Hey Drooblers. We’re going to try something a bit different today. Leandro and Andre are two partners in crime (the good kind, a.k.a. music) that we encountered on Drooble. They’re “here” as members of a band called Tamal, basedn in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Originally, the reason for this interview was their EP, but then it turned out they’re great at being interviewed so now there’s another reason for you to read on. They used to be a band of four but now only the two of them remain and they’re looking for new members (bassist and drummer). Anyway, we usually go about these interviews by presenting the person whose thoughts we’d be sharing with you and then proceed with the questions. This time, however, we’re going to let our interviewees present each other and then ask them both the same questions. If you insist on at least some introduction on our part, here – these two are, first of all, awesome musicians but what’s really cool about them is how deep they go in their thoughts and inspiration when it comes to their art. What they do is not just nice to listen to, it’s really meaningful. On top of that they both turned out to have the ability to very clearly express the complex nature of their creative collaboration. So without further ado, here’s what Leandro and Andre have to say:

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Tell us about the recording process – did you all have recording experience? Can you share any interesting stories about how it was recorded? 🙂

I had never recorded in a studio before that. I really felt good, I felt at home, it was an amazing experience, I really felt like I was doing that which I wanted to do for a lifetime. We put everything in that EP, every ounce of energy we could turn into passion went inside that EP and it made us happy that we finally had something, something we loved, something we wanted and could share. Their was an interesting story about how we got there. Our singer found the studio in the local community, it was called “La Púa studios”. The thing is that we landed in a different studio by the same name in the end but we liked the producer so much as a person and how he worked that we decided to record their in the end. I went back there later that year to record a couple of songs for a short film I was making the music for, but the film got cancelled and I lost the tracks 🙂

Andre:

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A favorite one? Really can’t pick a favorite one, if I was forced to, maybe “Sin Tu Voz” because of it’s guitar solo. But sometimes I’m down for Vagabundo (the live version really takes me places, brings back a very lovely night).

My favorite song is Texas, although sometimes depending on the position of the stars, it changes to La Vida Es Perra.

Can you share a bit about your songwriting process?

Leandro:

Usually writing for me is in a sort of periods. Lyrics usually come to me when I’m listening to something that I really like and I reinvent the lyrics of another song in relation to how I feel, what I think. Music tends to unlock my feelings and thoughts better and I’m a better writer that way. Other times the song as a whole will just pop up in my mind just like that. Another way I work is that I get together with my band mate and I start working on something that comes to mind musically and then we start writing the lyrics. It’s really a process for me of letting go, letting my thoughts, my heart and my gut take over and to let them talk and say wheat they have to say always true to oneself and saying what must be said and what wants to be said; an exhalation of everything that is in my mind and heart at the time, from the truest most honest place I can find. It is sometimes difficult to let go for it to work, but once I’m able to do that, the message becomes clear, I can start to write down everything.

Andre:

Composing is a moment of reflection, of catharsis. It is a moment and space that we create to say everything we think, what we feel of everything that surrounds us

How would you describe your dynamics as a band?

It’s difficult to describe the dynamic. It’s like a place where we all get along and work together to go somewhere and be recognized in the community. We work really good together because we are very good friends, and that creates a bond which transcends the band and makes us become committed in a much deeper level with what we do, beyond our deep love for what we create as a whole. We work on making the dynamic work better step by step, one rehearsal at a time.

Our dynamic is something that we try to improve at each rehearsal. Connecting looks, gestures, chords, notes. Following each other and working as a team, coordinating every step of the way.

I usually get inspired by Luis Alberto Spinetta, Pez, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, Charly Garcia, Divididos, The Beatles…

Divididos, Pappo, Spinetta, La Renga, Charly Garcia, Andrés Calamaro, Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam, BB King, Eric Clapton, Frank Zappa, etc.

One of our songs says that we sing about love and hope, but that really ain’t the case. I mean yeah, their are some songs that our about that, but we usually sing about what we see of the world, how we see people in community or individually, we sing about how society twists individual’s arms (in a personal level and how that is reflected in the people’s attitude and feelings toward society and their own life). We sing also of how we feel as individuals and how our individuality is sometimes threatened by society’s norms. How society tends to sometimes alienate someone or a group of people. We try to share our perspective, and also be the voice for the voiceless. I really try to write from the heart, I try to let my gut and heart do the talking and not force out the lyrics as so they don’t become to artificial and they keep their truth. I believe that speaking from the heart is somehow much more impactful that trying to think every word.

We sing about what we observe, what we feel, what bothers us, what we like. In writing our lyrics we think deeply about certain unspoken truths that are not said, truths that seem uncomfortable, that people might not want to hear. We also talk about life experiences and tell bizarre stories that our daily life gives us.

 I try to share my experience and my perspective with the world. I try to send a message, to make people understand, to make them feel, to share with them somehow anything I can possibly can as so to make them feel that which I wish for them to understand. I want my music to be powerful both lyrically and musically and I want to connect to people through music and be able to empathize with them. A song for me which can do those three things (connect to someone, make him or her feel that which you are transmitting, and a song that is powerful both lyrically and musically) is a true masterpiece.

We seek to make our music sound better every day, but we also worry about our music generating feelings, sensations. In some of them, we seek to share what we think of some issues that occur in our society.

I learned to work as a team, the importance of band communication and chemistry and to lose my shyness in public. I also learned to trust my bandmate and to accept criticism without taking it personal. I also try to use that which I learn not only in the band, but also in my life in general.

I learned that it is important to trust and value the work of each member. As we said earlier, each song has something from us. Each song seeks to be unique. It is important to stand for a moment in the other’s shoes, so that you can understand some of the vision you have of the person beside you. And the perception we all have of the world.

I think that their was a lack of communication in the musical community not only around the world, but even inside the cities and towns, their is a lack of support and communication sometimes which makes I very hard sometimes to shine or get help; I think that Drooble can really be a very helpful tool to connect the community at a global scale. Drooble can become a hub for the musical community around the world.

We want to believe that today technology provides us with facilities and tools to move better around the world and interact with others. Thanks to this unexpected encounters arise. Drooble is an application, a website, a site that helps us to share the music we make with other artists, a space that the musicians really needed.

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Enjoy this interview? Great! We have tons of awesome people just like those two at Drooble.com 🙂