Broken Brothers Brass Band, Nogen, Elena Setien, Maite Larburu and Unclose selected by Artistas en Ruta

The programme Artistas en Ruta (Artists on the Road) has chosen five Basque bands to perform in venues all over Spain in autumn 2019: Broken Brothers Brass Band, Nøgen, Elena Setien, Maite Larburu and Unclose.

The programme Artistas en Ruta (Artists on the Road) has chosen five Basque bands to perform in venues all over Spain in autumn 2019: Broken Brothers Brass Band, Nøgen, Elena Setien, Maite Larburu and Unclose.

This has been the largest selection of Basque bands in years, since Artistas en Ruta usually choses three bands every six months. The chosen artists have very diverse musical influences and backgrounds: from festive New Orleans street parade music, to upbeat pop-folk, to electronic, to more intimate and experimental projects.

The Artistas en Ruta programme is supported by AIE (the organization in Spain that oversees matters of copyright for musicians and music executives). The goal is to promote live concerts all over Spain. To that end, AIE organizes live concerts at different partner venues, and some bands are selected twice a year by a jury of industry professionals. Thanks to the agreement between AIE and Etxepare Basque Institute, the presence of Basque bands is always guaranteed in the programme.

Here’s more information about the selected bands:

Broken Brothers Brass Band: This Pamplona-based brass band has been playing music from New Orleans street parades in the Basque Country since 2006. Funk, gospel and modern jazz can be heard in their songs in Basque, using improvisation as an infallible method. Their latest album, Txertaketa, was nominated at the MIN Awards for the Best album in Euskera.

Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptYsvzwklW4

Nøgen: Although this group from San Sebastian is somewhat new to the scene, they’ve been capturing people’s attention lately. The band plays upbeat pop-folk with a good measure of ukulele and choral voices. So far, they’ve released an EP (Lys) and an LP (Liv til døden). The quintet has filled many outdoor venues in the Basque Country, and will soon make the leap to the national level thanks to Artistas en Ruta.

Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5RoPTL7zF0

Elena Setién: This singer-songwriter from San Sebastian first became known outside the Basque Country when she lived in London, Barcelona and Copenhagen. Twenty years later, Setién returned to San Sebastian, and since then has released two albums: Dreaming of Earthly Things and Another Kind of Revolution. Her style flows between folk and pop with dreamlike overtones and experimentation.

Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxs2C6iFyDM

Maite Larburu: Larburu took up the violin at the age of seven, and now plays in several bands in the European classical music circuit. She became known in the Basque Country with Neighbor, a band she created together with musicians from other countries. She now enjoys a solo career, and has just released Hezurren Azpian (Under the Bones), an eclectic journey featuring Larburu on vocals, violin, classical guitar, ukulele and shruti box.

Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ijtCjYY8Nw

Unclose: This duo consists of Bilbao-based Iskandar Rementeria and David "Deibol" Rodríguez. Their drums and guitars are rounded out with a good dose of electronics and deep vocals. Txufo Wilson (aka Empty Files) accompanies them on keyboard in live shows. They’ve released an album titled The Long Tomorrow.

Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwBJ3IruNao