Mägo de Oz

History

Txus di Fellatio started putting together what would become Mägo de Oz in 1988, slowly bringing in musicians until the lineup was set by 1992. The band first called themselves Transilvania, a nod to an Iron Maiden instrumental that heavily influenced them. That early lineup had Txus on drums and backing vocals, Mohamed on violin, Charlie on lead guitar, Chema on rhythm guitar, Salva on bass, and Juanma handling lead vocals and backup drums. They put out three demos: Y qué más da in 1989, Canción de cuna para un bohemio in 1990, and Con la cabeza bien alta in 1992. Their sound drew from folk metal and Celtic music, though it covered a wide range of styles. In 1992, they became finalists in the Concurso Villa de Madrid. Two years later, under the name Mago de Oz, they released their debut album, produced by Txus and Alberto Plaza. It barely made a ripple, and hardly anyone knew the band existed. Then came a rough patch with major lineup changes, settling in 1996 into a group that would stick together for years: Txus, Mohamed, Carlitos on lead guitar and backing vocals, Frank on rhythm and acoustic guitar plus backing vocals, Salva, and José Andrëa on lead vocals and keyboards. That same year, they started work on a rock opera called Jesús de Chamberí, produced by Alberto Plaza and the band. It told the story of Jesus returning to Madrid’s Chamberí neighborhood. Released on Locomotive Music, the album shot them to fame across Spain, backed by the Via Crucis Tour. In 1997, they re-recorded five songs from their debut with their new singer. The resulting EP, officially self-titled but widely called La Bruja because of its cover art featuring a witch playing a violin under a moon, did even better than Jesús de Chamberí. It boosted their profile further and landed them more festival slots.