Kraken is a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band founded in

Medellín Medellín ( ; or ), officially the Special District of Science, Technology and Innovation of Medellín (), is the List of cities in Colombia, second-largest city in Colombia after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia Departme ...

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

, in 1983. The current lineup consists of Roxana Restrepo (vocals), Andrés Leiva (guitar), Ricardo Wolff (guitar), Julian Puerto (drums), Luis Alberto Ramírez (bass guitar), and Rubén Gelvez (

electronic keyboard An electronic keyboard, portable keyboard, or digital keyboard is an electronic musical instrument based on keyboard instruments. Electronic keyboards include synthesizers, digital pianos, stage pianos, electronic organs and digital audio work ...

s). The sound of the band is characterized by a mixture of

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

and heavy metal. The influence of the original lead singer

Elkin Ramírez Elkin Ramírez (26 October 1962 – 29 January 2017) was a Colombian singer-songwriter, and leader of the band Kraken. Ramírez was born in the Belén neighborhood of Medellín, Antioquia, in October 1962. He was a self-taught artist, traini ...

, was compared by some publications to that of

Freddie Mercury Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter who achieved global fame as the lead vocalist and pianist of the rock band Queen (band), Queen. Regarded as one of the gre ...

Bruce Dickinson Paul Bruce Dickinson (born 7 August 1958) is an English singer who is best known as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden. Dickinson has performed in the band across two stints, from 1981 to 1993 and from 1999 to the present d ...

. Ramírez was also influenced by

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

. Another influence of his was classical music, which he taught himself upon the advice of his father. Ramirez was commonly referred as "Elkin Kraken" amongst the fans. Guitarist Andrés Leiva contributed his symphonic experience to the band, gained as a student of the classical guitarist Pedro de Alcántara. Leiva has been a member of a variety of different musical projects. On 18 December 2013, the band celebrated its 30th anniversary and filmed the show for a DVD that was released the following year. Ramírez died from

brain cancer A brain tumor (sometimes referred to as brain cancer) occurs when a group of cells within the brain turn cancerous and grow out of control, creating a mass. There are two main types of tumors: malignant (cancerous) tumors and benign (non-cance ...

on 29 January 2017 in Medellín. He was 54 years old.

Discography

Studio albums

* '' Kraken I'' (1987) * '' Kraken II'' (1989) * '' Kraken III'' (1990) * '' Kraken IV: Piel de Cobre'' (1993) * '' Kraken V: El Símbolo de la Huella'' (1995) * '' Kraken: Una Leyenda del Rock'' (1999) * '' Humana Deshumanización'' (2009) * '' Sobre esta tierra'' (2016)

Live and compilation albums

* '' Kraken I + II'' (1994) * '' Kraken en Vivo: Huella y Camino'' (2002) * '' Kraken IV + V - Vive el Rock Nacional'' (2004) * '' Kraken Filarmónico'' (2006)

Tributes

* '' Tributo al Titán'' (2004) * '' Tributo Internacional a Kraken'' (2008)

References

External links

Official website (in Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kraken (Band) Colombian heavy metal musical groups Rock en español music groups Musical quintets Musical groups from Medellín