It's Afropop's honor to present the new single from the funky Austin eight-piece band, Superfonicos. Say hello to “El Adios” right here:
The group was putting the finishing touches on their upcoming debut album, recorded with Jim Eno from the band Spoon at his studio Public Hi-Fi, when the coronavirus pandemic forced them apart. “The time away from performance and away from our friends and fans and even the band being separated from each other echoes the feelings of isolation and anxiety expressed in the lyrics of ‘El Adios,'” Nicolas Sanchez Castro, the band's bassist, says.
Although when the song was written way back in 2017, it was about the then-crise-du-jour, the “migrant caravan” heading from Central America to the United States's southern border—which, obviously, nothing came of.
“It is unbelievable how terribly this administration has handled the migrant crisis at the U.S./Mexico border with the child separations and detention centers. Casting immigrants as criminals, people to be feared. It makes our work as musicians, putting the human element in the story, that much more important,” Nicholas said.
Many of the Superfonicos are either immigrants themselves or children of immigrants, and the narrative in "El Adios" is about the painful decision to leave one's home, family and friends in hopes of finding a better life, and hopes of one day returning. The title came from an email exchange Nicholas had with his father, who wrote about the decision to leave Colombia more than 40 years ago.
Of course, now in the second week of June 2020, America is confronting endemic bigotry and racism, something the band is keenly aware of and wants to be part of solving.
“Education is the best weapon against racism and bigotry of any kind. As musicians, our music is our way to fulfill this duty,” the band said in press release. “On our first release, 'Suelta', we spoke about letting go of that deep rooted racism (Suelta, el racismo suelta!), xenophobia, homophobia and misogyny and getting back to a life more connected with the Earth and her gifts. In 2020 these issues are all bubbling to the top. The time for action is now.”
The statement continues: "Reach out to your peers and listen to elders of all races and ethnicities and backgrounds. The only way to grow as humans and societies is to step out of the comfort zones and start questioning everything you have been taught by the system.”
Photo of the band from Magnetic Focus Photography, used with permission.
