yeah, the title is right...we - a punk rock band from Switzerland - played at a festival called "festival de la cultura iberoamericana" in Holguin Cuba. Not only one show...but four shows on four different days at four different locations...! Let me explain this:
Our Cuban booker David Chapet usually books two festivals in Cuba: the Brutal Fest that takes place twice a year and the Ciudad Metal. We managed to go to Cuba at a time, when none of those festivals were happening. Nonetheless, David tried to put a tour together for us. He became aware, that this year, for the first time ever, the festival the la cultura iberoamericana broadened their musical range to rock music. So he talked to the people in chare and managed to get us four shows at the festival!
The festival took place in the city and the surrounding regions of Holguin, a city in eastern Cuba. It is also called the city of parks because about every two blocks you'll find a big square with a lot of trees and benches that make for great gathering and drinking spots at night.
About 30 delegations of south and central American countries - and Überyou from Switzerland - were participating and performing at the festival. The spectre cover pretty much every art form such as comedy, dance, painting and music. Although we didn't really fit in geographically or culturally, everybody made us feel very welcome. For Ian who is the only of us that speaks fluently spanish it got a little exhausting. Because he had to introduce the band to the promoters, the other delegations and pretty much anyone that was curious. But he managed like a pro and should really consider a career in PR now...
Three of our four shows we played with the local death metal band Mephisto. Like every other Cuban band we met, they were really unbelievably talented musicians. Our first encounter was kind of funny: It was even hotter than in Havana, so everyone of Überyou was wearing flip flops, shorts and a tank top...then we met Mephisto, all dressed in black, wearing leather pants and heavy boots...thats dedication!
The first gig we played in a pretty big open air venue. A lot of people - I guess around 200 - came, but the venue could have held about 1000 people easily. So the crowd was pretty scattered at first. But a couple of songs and Ians charme and Spanish skills, they moved together and towards the stage. But the most serious action of the night was going on after the live shows were finished: The DJ played some metal classics and the remaining crowd went totally nuts. During every chorus they moved towards the stage where no band was playing and moshed like there was no tomorow. Watching it from far felt a bit like watching a battle scene from Braveheart...hilarious!
We were told, that the next day we and a couple of other delegations would perform in a city called Banes about two hours outside of Holguin. We didn't really know what to expect yet....so the next morning we got picked up at the hotel and went to the Casa de Iberoamericana which was the headquarter of the festival. There were two buses waiting for us and the other delegations. As soon as we got in, we realized that this would not be just another show...! Flags were installed on the bus windows and at the buses front, a poster was attached. It read: "Brigada Internacional de Solidaridad". And last but not least, a police escort on a motorbike was clearing the road for the two buses that were running at full spead, overtaking bicycles, slower cars and carriages. It was kind of funny and a bit scary at the same time...finally we arrived in Banes, a small twon in the midle of nowhere. The entry of the two buses with the police escort seemed kinda misplaced at first but then we got to the place were the show was going to happen and we finally realized what was going on. In the last couple of years, Banes got hit and destroyed by hurricanes twice. The towns only cultural attracion, the theatre got destroyed as well. So the promoters of the Festival de la Cultura Iberoamericana sent out this "Brigada Internacional de Solidaridad" to this town...and we were part of it!
It was the middle of the day and the sun and heat were really intense. We were scheduled as one of the last groups and for that, we seeked some shade and watched the other groups performing. Especially the Colombian group catched our attention. They all played traditional instruments. A lot of them were different types of drums or percussive instruments. But they also played some crazy flutes we never saw before. The group had a great spirit and they were great guys as well. They outpartied almost anyone every night we saw them...! As the shows went on, more and more locals were gathering. There were very few people with bandshirts but generally the crowd was just a mix of all kinds people young and old. So we really didn't know what to expect from our show. Especially after someone told us that we were the first European band that played in Banes ever. But it turned out to be the most special show we played so far! You could easily tell that a big part of the crowd never heard that kind of music before...but we could also see the smiles on peoples faces getting bigger and bigger. As always, Ian went into the crowd to sing and a lot of the kids wanted to sing along even if they never heard a song of us. So one guy just grabbed the mic and started rapping to our punk rock tunes. It was pretty funny and beautiful at the same time! The schedule was tight and so we could only play five songs. But it was way more intense than a lot of regular sets we played before and although it was incredibly hot we all got goosebumps while playing. It might sound weird, but it's kinda special when a 70 year old Cuban guy walks up to you after your gig to thank you for playing (a punk rock show) and telling you that you'll be always welcome in his house and in his town. I guess the Banes show was a once in a lifetime experience for everyone of us! It's hard to describe but for me it was probably the most special and most emotional moment of the tour.
After the show, a lot of cheers and pictures were made with everyone but pretty soon we found ourselves in the bus again. The driver seemed to be in a hurry and the ride back to the hotel turned out to be kind of a death race. Everybody on the bus was getting more and more quiet - especially after we almost missed a turn for the second time...someone later said, that the driver had tried to get back before dusk because it was to dangerous to drive at night....well....no comment...
But we arrived at the hotel save and sound, still excited about the whole day and went straight to the hotel bar. There we sipped some rum til late and met funny people like the anchorman of a Cuban cultural TV broadcast and Mr. Muy Importante...Holguin had already a big place in our hearts.
Our Cuban booker David Chapet usually books two festivals in Cuba: the Brutal Fest that takes place twice a year and the Ciudad Metal. We managed to go to Cuba at a time, when none of those festivals were happening. Nonetheless, David tried to put a tour together for us. He became aware, that this year, for the first time ever, the festival the la cultura iberoamericana broadened their musical range to rock music. So he talked to the people in chare and managed to get us four shows at the festival!
The festival took place in the city and the surrounding regions of Holguin, a city in eastern Cuba. It is also called the city of parks because about every two blocks you'll find a big square with a lot of trees and benches that make for great gathering and drinking spots at night.
About 30 delegations of south and central American countries - and Überyou from Switzerland - were participating and performing at the festival. The spectre cover pretty much every art form such as comedy, dance, painting and music. Although we didn't really fit in geographically or culturally, everybody made us feel very welcome. For Ian who is the only of us that speaks fluently spanish it got a little exhausting. Because he had to introduce the band to the promoters, the other delegations and pretty much anyone that was curious. But he managed like a pro and should really consider a career in PR now...
Three of our four shows we played with the local death metal band Mephisto. Like every other Cuban band we met, they were really unbelievably talented musicians. Our first encounter was kind of funny: It was even hotter than in Havana, so everyone of Überyou was wearing flip flops, shorts and a tank top...then we met Mephisto, all dressed in black, wearing leather pants and heavy boots...thats dedication!
The first gig we played in a pretty big open air venue. A lot of people - I guess around 200 - came, but the venue could have held about 1000 people easily. So the crowd was pretty scattered at first. But a couple of songs and Ians charme and Spanish skills, they moved together and towards the stage. But the most serious action of the night was going on after the live shows were finished: The DJ played some metal classics and the remaining crowd went totally nuts. During every chorus they moved towards the stage where no band was playing and moshed like there was no tomorow. Watching it from far felt a bit like watching a battle scene from Braveheart...hilarious!
We were told, that the next day we and a couple of other delegations would perform in a city called Banes about two hours outside of Holguin. We didn't really know what to expect yet....so the next morning we got picked up at the hotel and went to the Casa de Iberoamericana which was the headquarter of the festival. There were two buses waiting for us and the other delegations. As soon as we got in, we realized that this would not be just another show...! Flags were installed on the bus windows and at the buses front, a poster was attached. It read: "Brigada Internacional de Solidaridad". And last but not least, a police escort on a motorbike was clearing the road for the two buses that were running at full spead, overtaking bicycles, slower cars and carriages. It was kind of funny and a bit scary at the same time...finally we arrived in Banes, a small twon in the midle of nowhere. The entry of the two buses with the police escort seemed kinda misplaced at first but then we got to the place were the show was going to happen and we finally realized what was going on. In the last couple of years, Banes got hit and destroyed by hurricanes twice. The towns only cultural attracion, the theatre got destroyed as well. So the promoters of the Festival de la Cultura Iberoamericana sent out this "Brigada Internacional de Solidaridad" to this town...and we were part of it!
It was the middle of the day and the sun and heat were really intense. We were scheduled as one of the last groups and for that, we seeked some shade and watched the other groups performing. Especially the Colombian group catched our attention. They all played traditional instruments. A lot of them were different types of drums or percussive instruments. But they also played some crazy flutes we never saw before. The group had a great spirit and they were great guys as well. They outpartied almost anyone every night we saw them...! As the shows went on, more and more locals were gathering. There were very few people with bandshirts but generally the crowd was just a mix of all kinds people young and old. So we really didn't know what to expect from our show. Especially after someone told us that we were the first European band that played in Banes ever. But it turned out to be the most special show we played so far! You could easily tell that a big part of the crowd never heard that kind of music before...but we could also see the smiles on peoples faces getting bigger and bigger. As always, Ian went into the crowd to sing and a lot of the kids wanted to sing along even if they never heard a song of us. So one guy just grabbed the mic and started rapping to our punk rock tunes. It was pretty funny and beautiful at the same time! The schedule was tight and so we could only play five songs. But it was way more intense than a lot of regular sets we played before and although it was incredibly hot we all got goosebumps while playing. It might sound weird, but it's kinda special when a 70 year old Cuban guy walks up to you after your gig to thank you for playing (a punk rock show) and telling you that you'll be always welcome in his house and in his town. I guess the Banes show was a once in a lifetime experience for everyone of us! It's hard to describe but for me it was probably the most special and most emotional moment of the tour.
After the show, a lot of cheers and pictures were made with everyone but pretty soon we found ourselves in the bus again. The driver seemed to be in a hurry and the ride back to the hotel turned out to be kind of a death race. Everybody on the bus was getting more and more quiet - especially after we almost missed a turn for the second time...someone later said, that the driver had tried to get back before dusk because it was to dangerous to drive at night....well....no comment...
But we arrived at the hotel save and sound, still excited about the whole day and went straight to the hotel bar. There we sipped some rum til late and met funny people like the anchorman of a Cuban cultural TV broadcast and Mr. Muy Importante...Holguin had already a big place in our hearts.
Ian crowdsurfing in Banes
Front Page of "La Luz", the cultural newspaper of Holguin
View from behind the stage in Banes
Überyou meets the Colombians
Partying at the hotel bar
Not really Gerrard Depardieu look alike Mr. Muy Importante couldn't care less about our flash mob action...he signed the picture all the same!
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