Folk musician and revolutionary Manu Chao gets vitriolic over bankers
French Latin folk legend Manu Chao releases live CD/DVD Baïonarena on October 19 giving UK fans an opportunity to see the elusive Manu Chao and his band Radio Bemba perform.
Released on label Because Music, the CD showcases hits Clandestino, Bongo Bong and Mala Vida, which shot Manu to fame with his eclectic reggae, jazz, ska, punk sound. The CD captures the spirit and success of Grammy nominated album La Radiolina, which led to a two-year world tour, “Last year there was a good opportunity to perform at Bayonne. It’s a great place, I went seven years ago and there was a big fiesta in the city. We were asked by a French TV channel to record the show.”
The DVD was recorded at the world famous Roman amphitheatre in the French city of Bayonne, “It’s difficult to analyse your own work, but friends like it.” Manu talks of the CD.
The French city is near the Spanish boarder and represents Manu’s heritage. His Spanish parents fled Francisco Franco’s dictatorship and settled in Paris, where Manu’s father, writer/journalist Ramon Chao exposed Manu to a plethora of intellectuals and artists, giving Manu inspiration for many of his songs, “Life in the world is not good, it’s not the way we expect and I’m worried for the future and its important to tell people about it. It’s a responsibility.”
Despite sell out tours, including three dates at Brixton Academy and appearing below Amy Winehouse and Jay-Z at Glastonbury; he has no plans to tour the UK at the moment, “I’m in France in September, doing shows in Cuba, Argentina and Chilli before Christmas. I have short schedules; hopefully I’ll come to the UK next year. Radio Bemba is happy touring!”
Manu is constantly on tour, both in the early days as part of band Manu Negra with his brother and solo with band Radio Bemba, “Touring is big part of life. Sitting in the bus after a good show, travelling, smoking a joint, it’s a happy place.” When asked is there was anything he couldn’t leave home without, Manu added, “Generally, I try to bring as less as possible as you get given a lot of things and you end up carrying a lot. But I have to have my favourite hat!”
“I try to play at every opportunity, taking the show everywhere I can. I want to reach people, not the music business.” Manu added.
Manu is well-known for singing in lots of different languages; French, Spanish, English, Galiacian, Portuguese, Arabic and Wolof – often chopping and changing in the same song. His sound stems from a love of UK rock, being a big fan of seventies punk legends The Clash, “I listened to them a lot as a teenager. They have interesting social lyrics and diverse musical style – it was because of them that I got into reggae. Even the post-Clash music was very good. The Clash is the only heroes I had that didn’t deceive me. I’ve met a lot of people who I looked up to and they weren’t who I thought they were. I don’t believe in heroes anymore.”
Manu’s political songs about immigration, love, ghettos and drugs often carry a left-wing message and have earned him a massive following, especially with the anarchists, “I have thousands of anarchist friends, no-one agrees on what is an anarchist is. I don’t have a problem with them as my fans, the problem with the world are fucking bankers. The bad people work in banks, not sitting in squats.”
With an ever changing music industry, with the way we buy and listen to music appeals to Manu’s ethics, “everyone can listen to my music.” France has recently bought in laws prosecuting anyone who illegally downloads music, “this is a real hypocrisy, we’ve always be pirating music with recording tapes and burning CDs. It’s not new. Most of my discography was pirate when I was a teenager. The industry makes machines to pirate music and then prosecutes the kids that use them!”
When asked what Manu listens to, “The list is not very famous. I did a TV show in France with Amazigh, who is from North Africa. I would like to collaborate with him. I get given a lot of demos when I’m on the road and I listen to them when I get back. Some are very well produced, others have an interesting sound. It’s good to hear what people are making.”
He has also been linked with American trip-hop duo Thievery Corporation, after playing along side them at Lollapalooza in 2006, “They have remixed one of my songs and sent it to me from DC [Washington] this week. It was a good experience.”
Manu talked about being inspired by life, never knowing where it comes from, “it’s beautiful, never knowing where it’s going, it’s from being intense, getting kicks, information, opportunities. There is no law to writing music, it’s completely free.”
First published 12.10.2009
Released on label Because Music, the CD showcases hits Clandestino, Bongo Bong and Mala Vida, which shot Manu to fame with his eclectic reggae, jazz, ska, punk sound. The CD captures the spirit and success of Grammy nominated album La Radiolina, which led to a two-year world tour, “Last year there was a good opportunity to perform at Bayonne. It’s a great place, I went seven years ago and there was a big fiesta in the city. We were asked by a French TV channel to record the show.”
The DVD was recorded at the world famous Roman amphitheatre in the French city of Bayonne, “It’s difficult to analyse your own work, but friends like it.” Manu talks of the CD.
The French city is near the Spanish boarder and represents Manu’s heritage. His Spanish parents fled Francisco Franco’s dictatorship and settled in Paris, where Manu’s father, writer/journalist Ramon Chao exposed Manu to a plethora of intellectuals and artists, giving Manu inspiration for many of his songs, “Life in the world is not good, it’s not the way we expect and I’m worried for the future and its important to tell people about it. It’s a responsibility.”
Despite sell out tours, including three dates at Brixton Academy and appearing below Amy Winehouse and Jay-Z at Glastonbury; he has no plans to tour the UK at the moment, “I’m in France in September, doing shows in Cuba, Argentina and Chilli before Christmas. I have short schedules; hopefully I’ll come to the UK next year. Radio Bemba is happy touring!”
Manu is constantly on tour, both in the early days as part of band Manu Negra with his brother and solo with band Radio Bemba, “Touring is big part of life. Sitting in the bus after a good show, travelling, smoking a joint, it’s a happy place.” When asked is there was anything he couldn’t leave home without, Manu added, “Generally, I try to bring as less as possible as you get given a lot of things and you end up carrying a lot. But I have to have my favourite hat!”
“I try to play at every opportunity, taking the show everywhere I can. I want to reach people, not the music business.” Manu added.
Manu is well-known for singing in lots of different languages; French, Spanish, English, Galiacian, Portuguese, Arabic and Wolof – often chopping and changing in the same song. His sound stems from a love of UK rock, being a big fan of seventies punk legends The Clash, “I listened to them a lot as a teenager. They have interesting social lyrics and diverse musical style – it was because of them that I got into reggae. Even the post-Clash music was very good. The Clash is the only heroes I had that didn’t deceive me. I’ve met a lot of people who I looked up to and they weren’t who I thought they were. I don’t believe in heroes anymore.”
Manu’s political songs about immigration, love, ghettos and drugs often carry a left-wing message and have earned him a massive following, especially with the anarchists, “I have thousands of anarchist friends, no-one agrees on what is an anarchist is. I don’t have a problem with them as my fans, the problem with the world are fucking bankers. The bad people work in banks, not sitting in squats.”
With an ever changing music industry, with the way we buy and listen to music appeals to Manu’s ethics, “everyone can listen to my music.” France has recently bought in laws prosecuting anyone who illegally downloads music, “this is a real hypocrisy, we’ve always be pirating music with recording tapes and burning CDs. It’s not new. Most of my discography was pirate when I was a teenager. The industry makes machines to pirate music and then prosecutes the kids that use them!”
When asked what Manu listens to, “The list is not very famous. I did a TV show in France with Amazigh, who is from North Africa. I would like to collaborate with him. I get given a lot of demos when I’m on the road and I listen to them when I get back. Some are very well produced, others have an interesting sound. It’s good to hear what people are making.”
He has also been linked with American trip-hop duo Thievery Corporation, after playing along side them at Lollapalooza in 2006, “They have remixed one of my songs and sent it to me from DC [Washington] this week. It was a good experience.”
Manu talked about being inspired by life, never knowing where it comes from, “it’s beautiful, never knowing where it’s going, it’s from being intense, getting kicks, information, opportunities. There is no law to writing music, it’s completely free.”
First published 12.10.2009
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