From one of the oldest cities in Western Europe comes one the freshest, balls to the wall Rock N’ Roll experiences you’re likely to discover since that time you found those o’ so sweet sounds of Zeppelin, Crüe, Black Label Society, and Sabbath.
The Electric Alley (Nando Perfumo, Jaime Moreno, Sergio Reyes Gamaza, Rafa G. Benitez) hailing from the ancient city of Cádiz, Spain are true sons of steel blooded rock. Taking lessons from the masters before them and creating come party with us jaw crackin’ tunes with a much-appreciated tremble in your boots guitar solos that bring noble textures back to the forefront. Hearing is believing.
There is nothing these cats can’t and won’t do to master their art and win you over. If you want to properly rattle your windows check out TEA’s 2013 Backward States Of Society. The band says the best of the ten tracks, “100% love, hate, and protest.” Oh Yeah…
What is the story of how this band came together?
Nando: We began this project just the two of us, Jaime and me, composing and recording, and then decided to rely on Sergio & Rafa to complete the band at live shows. Now we are four guys ready and willing to be moving around. We love rock ‘n’ roll and always thought that we had something to do together. After almost 10 years doing stuff with other bands, we decided to put our feelings together and began to compose songs with no other purpose than having fun. Little by little those songs have become really special for us. Hearing people’s voices screaming at the shows and realizing that those melodies are not “only ours” anymore is something to believe in.
You proudly claim influences from Led Zeppelin, Mötley Crüe to Hellacopters, which shines through in your sounds. What is it about your influences you pay close attention when writing?
Jaime: I guess it depends on the moment. The composing process for “BSOS” was very rich because we tried to show every strength we’ve learned through these years separately, and also counted on our friend’s ideas that passed by the studio during the recording process. We borrow methods from those bands, transform them our way and try to make ’em belong to us.
Now, for instance, we are taking influences such as Blackberry Smoke, but also Slash’s last album is taking part in our idea of how to produce a Hard Rock LP. Then we take a tour around Richie Kotzen, Paul Gilbert, or Whitesnake and complete our wishes
What are, if any, the complications with getting your message across writing in English?
Jaime: Well, the main problem is our “technical difficulty” with the language. For us, writing in English is a challenge. We have always followed Anglo-Saxon artists and tried to be on top of the latest situations. We do not speak English every day (although we read, hear and study it), and is not an easy thing for us to rack our brains every time we need to say something. But we love it! And we have Anglo-Saxon friends to help us out before confirming that a song is really concluded.
What are some things people should know about the music scene in Cádiz?
Nando & Jaime: It’s an interesting question because there’s a debate in our town. Southern Spain has been a melting pot during centuries. Cadiz, actually, was one of the most important seaports in the golden age of Spanish culture. Lots of people from all over the world used to spend their lives gambling and rambling around the streets of this city. Pirates, traders, leaders, whores, lovers, storytellers, artists… All of this is part of our DNA. Today this has become bohemian and decadent somehow
On the other hand, Cádiz is really influenced by globalization (in the worst way) and several crises have devastated the city, economically. So lots of young people are starring in a musical “renaissance”: Funk, Rock, Metal… This last year at least 10 incredible albums were released, that the world probably will never know. But that’s how life goes, we are at the bottom of the world and we know it. The resources will arrive somehow if you work hard and really have something to say.
What are 5 things the world needs/should know about Backward States of Society?
Sergio, Rafa, Nando, Jaime:
Any tour dates this summer? Are you guys working in the studio now?
Jaime: We are fortunate to be busy with an important matter right now, that’s really special to us. We’ve been asked to compose the OST for a short film, “A Lonely Sun Story” alongside an amazing Spanish musician, Roque Baños, with equally amazing movie stars such as Mario Casas & María Valverde. Those 2 tracks will be included in our next LP and will be mixed by two times Grammy-winning producer and mixer Tobias Lindell. It’s all really appealing, but we have almost no time left to play live, so we’ll only have 9 or 10 dates this summer.
What is the next step for you guys, world domination?
Nando: Hehe, we’ll be just fine with having the possibility to work a lot, but never losing the main goal: having fun and believing in what we’re doing.
What are 5 most important things we need to know about The Electric Alley?
Sergio, Rafa, Nando, Jaime:
Man, your guitar solos are killer. Growing up, who are the guitar heroes for the band?
Nando: Thank you! Personally, I’ve grown up listening to many different kinds of guitarists: rock, heavy, blues, and even jazz. I think our songs take a little bit of Slash, Richie Kotzen, Paul Gilbert, Marty Friedman, Nuno Bettencourt, and many more…
Keep the genuine rock n’ roll alive, thank you for chatting with us today!
Sergio, Rafa, Nando, Jaime: Thank you, fellas. We hope to be touring soon. It’s been a pleasure, thank you so much for your attention; we really appreciate your work and the bands you interviewed before. We are very glad to collaborate!
[original pub-date 3. June 2014]
Band photo via Facebook
Produced and Engineered by Nando Perfumo & Jaime Moreno.
Recorded at Alley Studios, Cadiz (Spain)
Drums recorded and at Estudio Setentaynueve (Jerez, Spain) by Rafa Camisón.
Mixed and Mastered by Javier Rondan and The Electric Alley at Audiorama Estudio de grabación, Cádiz.
Cover art by Javier Pacheco
Written by Jaime Moreno, Nando Perfumo
“The Electric Alley is a concept materialized from the aspiration of four musicians who have grown up in a dead-end alleyway in the Zona Franca neighborhood of Cádiz, Spain, offering a type of Rock yet to be found in this country. Electricity and Rock.” – band bio
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