Havalina: Like Javelin with an H… in Spanish


Posted on August 12th, by mbenaim in Sound. No Comments

havalina We met Manuel Cabezalí when he was touring with songstress Russian Red in a room papered with foil. It was then he mentioned his project Havalina, a band formed eight years ago and in the process of releasing their fifth album “Imperfección.” Below they describe their project, and per our request reviewed an album by another band. Also take a minute check out their blog. Without further ado:

Havalina
Incursiones – from “Imperfección” 2009

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Imperfección – from “Imperfección” 2009

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Somos Havalina
We are Havalina. In and of itself this implies many things, because many things have happened in our almost eight-year-old trajectory. Briefly put we are three guys who live music. Rehearsals, performances, recordings and other related activities are the main roads leading to those greatly pleasurable moments that make it all worthwhile.

During our time as a band we’ve released five albums. We believe that with each release we’ve gotten a little bit closer to fulfilling what weve set out to do: making the music that satisfies us, the music that springs from within, and to – always – enjoy the ride. The key to this is knowing that the most important moment, bandwise, is happening right now, rather than waiting for a big break.

Lately, Havalina’s music has turned visceral and unmeasured. We like to dream up long tunes, to improvise, to provoque stong and enduring emotions. We are tired of frivolous, complacent music. We believe that “Imperfección” – our latest release – is a clear reflection of this.

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Somos Havalina. Eso ya de por sí quiere decir muchas cosas, porque muchas son las cosas que han pasado en nuestros ya casi ocho años de trayectoria, pero resumiendo, podemos dejarlo en que somos tres tipos a los que nos va la vida en la música. Los ensayos, los directos, las grabaciones y demás son las principales cosas que nos provocan esos pequeños momentos de gran placer que hacen que uno quiera seguir dedicándose a ello.

En todo este tiempo hemos publicado un total de cinco álbumes, y creemos que con cada nuevo disco nos acercamos un poco más al meollo del asunto: hacer la música que a uno más le llena, la que sale de dentro, y disfrutar siempre del camino que se recorre sabiendo que lo más grande es lo que está sucediendo en ese preciso instante, y no lo que quizá esté por suceder.

A día de hoy, la música de Havalina se ha tornado visceral y desmedida. Nos gusta hacer canciones largas, improvisar, provocar emociones fuertes y duraderas, y estamos cansados de la música frívola y/o complaciente. Creemos que “Imperfección”, nuestro último disco, refleja eso con fidelidad.

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nudozurdo Nudozurdo

My latest find within the Spanish musical landscape is Nudozurdo. I guess there is no single factor that made me purchase this album and listen to it nonstop for months. Rather my enjoyment of this album is due to an amorphous cumulus of factors: the lyrics, the atmosphere and, above all, what the album suggests: “sex, pedophilia and art deco.” These are not my own words, they are quoted from an interview given by Leo, the group’s vocalist, whom I’ve had the opportunity of meeting in a few occasions and am still unable to place in my well-furnished mental architecture.

Sintética is, to me, simultaneously dark but beautiful and optimistic deep down. I identify with many of the album’s lyrics (…and i believe that what I miss the most is arguing with you until I make you cry, so that you’ll forgive me first, and to put you, once again, against the wall…) but also with its way of interpreting harmonies, progression, atmosphere and rhythm in general: how quickly or slowly things take place.

There isn’t much more I can say about this larger-than-life album. Only that I am glad that things like this happen in my city, even if not everyone realizes it.

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Mi último descubrimiento en el panorama musical español se llama Nudozurdo. Supongo que lo que ha hecho que me haya comprado este disco y no haya parado de escucharlo en meses no es algo en concreto, sino más bien un cúmulo de cosas: las letras, las atmósferas, y sobre todo, lo que sugiere: “sexo, pederastia y art decó”. Eso no me lo he inventado yo, lo he sacado de una entrevista a Leo, su cantante, con el cual he tenido ocasión de coincidir y charlar en un par de ocasiones, y al que todavía no tengo bien calado y situado dentro de mi amueblada estructura mental.

Para mí “Sintética” es algo oscuro en la forma pero a la vez bello y optimista en el fondo. Me siento identificado con muchas de sus frases (“… y creo que lo que más echo de menos es discutir contigo hasta hacerte llorar, para que tú me perdones primero, y para ponerte de nuevo contra la pared…), y también con su manera de entender las armonías, las progesiones, las atmósferas y en general el ritmo de las canciones: lo rápido o lo lento que sucede todo.

No hay mucho más que pueda decir respecto a este disco enorme. Sólo que me alegro mucho de que en mi ciudad pasen cosas así, aunque no siempre todo el mundo se dé cuenta.





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