"El universo sobre mí" () is a song performed by the Spanish rock duo Amaral, consisting of vocalist Eva Amaral and guitarist

Juan Aguirre Juan Aguirre may refer to: * Juan Aguirre (musician) (born 1965), Basque musician and songwriter * Juan Aguirre (rower) (born 1970), Spanish rower * Juan Felipe Aguirre (born 1996), Colombian footballer * Juan Pedro Aguirre (1781–1837), Argent ...

. They wrote the song and Cameron Jenkins produced it.

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...

released it as the first single from the album ''

Pájaros en la cabeza ''Pájaros en la cabeza'' ( or literally, ''Birds in the head'') is the fourth studio album by the Spanish folk rock group Amaral released in Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Eu ...

'' on 25 February 2005. The song debuted at number 1 in Spain, where it remained for three consecutive weeks. Additionally, it peaked at number 43 in the American ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''s

Hot Latin Tracks The ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs (formerly Hot Latin Tracks and Hot Latin 50) is a record chart in the United States for Latin songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Since October 2012, chart rankings are based on digital sales, ...

Composition and release

After concluding Amaral's tour to promote the album ''

Estrella de mar ''Estrella de mar'' () is the third studio album by the Spanish folk rock group Amaral released in Spain during 2002. Led by the first single and #1 hit "Sin Ti No Soy Nada", ''Estrella de Mar'' became the duo's breakthrough album, selling mor ...

'' (2002), Eva Amaral and

wrote "El universo sobre mí". The tour had been stressful, with extensive travel and a lack of rest exacerbated by the newfound fame brought by the album. The lyrics of the song reflect "a chant to move forward, to feel free and to do whatever they wanted to do", as Eva explained, as they felt their band was drifting from its origins. During this period, Aguirre, the group's lead guitarist, injured his hand, leading him to play the

introduction Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...

with a keyboard instead of a guitar. In live performances, he used a

Mellotron The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which causes a length of magnetic tape to contact a Capstan (tape recorder), capstan, which pulls i ...

instead. Regarding the lyric "''Quiero encontrar mi sitio''" ("I want to find my place"), Eva explained that it is about finding balance and peace of mind in the world. The song's initial

working title A working title is a preliminary name for a product or project. The usage is especially common in film and TV, gaming, music and publishing. It is often styled in trade publications as (wt) and is synonymous with production title and tentative ...

was "Solo queda una vela". Cameron Jenkins produced it along with the album, ''

''.

released it as the first single from the album on 25 February 2005. Aguirre mentioned that the

album cover An album cover (also referred to as album art) is the front packaging art of a commercially released album, studio album or other audio recordings. The term can refer to: * the printed paperboard covers typically used to package: ** sets of a ...

of ''Pájaros en la cabeza'' is a doll-like metaphor for how they were feeling at the time, and that they faced problems getting the cover to remain the final one.

Reception

Critical response

Lucía Noguerales from

Onda Cero Onda Cero is a Spanish national generalist radio station, a part of Atresmedia media group. It is Spain's third-largest radio station by number of listeners as of 2024. Among its programs are ''Más de Uno,'' ''Julia en la Onda,'' ''La Brújula ...

compared the introduction of "El universo sobre mí" to the song "

Strawberry Fields Forever "Strawberry Fields Forever" is a song by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released on 13 February 1967 as a double A-side single with "Penny Lane". It represented ...

" by

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

, as it uses a Mellotron. El Crítico de IA wrote for the Spanish magazine ''Popes80'' that the song is a

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...

tune that "has the incredible ability to connect with our deepest emotions, transporting us to dreamy places and awakening feelings we thought we had forgotten." The

European Space Agency The European Space Agency (ESA) is a 23-member International organization, international organization devoted to space exploration. With its headquarters in Paris and a staff of around 2,547 people globally as of 2023, ESA was founded in 1975 ...

added the song to its playlist for the launch of the

Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer The Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice, formerly JUICE) is an interplanetary spacecraft on its way to orbit and study three icy moons of Jupiter (planet), Jupiter: Ganymede (moon), Ganymede, Callisto (moon), Callisto, and Europa (moon), Europa ...

(JUICE) interstellar spacecraft in 2023.

Commercial performance

In Spain, "El universo sobre mí" debuted at the top of the Spanish chart on 6 March 2005, where it stayed for three weeks. As of , the song remains their only number-one single in the country. The

Productores de Música de España Productores de Música de España (; shortened as Promusicae) is the national organisation responsible for the music charts of Spain. it is a trade association that represents more than 90% of the Spanish recorded music industry. It is the Inter ...

certified the song platinum in 2024, denoting sales of 60,000 copies. In the United States, it peaked at number 43 on the ''

''s

chart on 2 July 2005.

Charts

Certifications

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Universo Sobre Mi, El 2005 singles 2005 songs Pop rock songs Spanish songs