Negu Gorriak
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Negu Gorriak (Basque for ''"Red Winters"'' or ''"Severe/Harsh Winters"'') were an underground group from the Basque Country. Their musical style combines various styles such as
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...
,
hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...
,
ska Ska (; , ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a w ...
, and
reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...
, always linked to the band's political ideology and its identification with the Basque Country and its language (
Euskara Basque ( ; ) is a language spoken by Basques and other residents of the Basque Country, a region that straddles the westernmost Pyrenees in adjacent parts of northern Spain and southwestern France. Basque is classified as a language isol ...
).


History

Negu Gorriak was formed in 1990 by the brothers Fermin and Iñigo Muguruza with Kaki Arkarazo (former members of the band
Kortatu Kortatu was a Basque ska punk band from the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community formed in Irun in the summer of 1984. Kortatu was born in the context of the first democracy years in Spain in 1984. They had a big ...
). Later in 1990, Mikel Anestesia joined them and in 1991, Mikel Bap. This was the complete membership of the group until its dissolution in 1996. They were completely committed to the political movement, starting with their choice to sing only in Euskera and continuing through their way of work and the message in their songs. They decided to manage themselves and created the record label Esan Ozenki. They performed their first concert in front of
Herrera de la Mancha Herrera may refer to: People *Herrera (surname) Places *Herrera, Entre Ríos, a village and municipality in Argentina *Herrera, Santiago del Estero, a village and municipality in Argentina *Enrique Olaya Herrera Airport, an airport in Medellí ...
maximum security prison, leading to problems with the government. They were renounced by the
Guardia Civil The Civil Guard (; ) is one of the two national law enforcement agencies of Spain. As a national gendarmerie, it is military in nature and is responsible for civil policing under the authority of both the Ministry of the Interior and the Minis ...
general, Enrique Rodríguez Galindo for the lyrics of the song «Ustelkeria», which accuses the general and the Guardia Civil of being involved in drug trafficking. This was the first time since the end of
Francoist Spain Francoist Spain (), also known as the Francoist dictatorship (), or Nationalist Spain () was the period of Spanish history between 1936 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death i ...
that the government denounced a form of expression. These charges were dropped in 2001, five years after the group stopped performing together. In honour of their legal victory, the group performed three celebratory concerts to more than 30,000 people.


Basque nationalism and other influences

Negu Gorriak was formed at the end of the
Basque Radical Rock Basque Radical Rock ( (RRV), ) was a musical genre born in the Southern Basque Country at the beginning of the 1980s and, although there was no specific event, it is considered to have ended in the last years of the decade. Basque Radical Rock ban ...
movement of the 1980s, a genre most similar to punk. Their sound can be identified as a mixture of Basque Radical Rock and American hip-hop. The Basque nationalist movement greatly affected the music and actions of all the members of the group. All of their songs are in
Euskera Basque ( ; ) is a language spoken by Basques and other residents of the Basque Country, a region that straddles the westernmost Pyrenees in adjacent parts of northern Spain and southwestern France. Basque is classified as a language isol ...
, and two of the group's members went to adult language school ( Euskaltegi) in order to be able to communicate in their language. This was a strong message to the Basque Nationalist movement, demonstrating the importance of language with regard to identity. Negu Gorriak also incorporated traditional Basque instruments into their music, such as the ''
trikitixa The trikiti (standard Basque, pronounced ) trikitixa ( dialectal Basque, pronounced ), or eskusoinu txiki ("little hand-sound", pronounced )) is a two-row Basque diatonic button accordion with right-hand rows keyed a fifth apart and twelve uni ...
'' (button accordion). Negu Gorriak was also heavily influenced by American hip-hop and the African-American community. They considered
Public Enemy Public Enemy is an American Hip-hop, hip hop group formed in Roosevelt, New York, in 1985 by Chuck D and Flavor Flav. The group rose to prominence for their political messages including subjects such as Racism in the United States, American r ...
one of their biggest influences because of their use of militant hip-hop to spread a message to African-Americans. The group related to the oppression of the African-American community because they viewed themselves, as Basques, similarly oppressed. However, when Public Enemy toured Spain, the group was disappointed that Public Enemy were ignorant to their cause. The popularity of Negu Gorriak was growing at this point throughout the world, and so they turned to other oppressed people who appreciated the ally. Blatantly criticizing the Spanish government, Negu Gorriak songs condemn
police brutality Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or Public order policing, a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, b ...
, Spanish institutions like the Catholic Church, and the past Francoist State. Their song "Corruption" about police brutality accused the chief of police of
San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...
of having ties to embezzling drugs. After releasing this song, the group was tried and required to pay 15 million pesetas (approx. €90,150). Just weeks later the chief of police was convicted of the drug charges."Censorship Spain." FreeMuse: Freedom of Musical Expression. 28 Jan. 2004. International Basque Organisation for Human Rights. 9 Apr. 2008 . Thus, Negu Gorriak not only used their music to express ideas and opinions, they also educated the youth about the reality of the Basque Country situation and the restrictive policies of the new government. The group logo shows two crossed axes on a red background, that some people consider to be related to ETA's symbol, made up of a snake winding up an axe. With such a militant message, it is no surprise that the group idolised many black militants including
Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an African American revolutionary, Islam in the United States, Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figur ...
, making more of a connection with the racist oppression and a marginalised form of expression, hip hop. For these reasons, Negu Gorriak used hip hop not only to reach the young listeners, but also to make a political radical political statement. On Negu Gorriak's album Esan Ozenki, the title of the track "Napartheid" (1990) is a pun cross-referencing the discrimination of the Basque culture and people in
Navarre Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...
to the system of legalized racism in South Africa. Furthermore, the song continues to pull at racism with the lyrics such as "the white man has invaded our earth. There is no peace, we have unearthed for always the war axe and it will stand until the death ends with us". These lyrics use the white man to symbolise the threat of
Spanish nationalism The creation of the tradition of the political community of Spaniards as common destiny over other communities has been argued to trace back to the Cortes of Cádiz. From 1812 on, revisiting the previous history of Spain, Spanish liberalism tende ...
and central government domination. Moreover, connecting the
apartheid in South Africa Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
with the Spanish political system draws on themes of injustice, racism, and oppression. All of these ideas allow the Basque people, like those of other regions throughout the world, use hip-hop music to make the connection between minority communities worldwide and the black experience in America. Then, the song calls for action against these restrictive institutions by saying, "let’s break the chains imposed by the white man". This is the very essence of Gorriak's music, not only creating awareness for the cause but also calling for organisation and action.


Members

*
Fermin Muguruza Fermin Muguruza (born 20 April 1963) is a Basques, Basque rock music, rock musician, singer, songwriter, producer, record label manager, and co-founder of the ska punk band Kortatu, active from 1983 to 1988, and of the Crossover (music), crossove ...
lead singer The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...
*
Íñigo Muguruza Inigo is a masculine given name deriving from the Castilian rendering (Íñigo) of the medieval Basque name Eneko. Ultimately, the name means "my little (man)". While mostly seen among the Iberian diaspora, it also gained a limited popularity ...
guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...
* Kaki Arkarazo – guitarist *
Mikel Anestesia Mikel is the Basque adaptation of the given name Michael. The name Mikel has its roots in the Hebrew word Mikha'el, which means "Who is like God". Notable people with the name include: Footballers *Mikel Alonso (born 1980), Spanish Basque footb ...
bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), keyboard bass (synth bass) or a low br ...
since ''Gure Jarrera'' (1991) *
Mikel Bap Mikel is the Basque adaptation of the given name Michael. The name Mikel has its roots in the Hebrew word Mikha'el, which means "Who is like God". Notable people with the name include: Footballers *Mikel Alonso (born 1980), Spanish Basque footb ...
drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western music ensemble, bands that play Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, or Contemporary R&B, R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeepi ...
since ''Gure Jarrera'' (1991)


Discography

* ''
Negu Gorriak Negu Gorriak (Basque for ''"Red Winters"'' or ''"Severe/Harsh Winters"'') were an underground group from the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country. Their musical style combines various styles such as hardcore punk, hip-hop, ska, and reg ...
'' (1990) * '' Gure Jarrera'' (1991) * '' Gora Herria'' (1991) * '' Borreroak Baditu Milaka Aurpegi'' (1993) * '' Hipokrisiari Stop! Bilbo 93-X-30'' (1994) * '' Ideia Zabaldu'' (1995) * '' Ustelkeria'' (1996) * '' Salam, agur'' (1996) * ''1990-2001'' (DVD + Live CD) (2005)


See also

*
Basque music Basque music refers to the music made in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country, reflecting traits related to its society/tradition, and devised by people from that territory. While traditionally more closely associated to rural base ...


Bibliography

* Urla, Jacqueline (2001). ''""We are All Malcolm X!"" Global Noise: Rap and Hip-Hop Outside the USA''. Ed. Toni Mitchell. New York: Wesleyen UP.


References


External links


Esan Ozenki RecordsMetak Recordsnegugorriak.net"Say it out loud: Negu Gorriak and its legacy"
by David Cox
Negu Gorriak in Purevolume
* Borreroak Baditu Milaka Aurpegi - Allmusic Review {{Authority control Spanish musical groups Basque music bands