Things are heating up in this early spring that March brings. With the blossoming of flowers and the arrival of spring (whatever that means in the 21st century), March concerts in Madrid are heating up and the big promises of the year are coming. We see it with the sold-out shows by The Divine Comedy, Suede, Hans Zimmer, the two dates by pablopablo, and the four by Rosalía. We also see it in artists who choose Madrid as the city to present their albums, end their tours, or pass through. In March, there are minimalist concerts, electronic music, southern sounds, and even comebacks that will take us back to the bars of 2005. Let’s go.
Herman Düne was stuck (like so many people) in a place far from home during the pandemic. Or rather, a non-place: a hotel in Montreal. From there, he began to write and compose about the sadness and homesickness of being far from home, from his partner and his three cats. The result is this album, Odysseús, a folk-pop work that, despite talking about distance and longing, is a warm and relaxed embrace.
Tei Shi has sublime vocal abilities, pop rhythms full of references to the folklore of her roots (ranging from Colombia to Canada, where she grew up), a dark edge, and electronic beats. She stands out from mainstream pop to embrace the alternative while continuing to create her own soundscapes that belong only to her.
From Brazil with elegant, sweet guitar rock. The concert on March 2 will be a melodious journey through his latest album, Nenhuma Estrela (the fifth album of his career).
The Kooks (March 4)
Tickets: from €50
I’m not saying it’s your fault, Although you could have done more, Oh you’re so naive yet so… The Kooks are the sound of a very specific moment: the first decade of the 21st century. Light guitars, catchy melodies, emotional choruses, and a carefree look somewhere between Brit and rock. Now, they’re back. They’ll be playing at La Riviera and, hopefully, they’ll play everything that made 2005 and 2006 such a unique and defined soundtrack.
Depresión Sonora (March 5)
Tickets: from €24.25
Marcos Crespo was born in Vallecas. This shapes part of the creative process behind his lyrics and melodies: the suburbs, the whirlwind of life in your twenties, boredom and reflections on hyperproductivity… It all comes together in touches of post-punk and fast-paced synths that, in contrast, sing of slowing down.
It is no coincidence that the presentation of their new album is taking place at the Wurlitzer venue: Humour are combative, loud, and extreme live. In their latest creation, Learning Greek, as well as connecting the singer with his Greek roots, they let loose with post-hardcore, some screamo, and even grunge. And we Madrileños know that at the Wurli, even if it doesn’t sound better, it always sounds more authentic.
The Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are going all out: they have not only produced one album, but two, Carpe Diem, Moonman and Pogo Rodeo. They will present this creative boom by visiting some Spanish cities and festivals (they will also perform at the Azkena Rock Festival). The Australians started out as just another indie band and have become representatives of their country’s genre.
O’Flynn has been blessed by the greats of electronic music: Ben UFO, Gilles Peterson, Four Tet, and Floating Points. This blessing speaks volumes. But the electronic live show by Clamores, which promises to be pure dynamite on the dance floor, will say even more.
The Norwegian hard rock band Gluecifer decided to take a break… in 2005. Twenty-one years later, they are back on stage on an intense tour to present Same Drug New High. They define their rock as “hyperlocal” and short-range, dedicating it to the city where they were born, Oslo. But, for whatever reason, it continues to reach far beyond the Norwegian capital even more than two decades later.
How do you keep a band together when its four members live in places as far apart as London, New York, Melbourne, and Wellington? With determination, synth pop, noise, and transoceanic rehearsals. Yumi Zouma are noise done right (because as lovers of noise and shoegaze will know, you have to know how to make noise, not just anything goes). In this live show, they will present their new album, No Love Lost to Kindness.
Should we be swayed by first impressions? In the case of Robert Jon & The Wreck, yes. It’s southern flavor, it’s dense and folkloric California, it’s electric guitar and the highest form of southern rock. It’s the deep voice, the cowboy boots, it’s the gaucho bow tie.
Tickets: from €19
Nacho Vigalondo and Los Javis had to come to put us in our place, to elevate the figure of Tamara-Ámbar-Yurena. To remind us that we have all been there, in the eye of the most devastating hurricane, in one way or another. They had to come to vindicate an artist who never stopped working even when the world, her world, turned against her, ridiculing and mistreating her in prime time. Now is her moment. Yurena: the concert that never was, is the concert that will be and that will try to give her, at least for an hour, the recognition she deserves.
A string quartet will perform great classical music scores (such as Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, Camille Saint-Saëns’ The Swan, and Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake ), with more than 5,000 candles at their feet and a thousand drones in the sky.
Biznaga (March 27 and 28)
Tickets: from €22.25
What Biznaga has done with its latest albums is create the protest songs of the 21st century. Perhaps we are exaggerating, but there is something in El Entusiasmo or La Gran Renuncia (for example) that appeals to everything that happens to us and calls us to action. Not surprisingly, they were responsible for providing the soundtrack to the actions of the residents of Tribulete, 7, who were coerced and threatened by a vulture fund. More Biznaga, fewer vultures.
Sudor (March 28).
Sudor bids farewell. Goodbye to a two-decade career on stage serving up pure rock. One of those bands that doesn’t sell out, that doesn’t give in, that is what it is. And now, the end of the road. They will celebrate this “suicide ceremony” on March 28 at the Wurlitzer Ballroom accompanied by Atomizador and La U.R.S.S. Tickets are only available at La Integral, La Negra, and the venue itself.