Remei de Ca la Fresca: "We want to influence politics, even though this is detrimental to us."

ArbuceasRemei de Ca la Fresca was born as a love story in times of Covid in a modest farmhouse perched in a solitary and privileged spot in the Montseny massif. Below, battered, Arbúcies. The confinement of Xantal Rodríguez and Artur Piera, then a recent couple, bore wild and rabiüts musical fruits. It is the house where Artur spent his creative childhood as an only child, with solitary games and worlds of his own, with no friends within reach unless they drove him to Arbúcies. This space where Artur recorded films and breathed nature has ended up becoming the musical group's rehearsal and recording studio and the set of the music videos they make themselves.

"We were very lucky to be able to confine ourselves together here. The pandemic flew by. It's an inspiring place. I would love to go back," acknowledges Xantal, Remei's ragged voice, sharp guitar, and biting lyricist. There they composed their first songs and named the group, which was later joined by their friends Víctor Inskipp and Iago Rueda.

Where does anger come from?

Songs against capitalism, against the exploitation of the Montseny's resources (the water from around the world that's stolen by the bottlers), against the large metal recycling plant near their home, against the arrogance and conformism of politicians, and in support of the Palestinian cause. "We want to have an impact on politics, even though we know this is detrimental to us, because we're already struggling to reach certain places, but we've come to play this game. If our loudspeaker is amplified, we'll use it to defend causes we find just." Without going any further, this Saturday (the day after their highly anticipated concert at La Mirona in Salt with Minibús Intergaláctico and Feto) they will perform to support the Aigua Clara collective in Arbúcies, which has called for an event against a new well planned by Font Agudes. Xantal Rodríguez belongs to this collective, which demands that aquifer water not be considered a mineral (which allows bottlers to avoid drought decrees) but rather another hydrological resource.

Metaphysical punk?

They have been told what they do "insurgent or untamed psychedelia" or "muddy poetry." The first time they were labeled an "eclectic" group, they didn't know the meaning of the word. They admit that their on-stage attitude, with their wild and visceral Xantal, is unequivocally punk, but Artur believes rock is a more open definition that they feel more comfortable with. They flirt with pop, rap, and the Andalusian progressive rock of Triana. They have a Camarón sticker on their car's gas cap. Since they declare themselves fervent admirers of Joan Pons (El Petit de Cal Eril), one of the putative fathers of metaphysical pop, it could well be said that Remei makes "metaphysical punk." Labels aside, Artur Piera explains that at first they played very loudly, with boundless energy, wanting to fill everything with noise, but "with time" they have seen that, "sometimes, less is more." Xantal gives it his all on stage: "Eh, I also see that I can't spend every concert (and certainly not my whole life) shouting like I do, because my body will also say enough. Now, it's true that since I started singing I have fewer voice problems."

Occupy the chalet

All we want is to occupy the chalet, an adaptation of the English singer MIA, marked their leap to popularity and continues to be the most listened to song on digital music services. "I'm already lazy to sing it, but people respond very well. Once I tried to skip it at a concert and they wanted to kill me," admits Xantal. For the moment, they compromise, but it is evident that in the long run the song will jump from their repertoire. The group believes that music, like the colors of suits, is becoming too homogenized and that with the use of algorithms things will get even more so. They long for the jam sessions at the Espacio Transparente in Arbúcies (now defunct), where they gained experience in live performances and began to receive the support of an audience that appreciated their music and encouraged them to move forward. With that spirit, they founded an association that promoted the Festival del Mal at El Prat Rodó on the Paseo de la Riera in Arbúcies. And then came the Deficitari Festival, with their first independent label, Indian Runners. They don't dare say that they are the offspring of PopArb, the independent music festival in Arbúcies, from 2005 to 2015, since the youngest members of the group weren't old enough to enter. However, during the daytime concerts, Artur discovered Núria Graham, and Xantal was "blown away" by El Petit de Cal.

The mud of paradise

"Like priest Cinto and the devils, walking down the Collformic, with the lysergic sandal soiled with the mud of Paradise." The verse is from the poem that Maria Callís gave to Remei along with the first press release to promote the group and which they adapted to Lysergic espadrille (spell)It's a letter that defines them. They're now part of the Bankrobber label, straddling La Bisbal and Barcelona, ​​alongside musicians they've always admired. They've long harbored the dream of breaking into the music world. "We started as a couple, first romantically and then musically, but we didn't dare say out loud that we wanted to go all out with this until we formed the group."

Some critics put his latest album, The hook of the question, on par with the best of 2024.