Robi Rosa: Music the Color of Wine

Written by Jesus -El Pelos- Olvera Monday, 10 November 2008 09:27

The release of Robi Rosa’s “new” album will take some by surprise considering that the singer who has given us “Vagabundo” and “Mad Love” had already placed “Vino” on sale through Phantom Vox under the title “Teatro del absurdo.” The truth is that knowing how and where to find that album was for a time more of a well-kept secret that resembled a ritual only for the initiated. Nevertheless, since the album deserved more recognition than some obscure online transactions, Robi Rosa officially presents this work that is not as luminous as “Mad Love,” but that does manage to recover the dark moments that made “Vagabundo” a jewel in Latin rock. We interviewed Robi Rosa and asked him about the strange life of this album, his crafty way of making music and how an artist that takes two years to create an album could possibly survive in the cutthroat music industry.

THE “RELEASE”

Well, the truth is that this collection of songs was released in Puerto Rico several months ago and we sold some albums online and we did well. That’s why we decided to make an official release and sell it trough iTunes in the United States and in other countries where it had not been available. So I consider this “Vino”’s official release since the album was never released officially. It was released in Puerto Rico because that’s where I’m from, and a limited number of CDs were produced and sold on the island and online. We decided that it was important to make an official release and that’s what we are doing mainly through iTunes and other promotional outlets we had not used outside of Puerto Rico. VINO: there are some guitar riffs, some unions, there are key musical parts that are classical and after hearing all this music, you once again listen to songs such as “Horizonte.” There are some moments that are really too much, too much!

NEW LOOK, NEW ATMOSPHERE

The new look is because my hairstylist passed away (laughs)… but this album is the result of a combination of many things. I feel that all my songs have an honest path, since it is me. I follow a very purist path in that sense. The same is true for “Mad Love,” for that album I always tried to create a certain atmosphere that was a bit lighter during production, but I feel that this album is just as beautiful. It is an album which I enjoyed very much, I enjoyed recording the songs for “Vino” for different reasons; this time we shared other things, we tried different instruments, I experimented more playing other things, I had a great time. The album opens with tracks such as “Vino,” “Te fumaré…” but it ends splendidly with “Luchar por Ella,” even more splendid than “Mad Love,” which was an album that included more personal, sensual, and erotic themes; this album, “Vino,” covers all the bases.

HANDCRAFTED ALBUMS

I don’t know, I think that the way I produce an album is something beyond my comprehension. There are certain things in life that appeal to us and sometimes I don’t understand why; everyone, including me, is born with certain tastes. It wasn’t always this way; there was a time in my life during the 80s when they gave me a Yamaha keyboard that was tiny, and I was stunned; and this was way before I discovered an acoustic keyboard, a “baby grand,” and long after I turned 15 and 16, when I was with Menudo. I traveled to different countries where several people would tell me “look at this!” I was amazed and did not really know certain things existed; I did listen to some music, but did not understand a thing, and I still don’t understand anything but back then I was more confused with the equipment and all. However, I was lucky to meet incredible people around the world and keep in touch with them to exchange information and ideas.

RETIRED

I retired from production eight or nine years ago, I believe. I haven’t really produced anything for other people, I’m not that good. There are other producers I know who tell me “I’m going to produce 12 tracks with such artist and in 10 days,” though they end up finishing them in seven. I’m not the type of producer who gets told “I need this by this date,” don’t call me, I’m not the producer who completes everything so fast. Several years have passed since I have done this and I plan to keep it that way. I believe that composing songs for other people created this break for me. I have a great love for liberty and freedom of artistic expression, but this business does not allow that, which is why it must be protected as each year passes by. Several years ago, obviously, before any album such as “Vagabundo,” when there was much more chaos and urban madness in my life than you can imagine, and of course more spontaneous things. Then, having control of spontaneity and adjusting to it through time makes working with a record company more difficult… corporate dealings kill my soul. So, in order to avoid problems, I retired.

CHAOS WELCOMED

It is absolutely necessary to allow chaos in order for creativity to emerge. Of course, of course, because you can’t achieve anything with fear and sometimes adjusting to anything, without expecting anything is great, as long as you don’t get the grand finale because it is always possible, but you must play the game and live life with passion. I’m not going to define chaos as something negative, but experimentation is important for art and music; it is important to take risks because everyone looks at each other and everyone copies each other, and there is much of that going on.

A SLOW PROCESS

In this case, we spent six months on “Vino,” but we had to make several trips and shows. There are songs that are created among friends. For example, you and I sit down with two guitars and transform a track and we present the song to the group. There are also “branches” that are created on the road. So, this collection of songs was created here, in the studio. Sometimes, due to the frustration of having only six songs and four more that will be thrown away; they are created basically due to the anxiety of having songs such as “Fumaré,” which was originally one of the songs to leave out. Then something happened with Moog, and the song gained momentum. I love it when that happens.

INDUSTRY

I do well simply because I don’t have such high expectations. I expect a lot from my experience in the studio, from the idea of accomplishing my goals, from a collection of songs, because I believe that it is important to live a productive life. Making an album is a very personal experience, but there is the possibility that someone else may become interested in it; only then do my expectations become low. Other things must happen before I become aware of what is going on in the business. Someone tells me “Hey Draco, this number of albums have been sold.” Only then do we decide to sell it on iTunes, and that’s the way it happens. For me, every day is valuable, I want to do things and feel that I can do whatever I want. I don’t want to commit to realizing another person’s dreams, like a manager or record company, who try to tell you that you can only reach certain places while I ask myself “where are we going… and why?”

ESSENCE OF AN ARTIST

I can give you several answers and none of them are important, because I don’t know what is important; maybe the idea of a great day. The truth is, I don’t know. I love many things and people who do different things. I have realized that acknowledging this has given me a certain peace of mind and I’m able to live beyond the ego and all those harmful things. It’s looking at things this way that has made my life what it is today and every day I try to understand that everything is there and we must make an effort; that many times we think too much because we don’t know what’s going to happen. That’s why I try to be spontaneous. It’s very difficult for someone who is married and has kids; it’s difficult but not impossible.

Jesus -El Pelos- Olvera
		About the author:
		Nació en la ciudad de México hace mas de 30 años (yep, he's that old). Su equipo favorito es el Cruz Azul y después los Delfines de Miami, no le gusta el básquetbol ni el béisbol, pero le encanta la cerveza Guinness (aunque en realidad toma de todas menos del tipo “light”). Colecciona salsas picantes y gorras del Warped Tour.
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