Astro at Industria Cultural. Photo by Ignacio Santa María.
Astro is a band of four members who have been playing together for a couple of years already, which has caused many comments related to their work and some controversies related to their image and style that in Chile has been compared to MGMT.
But leaving the comparisons aside- a very typical thing of the Chilean idiosyncrasy - Astro has had quite some success in the music scene, they have played at international festivals (Vive Latino 2010) and they are preparing to officially publish their latest work (homonymous) which is already available as free download since yesterday. The publication of "Astro" will be at the elegant Matucana 100, where also some vinyl discs will be provided.
During an entertaining conversation with Andrés Nusser, the band's vocalist, we have taken apart the deeply-rooted concepts and attitudes of popular Chilean culture, such as the comparative prejudices or the difficulty of receiving new proposals with an open mind, the gaps between classes, the social ambition etc. All this on the background of the criticism that the group has received from different sources, unfortunately, very few only referring to the music. Certainly a band is not only the music it plays, it's an image, a proposal, but the question remains if the Chileans are prepared to objectively receive these new proposals.
Astro. Promotion picture for their latest homonymous CD.
To give you an idea, Astro is a band of poetic lyrics, that - according to Andrés - often represent only images - for example "Maestro Distorsión - with a quite special music. I personally would say that it is digestible electronic music you can sometimes dance to and with a positive message without entering into these categorizations of "naive" or whatever the "experts" like to call them. In simple terms, songs to enjoy. However, this doesn't take away from the musicians the effort and dedication they put into their work, cataloging already by saying "simple and digestible", although on the latest CD there are songs that need a good hearing, such as "Mira está nevando en las pirámides"⎯ Andrés considers Astro's music a difficult one to make, a technique that asks for a lot of attention in order to compose and operate the machines and electronic devices that are needed to make Astro sound they way it sounds.
As a conclusion, without the intention of writing an apology for Astro, let me tell you that just like any other band dedicated to music, these guys work hard to improve and by enjoying what they are doing they want to transmit "positive energy, happiness and imagination that comes with it", as Andrés states. If you would like to listen to Astro live on stage, on Saturday, 5 November at Primavera Fauna you will have the opportunity to do so. After the festival, with one exceptional concert in Valparaíso, they dedicate themselves completely to finalize the details of the publication of the CD scheduled for 2 December at Matacuna 100.
Andrés recommends: La Reina Morsa and Protistas.
Details:
Publication of homonymous CD of Astro
Friday, 2 December 2011
Matucana 100
Schedule and entrance fees to be announced
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