Alvaro Urquijo: "The public is the true owner of our musical career"

Álvaro, I wanted to start by giving you a rundown of your musical career. Together with your brothers and José Enrique Cano, you founded what later became Los Secretos. How would you describe this musical evolution?

In the beginning, we were three brothers and a friend pretending to be musicians. There was no professional project or expectations of success. We started rehearsing in 1978-1979, without thinking about a viable future. Unfortunately, Canito died in an accident on January 1, 1980, just when we had a demo and dreamed of recording an album. A friend of ours who worked in radio announced that Los Secretos were looking for a drummer. Of those who offered, Pedro Díaz was the second one we tried out and it was a great success. With him we took a giant step because he was a more experienced musician and we became friends right away. Thus, the project of recording an album became more viable. At that time, in the late 70s and early 80s, the international New Wave influenced us a lot. The radio kept playing songs by groups like The Police, The Pretenders and Elvis Costello. This encouraged record companies to sign new groups. We were given the opportunity to record an album and, although it was not our initial intention to make a career out of it, we ended up recording three albums in three years due to the good reception from the public. Pedro’s death in 1984 was another hard blow, but again the public and a manager pushed us to keep going. In 1985 we did 50 concerts with borrowed drums and in 1986 we released another album. The death of my brother Enrique in 1999 was a devastating blow, but the public kept asking for our songs. We started playing again and, since then, we have followed a route of concerts and recordings, including symphonic projects, acoustic projects and even a musical. In short, a group’s career is greatly influenced by the public, who decides how long we will be on stage.

How did the event affect you? And how did your brother’s death affect you personally?

The Movida Madrileña was our interpretation of the global musical revolution of the late 70s and early 80s. Groups like The Jam, The Records and Elvis Costello influenced us a lot. In Spain, this wave came a little later and coincided with the more commercial 80s pop, but we leaned more towards the New Wave style. The death of my brother Enrique was the end of the journey for me. He was the leader, composer and driving force of the group. Although the band sounded the same without him, his genius and leadership left a huge void. After his death, we made a tribute album with 17 artists and raised funds for his daughter. This helped me to transform sadness into something positive and move forward with the group. Since then, we have released several albums and continued with our career, always supported by the public and our passion for music.

What’s the last massive concert you went to?

I don’t go to many large concerts. I prefer smaller theatres where the sound is better and the experience more intimate. At 62, I’ve seen many concerts and now enjoy the quieter atmospheres more. Large concerts often don’t have the same sound quality and I prefer to watch them on tape or on television.

Tell me about the Costa Feira festival, where we are going to see you.

We are going to participate in the festival, offering the best of our music. Despite our age, we want to prove that we are fit and can put on a great show. Our goal is to do our best, sound good and have people enjoy themselves, even if they didn’t come specifically to see us. For us, it’s a chance to win new fans and make everyone have a good time.

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