Sangtraït

History

In the summer of 1979, Quim Mandado and Josep M. Coro, both seventeen, started playing piano and classical guitar at Mandado's home in La Jonquera, bonding over blues and rock. Their jam sessions soon drew in La Lupe, Papa Juls, Xavi Rodriguez, and a French drummer named Patrick, and the group worked through blues tunes and Beatles covers. La Lupe decided to stay in Empordà after that joyful summer of music and friendship. To afford better gear, some members took jobs as firefighters, hoping to squeeze in practice between calls. After heavy rehearsals, they debuted publicly in Capmany as Los Bomberos Atómicos, playing rock'n'roll standards like a Catalan version of "The House of the Rising Sun." That early lineup had La Lupe on guitar and vocals, Quim on bass, Josep M. on guitar, Xavier Rodríguez on keyboards, and his brother Víctor on drums. Papa Juls moved between La Jonquera and Agullana for theatre work, always carrying his harmonica. Others who joined early included Valentín López, Emerio Marc, F. Solà, and Marc González, who later became the official singer. In 1988, Marc González left, and Quim Mandado took over vocals. La Lupe and Martín Rodríguez then put together a demo of three songs: "El Vol de l'home ocell," "Els senyors de les pedres," and "Buscant una dona." Picap funded the first album, Els Senyors de les Pedres, recorded at Aurha Studios in Esplugues. It sold about 10,000 copies and led to over thirty concerts. The band also contributed "Neu" to the Christmas compilation Tocats del Nadal. Their second album, Terra de Vents, came out in 1990 with tracks like "Sang en el fang," "Inqui-missió," and the title track. They played their first Barcelona show at Studio 54 on 17 May. In 1991, they recorded L'Últim Segell, which sold 90,000 copies and supported 120 concerts, including a historic show on 14 June at Palau Sant Jordi alongside Sopa de Cabra, Sau, and Els Pets, drawing 22,104 people. A live album and video, Sangtraït al Palau Sant Jordi, came from that performance.