five bands playing at the Sala Silla Rock in Campanillas, there wasn’t a moment more to lose and we went back inside for that all-important rehearsal. They were loud, energetic and youthful. The music was driving, furious and wild. We enjoyed it, we cheered and they smiled. Thank you very much, said Pako into his microphone. No, thank you and every success for the future, Enterradores! Contact details: los_enterrradores@hotmail.com Tel: 679 428 754 / 660 891 205 |
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¿Perdóneme,
pero sabe usted dónde los enterradores están ensayando?
No una pregunta cómoda a preguntar a alguien en el lado del camino,
particularmente en español quebrado. Tendría que confiar
en en las instrucciones manuscritas. El problema era, dijeron solamente:
estación, túnel, árbol grande, una casa. |
| Update March 2007 - The Enterradores have now formed a new group, the Inyectables, with the same lineup except for Nicho. Feature coming soon. | Lo último Marzo 2007 - Los Enterradores ha hecho un grupo nuevo, Inyectables, con los mimos miembros excepto Nicho. Reportaje muy pronto. | |
March
2006 |
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