Prior to the release of the highly anticipated album of new compositions by Spaniard musical chameleon, Enrique Bunbury, we sat down with Enrique to discuss the new album “Palosanto”.
Looking very relaxed and with a big smile in his face, Enrique looked like a man very at peace with his life and music and in a very open and candid interview, Enrique answered all my questions, and here is a peak into Palosanto, from the creator’s point of view.
The Interview
What does Palosanto mean to you as its creator?
“It was a real challenge to write for this album as it was a very ambitious production. In previous albums, I always looked for the band to express themselves as if they were playing on stage to capture that live energy, but I wanted this album to be more of a studio album and it was a very serious complex process, but in the end, I think I came very close to the album I had originally dreamed in my head.”
Living in Los Angeles, do you think the musical atmosphere of the city influenced you on this album?
“In theory you would think it would, but I think “Palosanto” is the most European album I have ever made. ’Hellville De Luxe’ or ‘Las Consecuencias’ were albums that had a very strong footing in the American folk, and the roots of rock & roll, but ‘Palosanto’ doesn’t sound to me like California at all, it sounds very European to me, perhaps it’s just because I come from Europe and I may feel nostalgic about it”
Although previously you have sang about political and social issues, I feel that “Palosanto” is much more direct, whereas before, your lyrics were somewhat ambiguous, do you think that now being a father and perhaps worrying about your daughter’s future, lead you to be more direct on your lyrics?
“Now that you mention it, you may be right, in previous albums like ‘Avalancha’, ‘Radical Sonora’ and other songs in different albums, I touched on social and political issues, but I think ‘Palosanto’, as a whole, has an overall theme of search and the need for change, whether is social or personal and that gives this album a characteristic that none of my other albums had, there are very direct lyrics and some perhaps a bit more poetic, but throughout the whole album one can feel the commitment to change”
The original demos for”Palosanto” were stolen from your home, and you had to start over, is the finished product of the album very different from what you remember of the original demos?
“I already had about 15 songs written, but in a way, it was a good thing that my computer was stolen, as I had to rethink about the songs I had written and it made me reflect about whether they were good enough for what I had intended and that’s when the album began to take shape, some songs I was able to recreate from memory, but obviously some lyrics, rhythms, and melodies changed”
Are there any songs on the album that are more special to you?
“Probably the four ballads, ‘Salvavidas’, ‘Prisioneros’, ‘El Cambio de la Celebración’, and ‘Plano Secuencia’, I am not sure why, but whenever I hear them, I feel them very deeply, I think these are some of the best songs in my whole repertoire”
Palosanto will be released this coming Tuesday, October 29th, and to celebrate the occasion, Enrique Bunbury will be at the Amoeba Record store in Hollywood at 5 pm to sign the album for the first 400 people.
The tour for Palosanto begins in January in Mexico and will play Tijuana on March 19, 2014 before heading down to Central and South America and in June will tour Spain and finally in September, the Palosanto Tour will hit the U.S with a Los Angeles show for September 5th.