Marea

Marea rose among the leading rock en español acts of their era through relentless touring and a string of albums that grew steadily in popularity, reaching a commercial peak with the 2004 release 28.000 Puñaladas. Kutxi Romero, born Kutxi Romero Lorente in 1975 and already a vocalist and poet who had fronted several local groups for five years, assembled the band in Berriozar within Spain’s northern Navarre province. After growing weary of the punk and thrash styles that had defined his earlier projects, he sought in the winter of 1997 to create a direct, traditional hard-rock outfit whose lyrics would remain central and whose sound would avoid fleeting trends. Romero first recruited drummer Alen Ayerdi, previously of Begira, who committed to the project. Bassist Edu Beaumont, known as El Piñas, joined next, followed by guitarist César Ramallo and then guitarist David Díaz, who performs as Kolibrí Díaz. On Christmas Eve 1997 the musicians formally established the group under the name La Patera.

By June 1998 they had composed roughly six songs and began playing them in local venues. Strong audience response prompted a five-day recording session at a nearby studio in February 1999. That May brought a contract with BMG and a required name change to Marea once it emerged that La Patera was already in use; the original name instead titled the band’s BMG debut album, issued in July. After touring and encountering difficulties with BMG, Marea secured a fresh deal with GOR Discos in April 2000 and recorded their second album, Revolcón, the following July. GOR released the album in September and promoted “Barniz” as its single. Revolcón achieved markedly greater success than its predecessor, expanding the band’s audience during subsequent tours, yet dissatisfaction with the label led to negotiations with DRO Records beginning in October 2001. The once-independent Spanish imprint, founded in 1982 by Aviador Dro and later absorbed by Warner Music as an East West affiliate that ultimately operated under Atlantic as DRO Atlantic, became Marea’s third label in three years.

With the new contract in place, the band entered the home studio of producer Iñaki “Uoho” Antón, guitarist for Extremoduro and Platero y Tú, to record Besos de Perro in February 2002. The sessions, which spanned two months and included guest contributions from Robe (Roberto Iniesta of Extremoduro), Fito Cabrales of Platero y Tú, and Martín Romero (Kutxi’s brother), yielded an album that DRO issued in April. Marea then spent eight months on the road, performing 81 concerts across Spain. A large-scale show on 28 December 2002 featuring Silencio Absoluto, Cabrales, Antón, Alfredo Piedrafita, Enrique “El Drogas” Villareal, Martín Romero, and Iker Piedrafita closed the tour and ushered in a period of rest after five continuous years of activity.

Throughout most of 2003 the members enjoyed a break while evaluating material for their next record, 28.000 Puñaladas. All but one of the songs, completed in October, were written by Díaz, and recording began in December at a local studio under Díaz’s production with assistance from Aitor Ariño. DRO released the album in April 2004; it attained gold status within a week. The preceding years of live work had cultivated a substantial following whose enthusiasm translated into immediate commercial impact, including hit singles such as “A la Mierda Primavera,” “El Rastro,” and “La Rueca,” as well as the band’s first notable international reach. DRO also issued a deluxe CD/DVD edition containing concert footage and videos for the singles.

Marea now ranked among Spain’s foremost rock bands and among the leading rock en español acts worldwide. That stature was reaffirmed when Las Aceras Están Llenas de Piojos appeared in 2007 and entered the charts at number one. Fronted by the single “Aceitunero,” the album incorporated contributions from Paco Ventura of Medina Azahara, Evaristo of La Polla Records, Brígido Duque of Koma, El Pirata of Losdelgás, and Rafael Borja of Ja Ta Ja. Later the same year the band issued the elaborate anthology Coces al Aire 1997-2007, a box set containing two CDs, two DVDs, and a photo book, then followed it in 2008 with the live album Las Putas Más Viejas del Mundo. Three additional years passed before the studio release En Mi Hambre Mando Yo, which arrived in 2011 and featured the band’s most polished and expansive production to date.