Immediately after listening to “Tralará”, the first thought that comes to mind is that TRONCO is a like a group from a story. And now you’ll answer that with this kind of title the play on words is too easy. No. We hope nobody stops at the simplest reading. Not even because Conxita is an illustrator and has created such a special packaging for this album, comic included. No. Their songs are a journey to fantasia, with that mix of imagination and ingenuity, unpredictability and craziness, with just the right amount of irreverence and a certain punk spirit. Something like a Spanish YOUNG MARBEL GIANTS. Folk, pop, bedroom techno-pop, psychedelia, and, we already said it, punk. Yeah, you guessed it. They are unclassifiable. But for real.

Their first album already made it clear that their thing was breaking away, a sense of humor, feelings made out of scratches. “Tralará” maintains its dose of freshness, but grows significantly in musical terms. The musical diversity, very special arrangements and a long list of collaborators, including, obviously, Eloy Bernal (NELEONARD, GÚDAR) who recorded and produced the album, Anna Fredriksson (DIE KATAPULT), Laura Antolín (DOBLE PLETINA, GÚDAR), Elisa Bernal (HIBERNALES), Javi G. Lerín, Marc Ribera (DOBLE PLETINA) and Alberto Rodríguez (GÚDAR, TIRANA).

The thing is that these 15 new songs written by Conxita and Fermí Herrero make a sense of urgency clear. Their urgency. Our own. The urgency to refresh our ears. To break the uniformity. To let the sense of humor flood an ambiance that is suffering from it in excess. Can we talk about irreverence? Read the lyrics to “El Invento”. And Marc Ribera’s saws take care of the rest. Do you understand what we’re talking about now? The freshness of Dent May, the pleasant cynicism of SINGLE, the musical fantasia of F.M. Cornog (EAST RIVER PIPE). This all gives shape to a unique musical option in the national panorama. “La Procrastinadora” is one of those examples – a crazy mix of ingredients that sometimes reach the highest levels of brilliance, and other times gets swept away but the most fun feeling of alienation. Raise your hand if you didn’t smile and sigh after listening to “La La Land” or “La Chaqueta Azul”. And if you don’t feel like they are on a disturbing journey to their own childhood with songs like “La Jungla”, “La Gran Barrera De Coral” and “Animales”. And if you don’t have the feeling of irrevocably loving these two after listening to this album.

It’s who they are. There is such an extreme lack of prejudice on this album, and so much imagination, that in the end we all want to live life like they do. To see it through their eyes. Because deep down, behind all that craziness, we see ourselves. We identify. That’s why we want to be with them all the time, and let ourselves be absorbed by their world. You have a chance. Tralará.

Tralará

La La Land

We need more groups like TRONCO. Fresh, personal, spontaneous, sincere, with a well-tuned sense of humor, who build a sense of the everyday out of the most incomprehensible fantasy, in a way that feels natural. They do things their way. And with their eloquence, their ingenuity, and their simplicity, they convince you they are right. Now, after “Tralará” we have “Nainonai”. Their sound made sublime, if we can say that about Fermí and Conxita, thanks in large part to the participation of Eloy Bernal (NELEONARD, DIE KATAPULT). This combination is the cocktail that makes “Nainonai” an authentic gem, the “Popemas” of this generation. It is a pop delicacy made with attitude, fantasy and imagination; an authentic work of art, the kind that just happens, without planning and without pretentions.

Let’s put the needle in the groove. The needle and the damage done. We hear “Volveré”. Simple and straightforward. Laura Antolín (DOBLE PLETINA) on bass. A guitar starts playing through a cell phone signal, the marked abanico style so typical of Fermí, rumba-esque, we hear a train, a rooster… And the magic begins. There is no turning back. We had already heard “La Casa De Tus Sueños” as an advance. Elisa and Eloy acting as a counterpoint to Conxita and Fermí, to tell us a Mediterranean dream, bathed in breeze and waves. The third song that plays is “Piropos”. TRONCO at their purest. Ragatanga on the guitar, impossible harmonies, and Conxita with her personal flow, letting loose a string of terms to use to talk about someone you care about without having to use adjectives that make you blush. THE MOLDY PEACHES. “Dejarlas Ir” marks differences. The synthesizers, the drum kit, the absence of the guitar, all make for a radically different sound palette. FUTURE BIBLE HEROES. But the drum kit keeps going on “Menos Contigo”, even though here the tropical sounds and marimbas make us feel closer to the TRONCO universe. A journey to the middle of the Pacific. “Un Documento”. Bare. A sketch. But everything is there. A crazy, unbelievable, fantastic story. That side of the record ends with “Soy Una Roca” - an incredible version of SIMON & GARFUNKEL, close to a chachacha, with drums played and recorded by Ryan McPhun (THE RUBY SUNS) and an absolutely magical adaptation from Conxita.

“Rumba Veraniega Para Tiempos Oscuros”. What a wonderful title. The song’s lyrics are the musicalization and adaptation of a text from their friend, Dídac Rocho. TRONCO in all their glory. Those bizarre but aboslutely precious harmonies. The sea. You and me. The next one begins like Doraemon. “Famosa” seems like some kind of Catalan reggaeton with touches of mambo and ranchera. Wild thoughts about fame and money. Conxita says that Rosalía’s “Milionària” had some influence on this song. How do we do this? “Me Iré”. I have almost never heard such angst in TRONCO. I have almost never heard angst sound so warm and appealing. SINGLE. LA BIEN QUERIDA. Our lungs fill up with “Qué Gusto Verte”. And our hands. And our eyes. Wouldn’t it be nice if that bright red vinyl were a strawberry-flavored candy? Then we could also enjoy it with our mouths. How the song grows. Those arrangements. Lyricism in a world of fantasy. What more could we ask for? What a shame it has to end. “Demasiadas Veces” is out of control. That sweet sardana flute. A chachacha from the 20s. But the 20s from last century. And I guess from this one too. And, like any good chachacha, it makes this story of spite and angst sound comforting and even fun. The last one. “Con Las Manos En La Masa”. Rumba. VAINICA DOBLE, of course. Pots and pans. The final celebration. The final feast.

But like all good games, it means so much more. Because TRONCO are so much more. They have a permanent place in our hearts. And they will come back with new things. And more new things. And we hope they will never leave.

Nainonai

Me Iré

Famosa

Rumba Veraniega Para Tiempos Oscuros

I Am A Rock (Soy Una Roca)

Un Documento

Menos Contigo

Dejarlas Ir

Piropos

La Casa De Tus Sueños

Volveré

TRONCO is a unique and very special group. That’s why it’s impossible to write something normal about them. A brother and sister form a band in a parallel solar system. Because TRONCO is from another planet. They’re new, they’re young, they’re fresh and daring, but above all they are overflowing with talent. Conxita Herrero draws, makes comics, fanzines, and writes poems and songs, and she is really good at all of it. Last year she published “Gran Bola De Helado” with Apa Apa Comics, her first book with 17 short stories, which became one of the most interesting comics of 2016. She has worked for VICE and El País Tentaciones, and she has collaborated on a ton of underground fanzines. On the other hand, Fermí Herrero (Barcelona, 1999) is happily in his last year of high school in Prat de Llobregat. When he grows up he wants to be an actor and/or make-up artist and/or engine driver. He enjoys good weather, life, and fruit. He is interested in ancient history and culture in general. As they themselves say, “he smells good and is a good dancer”. His favorite food is toxic people and he is in favor of churros and the sexual revolution. He doesn’t normally answer WhatsApps, and the phone even less.

Why TRONCO? Why their titles? Why this instrumentation? It doesn’t matter; that’s part of the magic. We are already abducted. As much as TV PERSONALITIES, AVENTURAS DE KIRLIAN, THE CAROUSEL, Adam Green, FAT TULIPS, THE SOFTIES and PURÉ abducted us in their day.

La La Land

Tronco

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