Carnaval wasn't the only February fun around here. It was actually a jam-packed month, a welcome change from the cold and nearly eventless month of January. A Candeloria brought rockers from all over Galicia and Spain to our dear Lugo for a weekend of good music and Galician traditions. And since my regular concert companion Diego wasn't available the whole weekend, I was forced to import an Asturian rock festival buddy (haha).
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| Here I'm mocking Diego for wearing a button-down, when I myself don't look kinda preppy in a sweater. |
Friday's lineup wasn't of much interest to me, although surely the bands were good for people with less picky tastes. They opened with Habelas Hainas, a traditional folk band made of all women. That got me into the dancing mood! Then there were two bands that are kind of hip-hop or techno. They were pretty good, but again not exactly my style. Then a loud hardcore band. Loud as in, we left the concert hall and I could still hear them through my earplugs. By 3 I was feeling pretty tired, so we left. Wish I would've stuck around for NAO, who seem like a good Galician rock band. But hey, at least we got to bed at a decent hour so we could take advantage of Saturday.
Saturday there was a ¨vermouth session,¨ the Spanish custom of a concert before lunchtime. I was interested in going, if it didn't require walking all the way down to the pavillion and then back. Instead, we took advantage of the wonderfully warm weather and had lunch on a terrace. In February! This is not a drill! We also then checked out Lugo's 2 Roman museums, since last time my concert buddy was around we didn't see many tourist sites. We started heading down to the pavillion area around 7. Earlier in the afternoon there was a tavern song competetion, and I think we caught the last part of it. Terrific ambiance: people squished into bars with bands (tambourine and bagpipe) singing traditional Galician tunes. Delightful! And when the lights went out, everyone cheered. The party doesn't stop!
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| The accordionist of Os Diplomáticos |
At 9 began the concert my friend had been waiting 10 years for (según dijo): Os Diplomáticos de Monte Alto. Hard to describe their style...very Galician, lively, punk, funny. And they have an accordion player! Since my friend is a huge fan, we were in the front row. And despite the fact that he isn't Galician, he knew all of the lyrics which he sang while jumping for joy and basically having a meltdown. (Understandable--I would have reacted the same way if it were my favorite band) I was able to sing along with one song too...¨Gaiteiro.¨ Another guy next to us was also a huge fan, so they bonded, holding each other while jumping and serenading one another. It was a sight to be seen! The singer also got us all chanting: Trae tatuado toda a ronda da Muralla. Lugo! Lévote dentro! Lugo pride! It's safe to say Os Diplomáticos gave the most exciting concert of the night.
Next came the hardcore punk band SA, which is too much for me. And that's when the power for the stage went out. Uh oh. So we were waiting around for quite a while. I would have been open to leaving if I weren't waiting for El Último Ke Zierre to play. I'm not their biggest fan, but they played a few songs I could sing along to. They're a good Spanish punk band. Coincidentally, I was standing right next to one of my students from the first year. It was cool that he knew who I was haha. Afterwards, I was ready to go home. I mean, it was 3, we had been there since 9, and I was exhausted. I didn't even have my siesta! By obligation we stuck around for a few songs of Zenzar. It was pretty good, and I'm sure I would've been into it if only I had the energy. All in all, A Candeloria brought a rockin' time to Lugo, which hopefully is equally fun next year!
