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JP:
The name Bella y oscura reminds us of a novel by spanish author Rosa Montero, is there any connection?
JC:
Absolutely. It was something curious because that book had been present throughout the whole recording with Esmeralda and a series of coincidences kept happening between the content of the text and the songs we were recording. When we finished we still didn't have a name and Bella y oscura seemed quite right, not only for being nice and original, but also because it describes pretty well the character of the music. When we proposed it to Rosa, she liked the idea and had no problem with us using it. So, in that sense, she should get the credit.
JP:
What is the meaning of the title of the album, "Reina en prisión"(Queen inprison)?
JC:
"Reina en prisión" is the title of one of the songs, in particular the first one I composed. It's like a fable in which the main character feels out of place when she sees that where she is in life is far from where she thinks she deserves. One day a stranger tells her a story which makes her realize that she wasn't crazy, only "in prison". The concept I was going for was more like a princess since it implies a somewhat less solemnity, more freedom, but it didn't sound right in Spanish. However, "queen" worked well in the sense that she is even more than what she thought (queen instead of princess). That same idea of wonderful and great people trapped by feelings, situations, etc., is quite common in this project, so it was a very suggestive title for the CD.
JP: Where do you find inspiration for your lyrics?
JC:
In the yellow pages. But yellow from time passing by them. Old stories that happened long ago and kept repeating ever since and now will become "new" or "urban" stories, but they only changed scenarios. Now is Madrid or Los Angeles where before was Rome or Alexandria. People dreamed with being poets before and now they wish they were actors. Whether you sigh for a young maid from the Middle Age or a secretary, the feeling is the same.
JP:
You mentioned Los Angeles, how long have you been living in this city?
JC:
Well, I've been living in the States for nine years but only seven of those here in LA. I guess living here has influenced the way you perceive music somehow No doubt about it, specially soundwise. Regarding my writing I'm not so sure. Keep in mind that today things are not that different anymore. Radio stations in Spain play much more music from Spanish bands but, even so, they are not that different from what is being done in Europe and the States as they were a few years ago. And, for instance, you can find a lot of music from Spain in Los Angeles (at cheaper prices too), and its plenty of radio stations in Spanish that, even though they donut play a lot of music strictly from Spain, they do contribute tremendously to make its music known. The point is, wherever you are this days, you are subject to constant influences from outside. You can't avoid it.
JP:
American music is present in European music and you could say that Europeans grew up listening to American music. How do you see this somehow enforced relationship?
JC:
First of all I'd make a distinction between European and British. Not because British is not European but because England has been as pioneer of modern music as United States, if not more. And second because United States had as much influence from England as the rest of Europe had from the States. From there we could simplify and say that the record industry is led by English language. They sell more records so they have more money so they make the decisions. Despite the fact that Spanish market (not necessarily European but
Latin-American) is booming, up until now everything coming from Europe with an international repercussion has been in English: groups like ABBA, our own Julio Iglesias, Ace of Base . . . and of course our beloved
Carmen Sevilla! (well, I guess not her).
JP:
I see you didn't lost neither your sense of humor nor your dearest memories from Spain. By the way, how important is in your music the fact of being Spanish and Mediterranean?
JC:
See? Now, that is crucial since that is not something which influenced me or changed the way I write . . . That is what I am and it's the first thing that comes up when I start writing. Remember that, as Serrat said, I was born in the Mediterranean, but at night. I think that is also crucial because I don't seem to be able to get up in the morning.
JP:
It's interesting that, in a specially good moment for the music industry, styles like Pop or Rock seem to be losing popularity. What direction do you think promotion, distribution and consumer's habits are going to take?
JC:
I don't think those styles are losing popularity. It's just that they have
changed, they have specialized and what you would call Pop or Rock before, now is Alternative, Heavy, Metal, Acid, Industrial, Soft Rock,
MOR, Hip-Hop and a thousand other categories which didn't exist before. What it did change is the great amount of product out there and the variety of it. And of course, with the birth of the independent productions: it
is possible today to release and distribute a CD without the Record Labels. It's not easy but it's possible. In this aspect there is definitely a revolution, specially thanks to the Internet where you can sell your
music with CD quality, right to the other person's computer, even song by song, from your living room, without having to mail anything. They just download it and hear it.
JP: Do you anticipate an even bigger gap between commercial and independent music?
JC:
The good part is that it will be market for all kinds of music. What happens is that almost everybody will be able to record their music, so the public is going to be bombarded with options and bands and music. When they try to shop for a new CD to buy, they find that there are more groups than they could hear in several lifetimes, and since they don't know most of them, they end up buying something which is familiar, either because they heard it on the radio, or saw them announced, or read the name somewhere, etc. Which bring us to the
sad reality: the ones which promote the most will sell the most (except rare cases); the ones with the most money will be able to promote the most; and, who has the most money? The Record Labels. Bottom line is that
more people will be able to make a living with the music, but those who have the power will keep having it, may be a little less but will still be at the top. This Companies have full departments studying the market and
they have predicted this changes, so they invest in computers instead of warehouses (as an example) so they keep controlling the market. Money makes money.
JP:
With the success of Rap music, lyrics are becoming important again, do you think that this is something transitory due to the popularity of this style or, on the contrary, is there really an awareness of the public for the message of the songs?
JC:
This is a very interesting question. I think the cause and effect relation is the other way around. If people puts attention to the lyrics is because they are interesting. I don't think anybody wrote "average" lyrics before because people wouldn't care and now they write more elaborate ones because now people is more interested in lyrics. The same way I don't think nobody who likes Serrat, Aute or Sabina doesn't know what the lyrics are about. But I do think there are people who likes Ricky Martin who doesn't care if he says "One, Two, Three" or "A, B, C". I'm not trying to criticize those lyrics at all; they work perfectly with the song and if you did something more "profound" it probably wouldn't work and could even work against it. It's not the purpose of the song. But when the lyrics are one of the strongest parts of the song, people will put attention, it being Rap or Bolero.
JP: And lastly, what are your projects for the future?
JC:
I'm already starting to get ideas for the next CD and, following in that line of the lyrics, I'd like to combine something a little more narrative, without being Rap, but at the same time a little more poetic, separating music from lyrics and treating them as individual entities. But that's only an idea and I still don't know where it'll take me. And of course continue composing soundtracks and some classical too, that it doesn,t hurt to see people in black tie sometimes.
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