Kiko Amat (born 1971) is a Spanish journalist and novelist who also works as a DJ.

Biography

Kiko Amat left school at 17 and lived in London for five years. He writes periodically on his website ''Bendito Atraso'' and, with his brother Uri Amat, edits the

fanzine A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...

''La Escuela Moderna'', in addition to DJing with the collective Hungry Beat. He writes critical articles for various media outlets, such as the newspaper ''

La Vanguardia ' (; , Spanish for "The Vanguard") is a Spanish daily newspaper, founded in 1881. It is printed in Spanish and, since 3 May 2011, also in Catalan (Spanish copy is automatically translated into Catalan). It has its headquarters in Barcelona and i ...

'' and its supplement ''Cultura/S'', and the magazines ''GO'' (until 2005) and ''

Rockdelux ''Rockdelux'' is a Spanish music magazine. History and profile ''Rockdelux'' was first published in November 1984, and celebrated its 200th anniversary in October 2002, when it released a list of the 200 greatest international albums of all tim ...

''.

Literary career

In 2003 he published his first novel with

Anagrama Anagrama is a Spanish publisher founded in 1969 by Jorge Herralde. In 2010 it was sold to the Italian publisher Feltrinelli. Since 1969, Anagrama has published over 3,500 titles. currently, Anagrama publishes around 100 books annually, between t ...

, ''El día que me vaya no se lo diré a nadie'', which he defined as "a love story, but somewhat atypical." It narrates the encounters and disagreements of a young overimaginative man with Octavia, the girl who gives voice to the underground. In general it was well received by critics. Among his main influences, the author cited Anglo-Saxon

underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground (S ...

authors such as

Colin MacInnes Colin MacInnes (20 August 1914 – 22 April 1976) was an English novelist and journalist. Early life MacInnes was born in London, the son of singer James Campbell McInnes and novelist Angela Mackail, who was the granddaughter of the Pre-Rap ...

and

Richard Brautigan Richard Gary Brautigan (January 30, 1935 – c. September 16, 1984) was an American novelist, poet, and short story writer. A prolific writer, he wrote throughout his life and published ten novels, two collections of short stories, and four bo ...

. Another of Amat's most important influences is

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describe ...

. Referring to his first novel, he said: "I wanted each episode to have the immediacy of some of those three-minute punk rock songs that have had the most impact on me." In 2007, Kiko Amat's second novel was released, ''Cosas que hacen BUM'', which tells of the fascination of Pànic Orfila with an armed group of anarchist dandies of the

Gràcia Gràcia () is a district of the city of Barcelona, Spain. It comprises the neighborhoods of Vila de Gràcia, Vallcarca i els Penitents, El Coll, La Salut and Camp d'en Grassot i Gràcia Nova. Gràcia is bordered by the districts of Eixample to th ...

district (Los Vorticistas) and their explosive plans. Early 2009 saw the publication of his third novel, ''Rompepistas'', about the adolescence of a group of skins and punks in a town on the outskirts of Barcelona in 1987. According to the author's statements, the three books form a trilogy on adolescence and youth. The critics have classified Kiko Amat as a "pop novelist", linking his literary approach with those of authors such as Javier Calvo, Juan Francisco Ferré, Julián Rodríguez, and

Agustín Fernández Mallo Agustín Fernández Mallo (A Coruña, 1967) is a physicist and Spanish writer. He lives in Palma de Mallorca. He is a member of the so-called Nocilla Generation. Although he works as a physicist, he also collaborates with cultural magazines suc ...

. The author, for his part, denies this, and in an interview mentioned

Francisco Casavella Francisco Casavella was the pseudonym of Francisco Garcia Hortelano (15 October 1963 – 17 December 2008), a Spanish novelist. He never used his real name to sign his works, as his surname coincides with that of another novelist, Juan Garcí ...

and Carlos Herrero as similar authors. He won the 2010 for ''Rompepistas''. In 2012 he published the novel ''Eres el mejor, Cienfuegos'', a tragicomic portrait of the with the

15-M The anti-austerity movement in Spain, also referred to as the 15-M Movement (Spanish: ''Movimiento 15-M''), and the Indignados Movement, was a series of protests, demonstrations, and occupations against austerity policies in Spain that began aro ...

as a backdrop.

Works

* ''El día que me vaya no se lo diré a nadie'' (Anagrama, 2003). * ''Cosas que hacen BUM'' (Anagrama, 2007). * ''Rompepistas'' (Anagrama, 2009). * ''L'home intranquil: 35 dies en familia d'un neurotic entusiasta'' (Columna, 2010). * ''Mil violines (y otras crónicas sobre pop y humanos)'' (Reservoir Books Mondadori, 2011). * ''Eres el mejor, Cienfuegos'' (Anagrama, 2012). * ''La soledad del corredor de fondo'' (contribution to

Mercedes Cebrián Mercedes Cebrián (born 29 May 1971) is a Spanish writer and translator. Biography Mercedes Cebrián holds a licentiate in Information Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid, a master's degree in Hispanic Cultural Studies from Birkbe ...

's translation of ''

The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner "The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner" is a short story by Alan Sillitoe, published in 1959 as part of a short story collection of the same title. The work focuses on Smith, a poor Nottingham teenager from a dismal home in a working clas ...

'' by Alan Sillitoe. Impedimenta, 2013). * ''Chap, Chap'' (Blackie Books, 2015). * ''Antes del huracán'' (Anagrama, 2018).

References

External links

''Bendito Atraso''

''La Escuela Moderna''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amat, Kiko 1971 births 21st-century Spanish novelists Journalists from Catalonia Novelists from Catalonia Living people People from Baix Llobregat Spanish DJs Spanish male novelists