Fermin Muguruza (born 20 April 1963) is a
Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
musician, singer, songwriter, producer, record label manager, and co-founder of the
ska punk
Ska punk (also spelled ska-punk) is a fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock music together. (sometimes spelled skacore) is a subgenre of ska punk that mixes ska with hardcore punk. Early ska punk mixed both 2 tone and ska with hardc ...
band
Kortatu
Kortatu was a Basque ska punk band from the 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 significance for left-wing basque natio ...
, active from 1983 to 1988, and of the
crossover
Crossover may refer to:
Entertainment
Albums and songs
* ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album)
* ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987
* ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album)
* ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album)
* ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...
group
Negu Gorriak
Negu Gorriak (Basque for ''"Red Winters"'' or ''"Severe/Harsh Winters"'') were an underground Spanish group from the Basque Autonomous Community. Their musical style combines various styles of rock music such as hardcore punk, hip-hop, ska, and re ...
, active from 1990 to 1996.
Born in
Irun
Irun ( es, Irún, eu, Irun) is a town of the Bidasoaldea region in the province of Gipuzkoa in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, Spain.
History
It lies on the foundations of the ancient Oiasso, cited as ...
,
Basque Autonomous Community
The Basque Country (; eu, Euskadi ; es, País Vasco ), also called Basque Autonomous Community ( eu, Euskal Autonomia Erkidegoa, links=no, EAE; es, Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco, links=no, CAPV), is an autonomous community of Spain. It ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, he is the brother of musicians and and is one of the personalities interviewed for the documentary film ''
The Basque Ball'', released in 2003.
Musical career
Muguruza has taken part in more than twenty albums, and is one of the most important artists from the
Basque Country.
In 1983 he founded a fusion
ska punk
Ska punk (also spelled ska-punk) is a fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock music together. (sometimes spelled skacore) is a subgenre of ska punk that mixes ska with hardcore punk. Early ska punk mixed both 2 tone and ska with hardc ...
band called
Kortatu
Kortatu was a Basque ska punk band from the 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 significance for left-wing basque natio ...
with his brother Iñigo and drummer Treku Armendariz, among the first to popularise
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 walki ...
in Spain. They were clearly influenced by
The Clash
The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...
, in fact, Muguruza decided to create the band after seeing
Strummer's band in a gig in
Donostia on May 2, 1981. His song "Sarri, Sarri", a Basque cover of
Toots & the Maytals
The Maytals, known from 1972 to 2020 as Toots and the Maytals, are a Jamaican musical group, one of the best known ska and rocksteady vocal groups. The Maytals were formed in the early 1960s and were key figures in popularizing reggae music.
...
' "Chatty Chatty", grew into a highly popular song during the 80s, where he makes an explicit reference to
Joseba Sarrionaindia's artful escape from prison in 1985.
In 1988 the group disbanded, but Fermin and Iñigo would come together again in 1990 to create the
crossover
Crossover may refer to:
Entertainment
Albums and songs
* ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album)
* ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987
* ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album)
* ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album)
* ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...
group
Negu Gorriak
Negu Gorriak (Basque for ''"Red Winters"'' or ''"Severe/Harsh Winters"'') were an underground Spanish group from the Basque Autonomous Community. Their musical style combines various styles of rock music such as hardcore punk, hip-hop, ska, and re ...
, along with
Kaki Arkarazo Kaki may refer to:
People
* Abubaker Kaki (born 1989), a Sudanese middle-distance runner
* Kaki King (born 1979), a musician
Places Iran
* Kaki, Hormozgan, a village in Hormozgan Province
* Kaki, Iran, a city in Bushehr Province
* Kaki District ...
, who had produced Kortatu's last records. In 1997 he collaborated with
Dut. More recently he has developed a solo career, always defending the use of the
Basque language and the need for
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...
.
Views on society and politics
In interviews he has persistently denounced the policies of the Basque, Spanish and French governments and police bodies as well as of Spanish nationalist groups. At an international level, Fermin Muguruza holds acute left-wing views that lead him to criticize the
U.S. government, corporations and the
globalization
Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...
process, all of which he denounces as imperialistic and homogenizing.
In an interview with Freemuse, Muguruza speaks about his experience as a musician under the democracy of today. He has performed in concerts where
fascists
Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and th ...
would come to his concerts with bombs, threatening him and his Basque hip-hop music. However, he experiences censorship within Spain for his political and social messages, but still performs and makes music, saying "authorities are afraid of my music because it is a tool against ignorance. And these authorities want the ignorance so that they can do what they want".
Musically, he has been inspired by the, in his opinion, oppression of Spain over Basque Country. And although most of his lyrics are in Basque, his compositions are a melting pot of different cultures, with a big influence of
Jamaican and
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...
(especially
drum and bass
Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...
), which he commonly mixes over Basque instruments. In his track "Euskal Herria Jamaika Clash!, Fermin Muguruza mixes Jamaican rhythms with sounds from
Basque traditional musical instruments to produce unique musical hybrids that feature Basque heritage and culture.
[Muguruza, Fermin.]
Euskal Herria Jamaika Clash
. YouTube. 20 May 2006. 15 Apr. 2008.
Discography
Kortatu
*''Kortatu/Cicatriz/Jotakie/Kontuz Hi!'' (1985)
*''
Kortatu
Kortatu was a Basque ska punk band from the 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 significance for left-wing basque natio ...
'' (1985)
*''
El estado de las cosas'' (1986)
*''
Kolpez kolpe'' (1988)
*''
Azken guda dantza'' (1988)
Negu Gorriak
*''
Negu Gorriak
Negu Gorriak (Basque for ''"Red Winters"'' or ''"Severe/Harsh Winters"'') were an underground Spanish group from the Basque Autonomous Community. Their musical style combines various styles of rock music such as hardcore punk, hip-hop, ska, and re ...
'' (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)
Fermin Muguruza eta Dut
*''
Ireki ateak'' (1997)
Fermin Muguruza
*''
Amodio eta gorrotozko kantak (1984-1998)'' (1998)
*''
Brigadistak Sound System'' (1999)
*''
erREMIXak'' (1999)
*''
FM 99.00 Dub Manifest'' (2000)
*''
Korrika
Korrika ( Basque for ''running'') is a biennial event in the Basque Country that creates awareness of AEK’s adult Basque language curriculum and Basque language, and is also a fund raiser; AEK is an adult education organisation for the te ...
''. mundu bat euskarara bildu (2001)
*''
In-komunikazioa'' (2002)
*''
Irun Meets Bristol. Komunikazioa'' (2003)
*''
Sala Apolo, Barcelona 21/01/04'' (2004)
*''
99-04'' DVD + CD (2005)
*''
Xomorroak'' (Bizitza lorontzian) (2005)
*''
Euskal Herria Jamaika Clash'' (2006)
*''
BASS-que Culture'' DVD + Remix CD (2006)
*''
Asthmatic Lion Sound Systema'' (2008)
*''
Asthmatic Lion REMIX + beste harribitxi batzuk'' (2009)
References
External links
*
www.negugorriak.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muguruza, Fermin
1963 births
Living people
Basque musicians
Basque-language singers
Spanish songwriters
Basque singers
Spanish rock singers
People from Irun
20th-century Spanish singers
21st-century Spanish musicians
21st-century Spanish singers
Rock en Español musicians
20th-century Spanish male singers
21st-century Spanish male singers