Fermented grain alcohol is the great lubricant of music in Catalonia. Estrella Damm is a strategic sponsor of festivals such as Primavera Sound, Sónar, Cruïlla, Canet Rock, Cabró Rock, L’Acústica, Share, the Barcelona Jazz Festival... and also the Mercat de Música Viva de Vic. "Without Estrella Damm, this festival wouldn't happen," said François Jozic, the new director of Sónar, a few days ago.François Jozic, the new director of Sónar. Therefore, it is not surprising that music was the main protagonist of the celebration of Estrella Damm's 150th anniversary held on Saturday at the Parc del Fòrum. Eight groups responded to the brewery's call and performed, divided into two stages, between 3:45 PM and 11 PM. Curiously, at the anniversary of a birth, two bands that are breaking up this year participated: Love of Lesbian, who announced an indefinite hiatus, and Oques Grasses, who will bid farewell to the stage with four concerts at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys in October.

A rhythmically explosive and promiscuous pop dominates the new recording adventure of the Mallorcan Maria Jaume (Lloret de Vistalegre, 1999): San Domingo forever (Halley Records, 2026). After dancing about love, cheating on the ravages of the tourist monopoly in Nostalgia Airlines (BankRobber, 2024)Now she dances and makes others dance from the heart of her town's main festival, a universe full of emotional and sonic dynamics, and a reclaiming of ancestral popular culture from the present. The official presentation will be at L'Auditori in Girona on March 21st.

"What is your best music-related memory, and what memory would you like to forget?" This double question has been repeated in most of the interviews with musicians (and people linked to music) published in the ARA, especially in the last year and a half. A few days ago we published a selection of the answers to the first questionNow it's time for the worst memories. There are some about Sílvia Pérez Cruz, Mazoni, María Jaime, Cesk Freixas, Roger Mas...

Beyond the clichés, there are all kinds of songs related to summer. Some respond to thematic and sentimental expectations, but others propose more nebulous twists or acquire a summery dimension that the authors surely hadn't anticipated. At ARA, we've made a selection that we'll publish in several batches throughout the month of August. For now, there are a dozen songs that begin with a stroll through Rome and end with a hypnotic night in Benicàssim.