Heroes of Silence

Heroes del Silencio (sometimes abbreviated Heroes or by their initials HDS) was a Spanish group of rock based in Zaragoza, initially formed by Juan Valdivia (solo guitar) and Enrique Bunbury (voice and rhythm guitar), and completed with Joaquín Cardiel (bass) and Pedro Andreu (drums), in the mid-80s. They experienced great success in Spain and Latin America, as well as in several European countries, including Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, France and Italy, becoming one of the most successful groups in the history of rock in Spanish. After twelve years in which they sold more With six million records in more than thirty-seven countries, and in which they offered more than a thousand concerts, the band broke up in 1996.

His hallmarks were a very characteristic image, with very particular iconography and symbology, and music characterized by ambiguous and transcendental lyrics, complicated arpeggios and a solid rhythmic base. His literary influences include writers such as William Blake and Charles Baudelaire, and among the musicals groups like Led Zeppelin and The Cult.

In 2007, commemorating the twentieth anniversary of their first recordings and eleven years after their breakup, they announced their return with a tour of ten concerts in Spain and America, generically titled Heroes del Silencio Tour 2007. After the tour they separated permanently.

His four studio albums have been included by the music magazine Al Borde in the list of the 250 best Ibero-American rock of all time: Senderos de treason (No. 5), Avalanche (No. 35), The Spirit of Wine (No. 117) and The Sea Does Not Cease (No. 119). His song "Entre dos tierras" has been considered by the digital magazine Satélite Musical as the nineteenth best of all time in Hispanic rock in general. Rolling Stone magazine rated them in 2012 as the second best Spanish rock group in history.

In 2007 they were honored by the EMI record company in recognition of their more than six million albums sold, in addition to receiving the Ondas Especial Jury Award.

History

Beginnings (1984-1990)

The origins of Héroes del Silencio are located in the city of Zaragoza, at the beginning of the 1980s. There, the brothers Pedro (drums) and Juan Valdivia (guitar) began to take their first steps in the world of music, together with a cousin of both, Javier Guajardo Valdivia -who was the singer- forming the group Zumo de Vidrio. such as Alaska and Dinarama, Radio Futura, Nacha Pop, Gabinete Caligari and Los Secretos, as well as the Barcelona-based El Último de la Fila. The most influential foreign artists belonged to more diverse styles: Michael Jackson, The Police and Dire Straits.

During that time, they met Enrique Ortiz de Landázuri (later Enrique Bunbury), who played bass and sang in Proceso Entrópico, a band with whom they shared some stages, and whom in 1984 they invited to join the group. Bunbury accepted. and they began (as a trio, after the Valdivia cousin left the group) their first performances (the first, on December 16, 1984), in addition to recording their first demo with the songs "Olvidado", "Risk union", "Hero of silence" (later called "Legendary Hero") and "Hologramas". As the dark and symbolic style, with clear post-punk influences, of the new compositions had very little to do with pop. of Zumo de Vidrio, they decided to close their stage and re-found the group. In 1985, a new bassist joined the band, Joaquín Cardiel, to relieve Enrique of his work, who sang and composed the lyrics. That same year Pedro Valdivia left the group to focus on his studies, and was replaced by the Zaragoza drummer Pedro Andreu.

The name arose by chance, when they went with their first demo to the Radio Zaragoza facilities to promote it, and they had not yet decided what they were going to call it. So, one of them suggested "Heroes del Silencio" ("Héroe del silencio" was the title of one of their songs, which they later changed to "Héroe de leyenda"), and the rest liked the idea, remaining as the definitive name of the formation. Already as Heroes of Silence they faced their first challenges: in 1986 they managed to win the regional phase of the Benidorm Festival, and were finalists in the "New Spanish Pop" of Radiocadena Española, in whose final, held in Salamanca, they began to be followed by record executives, in addition to standing out that year at the Fiestas del Pilar. After opening for groups such as Alphaville, La Unión and El Último de la Fila, Gustavo Montesano (producer and guitarist of Olé Olé) went to Zaragoza to see them live in January 1987. The group made a great impression on Montesano, who immediately recommended it to the multinational EMI.

The mistrust of the record company with the new group led him to offer them to start with a four-song EP, and they recorded, at the end of 1987, Heroes del Silencio. The album reached 30,000 copies sold, which was a sales record for a debut maxi in Spain. After this success, EMI decided to release the first LP by Héroes del Silencio, composed by its members for the rest of that year. and published in October 1988. The Sea Does Not Cease sold 150,000 copies, reaching platinum status. Afterwards, the band began the El mar no cesa tour, well promoted by the record company, and in which they confirmed their powerful live show.

Reinforcement (1990-1993)

Phil Manzanera was the producer of the most glorious phase of Heroes. The British musician produced Tradition Paths and The spirit of wineThe two most successful albums in the band.

At a concert on the tour, in Calatayud, producer Phil Manzanera, a former member of Roxy Music, saw them perform, and they made a very good impression on him. Manzanera, convinced of their potential, offered to produce a new album for them, and in September 1990 they returned to the studio to record their second album: Senderos de treason.

The recording took place between Madrid and London; some songs had already been presented during the El mar no cesa Tour, and others such as "Decadencia" and "El cuadro II", which had been composed for a long time, were improved for inclusion on the disc. This turned out to be a set of powerful and emotional songs that showed the progress experienced by the group, with songs like "Entre dos tierras" and "Damn leprechaun".

Critics compared them at that time with The Mission, having points in common with the British such as the type of arpeggios, the cryptic lyrics, the sound in general, the aesthetics and the symbology. Years later, Bunbury considered this stage the peak of Héroes, their golden moment. They went so far as to say that "the first album did not exactly reflect what the group was, it reflected a specific plot (...) We have sought a more direct sound, more energy, recording with ambient sound and bass and drums at the same time, because that's how you get the feeling".

During the making of the album, they also recorded the English version of the songs "Entre dos tierras" and "Maldito duende", but in the end they decided not to publish them and keep the recordings.

In two weeks, the album reached number one in sales in Spain with some 400,000 copies sold. In 1991 they launched the Tour Senda tour, which included 140 concerts throughout the country and culminated in a mini-tour by Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and France. The year 1992 was dedicated to making contact with the European public, performing in 54 concerts in various countries of the continent, on a tour paid for with the proceeds from the concerts in Spain. That same year they gave their first concerts in Mexico, the year of the celebrations of the V Centenary, which according to Bunbury caused a hostile environment that turned the concerts into a mere anecdote. During that tour, which lasted two weeks, they met guitarist Alan Boguslavsky, who later became a member of the group.

Consecration (1993-1996)

Joaquín Cardiel, bassist of the group, admirer of Indian culture, and whose look I was often based on it.

The musical disagreements between Juan Valdivia (in the picture) and Enrique Bunbury grew up from the band's third album.

In early 1993, they returned to the recording studio to record what would become their third studio album, El espíritu del vino, which also featured production by Phil Manzanera. It took place at London's Metropolis Studios and concluded in March. It was the most complex and extensive album of the band and in which Enrique's lyrics became more enigmatic. or "The stranded mermaid", and was published in June simultaneously for all of Europe.

As soon as the album was released, they embarked on the El Camino del Exceso tour, which would take them through Europe and America with a total of 134 concerts, and included the Mexican guitarist Alan Boguslavsky as second guitar. It is noteworthy that on July 20 the band was received in audience by Prince Felipe, who had declared himself a follower of the group, in recognition of their dissemination of the Spanish language throughout the world. The meeting had its point of controversy when Enrique, When leaving the reception, he declared himself anti-monarchist before the press.

1993 was also the year of its international emergence. This fact began with his intervention at a festival in Berlin against racism that ratified his success in Germany, where the album sold 250,000 copies and was number 1 in sales, as well as in Spain, Mexico and Switzerland. its diffusion contributed to the broadcast of its music videos for the entire continent through the MTV music chain.

The tour also included a two-month tour of Latin America, with 26 concerts in Mexico, Chile and Argentina. After the lengthy tour, which culminated in five festivals in Germany and Finland in July 1994, the group took a vacation. As they later recognized, the excesses and the length of the tour had seriously damaged the cohesion of the band and had caused a deep internal crisis.

As a way to overcome the crisis, the four musicians sought spirituality and relaxation and concentrated for two months in the autumn of 1994 in an isolated enclave in the Aragonese Pyrenees, near Benasque. There they discussed their future, sought solutions and they planned their next album, scheduled for 1995. One of the decisions made was the change of producer, in order to turn their project around, which also included changes in manager and graphic designer. They put themselves in the hands of the prestigious Bob Ezrin, producer of great albums by Pink Floyd, Alice Cooper, Lou Reed and Kiss, among others.

After three months of recording in London and Los Angeles, on September 18, 1995 the band's fourth studio album was released simultaneously in 26 countries: Avalancha, considered their most important album. rocker, with powerful guitars and great production. The album was a resounding sales success, reaching 200,000 copies sold.

The release of Avalancha was followed by the usual promotion of the album and a major tour that ended up causing the definitive distancing between the members of the group.

Separation (1996)

The Avalancha Tour was a macro tour that, from July 1995 to October 1996, took them to give 152 concerts between Europe and America. Coexistence during it had difficult moments, and fatigue ended up increasing internal conflicts in the formation. During its development, Bunbury began to compose and record new songs on his own, hinting that his future was already far from Héroes. Their last concert, held in the city of Los Angeles on October 6, 1996, was very eventful, and they were forced to suspend it shortly after its start, when the public began to throw objects at the musicians, in response to some presumed statements by Enrique, which did not leave Mexican women looking very good.

Before the end of the tour, and at a press conference held in Lima, Héroes del Silencio announced their temporary separation. Outside their environment, the news was surprising, but over time some of the reasons behind it came to light. led to such a situation. The musical discrepancies, especially between Juan and Enrique, led them to a distance, and these became personal differences. The death of two people very close to the group also influenced their state of mind: their road manager Martín Druille, in 1993, and Enrique's brother, Rafael, in 1994. As Bunbury later commented, the last months of the tour were an ordeal for him.

"I realize that I am more and more isolated on the bus, in the decisions I make next to Thomas, Claire, the lawyers, Rafael Gil, Ochaita... in the dressing rooms, in the sound tests (...) The truth is that I do not see myself forming a band like Rolling Stones, which lasts forever, I am a restless ass, I need movement. "

Journal of Enrique Bunbury, 8 November 1995.

Post-separation (1996-2007)

After the dissolution of the group, Enrique Bunbury began a successful solo career, which began in 1997 with the album Radical sound.

Live Presentation of Heroes of Silence at Foro Sol, Mexico City in October 2007. The live performances of the band have been more than 1000 throughout 32 countries in Europe and America.

The band still had a valid contract with the record company, which committed them to publishing five more albums. Thus, in 1998 Rarezas was released, an album with unpublished versions of some songs, remixes, and songs that had only been included in singles. Bunbury later declared that he had not agreed with the chosen repertoire, but preferred to give in so as not to further damage his relationship with the group. Until the 2007 reunion, EMI would publish four other new works, with old material, reinterpreted themes or including DVD of concerts, in addition to reissuing the four studio albums of Héroes.

For their part, the members of the group faced new musical projects. Bunbury began his successful solo career: Up to 2007, he recorded four studio albums (Radical sonora in 1997, Pequeño in 1999, Flamingos in 2002 and The Journey to Nowhere in 2004.)

Alan Boguslavsky collaborated on Bunbury's first solo album, and later formed his own group, Bogusflow, with musicians from Héroes' entourage such as Copi Corellano, but the group dissolved in 2001. Juan Valdivia collaborated with his brother Gonzalo in some projects, and even released his own album, Trigonometralla, in 2001.

Pedro Andreu embarked on new musical projects, such as Puravida and DAB, which did not have much repercussion. Joaquín Cardiel, for his part, moved away from the music scene and made some trips to get to know the world of the Indians first-hand Americans that captivated him so much.

Return and Farewell (2007)

Ten years after their separation, they were raised the possibility of doing a farewell tour as a tribute to their followers, and as a way to brilliantly close the group's trajectory. In some media, the economic offer made to them was described as irresistible. To carry out this tour, they had the sponsorship of both public and private companies, including Expo Zaragoza 2008, Real Zaragoza and the Zaragoza City Council, the group's city, where, given the avalanche of demand for tickets, two performances were planned.

After a few months of rehearsals carried out in relative secrecy, it was agreed that Gonzalo Valdivia, brother of guitarist Juan Valdivia, would participate as second guitarist during the tour, as Juan found himself somewhat physically limited by a recent operation on his hand. At first it was thought that it would be Alan Boguslavsky, who was a member of the band from 1993 to 1996, who would fill the position, but Juan himself recommended the incorporation of his brother.

Tickets were put on sale months in advance to avoid last-minute problems, through ATMs and record stores, but their demand exceeded all forecasts. For the concerts in Seville, Zaragoza and Mexico City, they were sold in record time. There were people at the doors of the stores 24 hours before, and there was also a collapse in ATMs and on the web, where they were also sold.

As a culmination, in the concert that closed the tour in Cheste, Valencia, and as a consequence of poor forecasting, there was a circulatory chaos for more than four hours, in addition to 20 km of delays that made it impossible for thousands of followers.

After the tour ended, Bunbury confirmed the final end of the band and declared that he would continue his solo career.

Heroes of Silence Tour 2007
Date	Scenario	City	Country	Assistance
15 September	Army Stadium	Guatemala City	GuatemalaGuatemala	25 000
21 September	Club Ciudad de Buenos Aires	Buenos Aires	Argentina	30 000
25 September	Fundidora Park	Monterrey	Mexico Mexico	15 000
28 September	Home Depot Center	Los Angeles	United States	30 000
4 October	Forum Sol	Mexico D. F.	Mexico Mexico	60 000
6 October	Forum Sol	Mexico D. F.	Mexico Mexico	60 000
10 October	Stadium of La Romareda	Zaragoza	SpainSpain	40 000
12 October	Stadium of La Romareda	Zaragoza	SpainSpain	40 000
20 October	Olympic Stadium of the Carthusian	Sevilla	SpainSpain	70 000
27 October	Circuit Ricardo Tormo	Valencia	SpainSpain	80 000

Components

Heroes of Silence (Joaquín Cardiel, Pedro Andreu, Juan Valdivia and Enrique Bunbury) pose with the Mexican flag, upon their arrival in the country, on September 13, 2007 to begin their farewell tour.

Members

Permanent membership

• Juan Valdivia (Zaragoza, 1965), son of a very fond physician of music, was, with his brother Pedro, a founding member of Zumo de Vidrio, before the school of Heroes. Guitarist "ear", had problems in one hand in the last times of the group, which jeopardized his participation in the farewell tour.

• Enrique Bunbury, whose real name is Enrique Ortiz de Landázuri Izarduy (Zaragoza, 1967) incorporated Zumo de Vidrio as a bassist in 1984. Given a great creativity, over time he became an indisputable leader of the band, playing also the acoustic guitar and the harmonic. In 2004 he was considered one of the most influential artists of Spanish music.

• Joaquín Cardiel (Zaragoza, 1965) joined the group when it was a trio, in 1985, and became a definitive bassist of formation, as well as choirs when necessary. Lover of Indian culture, he began to play bass in his first groups as an amateur.

• Pedro Andreu (Zaragoza, 1966) was the last of the final quartet to join the band, replacing Pedro Valdivia. Affirmed to the music listening to The Beatles, it was the battery holder of the training throughout his performance.

Temporary members

• Alan Boguslavsky (Los Angeles, 1965) met Heroes during their first tour of Mexico in 1992, and the following year he joined the group as a second guitar to support Juan on the tour. However, he did not participate in the 2007 tour, occupying his place Gonzalo Valdivia.

• Gonzalo Valdivia (Segovia, 1972): author of several musical projects, including the audiovisual show The Wall performance. Floyd Tribute, participated in the 2007 Tour as second guitar in support of his brother Juan.

Timeline

		Hero of legend		The sea does not cease	Live	Tradition paths	Path '91		The spirit of wine		Avalancha	Parasiempre
1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996		2007
Enrique Bunbury														E. Bunbury
Juan Valdivia														J. Valdivia
Joaquín Cardiel														J. Cardiel
Pedro Andreu														P. Andreu
									Alan Boguslavsky					G. Valdivia

Album edited

Voice and rhythmic guitar

Battery

Style

Stage aspect located at the Home Depot Center for the September 28, 2007 concert in Los Angeles. You can see the group monogram on the screens.

Musical

The main lines of the Heroes style can be defined in well-worked lyrics, complicated arpeggios and a solid rhythmic base. The metamorphosis suffered by the band throughout its history means that they are not can be pigeonholed in a certain genre of music. Although their first album was considered pop-rock, the group's musical evolution was towards harder rhythms, and some specialized media have classified it as rock, and even hard-rock, depending on the album. Unusual terms have also been used. to describe their style, such as "epic rock" and "messianic rock". Their first album, El mar no cesa was the most pop of the group, influenced by the production of Gustavo Montesano and by the trends of the time. A very acoustic sound, sequenced drums and little prominence of the guitar players gave the album a very pop tone. The change in production in 1991 brought more preponderance to the guitars and a more rock rhythm, in addition to the singer using a deeper tone of vocalization. Bunbury's powerful voice, sometimes defined as baritone, became one of the band's hallmarks.

Enrique Bunbury's lyrics deserve special mention, one of the personal characteristics of the band, cataloged by critics as cryptic and "expressive darkness". In general, they are ambiguous, hermetic and symbolic compositions, very given to different interpretations. These characteristics reached their supreme state in The Spirit of Wine (Bunbury declared years later that in those lyrics he came to capture unconnected dreams lived under the influence of drugs), defined by some media as "tyrannical poetry", to become more explicit in Avalancha. The themes alluded to by Héroes in their songs are diverse, although they had special marine reminiscences in their first album, in which up to four songs refer to the sea, in addition to appearing on the cover an image of the group on some rocks by the sea. Enrique often spoke of the interpretations made of his lyrics:

The drummer Pedro Andreu during one of the Tour 2007 concerts.

"I've always composed letters, even when I didn't sing. They are very individualistic, I try to express in them what I carry inside. (...) Most of our songs speak of doubt and therefore there are phrases that have not much to do with each other. (...) There are people who think our texts don't mean anything, they don't get identified, or they just don't get them. (...) We are not funny, we write about feelings and not about concrete stories."

Enrique Bunbury, in different interviews.

Throughout the 1990s, an insistent comparison emerged in many media between Héroes del Silencio and The Mission, a British gothic rock band formed in 1986. In this regard, Bunbury stated: "I don't see that the group is the Spanish Mission. I don't think we look alike at all. But when anyone buys a record and recommends it, they do so through a comparison that is not pejorative, but rather to give an approximate idea'. Roses or The Doors. In this regard, Enrique went so far as to say: "When they compare me to Jim Morrison I think that my resemblance does not go beyond the haircut."

Image of your discs

The cliff used for the cover The sea does not cease, located at the tip of the Suances Cantabrian village, where the four musicians were placed for the iconic image.

In its twelve years of existence, Héroes del Silencio released four studio albums. In 1988 El mar no cesa was published, a title inspired by one of the first songs composed by the group and which, curiously, was not included on the album. Its origin dates back to a confusion by Bunbury, who on one occasion referred to the group Mar Otra Vez as "El Mar no Cesa", and despite the fact that it is a phrase that does not appear in any of their songs, they decided to immortalize it. influence of the sea in this album, on the cover the four members of the band appear on a cliff by the sea. The iconic image was taken on the White Rock of the Dichoso peninsula in Suances (Cantabria).

Senderos de treason arrived in 1990, with a simple cover: an image of the group on a white background and the emblem made up of two dragons and a cross, the work of Estudio Pedro Delgado, which he also designed the cover of the previous album and the following one. The title is based on the title of the film The Path of Betrayal (1988), by Costa-Gavras. In The Spirit of Wine (1993), at the initiative of the group, it was decided not to include his image on the cover, in which Alfonso de Zaragoza street appears distorted behind a crystal ball. According to Bunbury himself, the title had a part of the eastern influence of the record (the spirit) and another from the western one (the wine), to refer to the spirit of trivial things, like drinking wine. It is also one of the phrases used in the song El camino del excesso , included on the disc, and a poem by Charles Baudelaire from the book The Flowers of Evil, translated in its Spanish version as & #34;The soul of wine".

Lastly, Avalanche refers in its title to the idealistic avalanche present in the album, as well as being a tribute to the title of Leonard Cohen, one of Bunbury's favorites. of it becomes more austere and simple, in gray tones and, again, with the image of the band.

Influences

William Blake, in a portrait of 1807. The influence of Blake's work was such in Bunbury's compositions that he included the name and one of the most famous phrases of the English poet in one of his songs, "The Way of Excess."

The mechanism for composing the music of Héroes did not change from its early days: Enrique, endowed with a great creative capacity, composed the lyrics of all his songs and the entire group set them to music, so the influences literary and musical works of all of them are felt in their songs.

"Most of those who interpret my songs go unnoticed, but I like them trying to get into a world that is mine. I did it with Lennon, Cohen and others. It's okay that there are many interpretations, because we do songs, not journalism. »

Enrique Bunbury

Literary

The main literary sources that have influenced Bunbury's creations are:

• Charles Baudelaire, one of the Fucking poets of French literature. His conception of life as a constant decadence is felt in the work of Heroes.
• William Blake, poet, painter, engraver and mystical English, defender of the imagination against reason. Enrique even included his name and his most famous appointment ("The way of excess leads to the palace of wisdom. ») in a song, "The Way Of Excess."
• Oscar Wilde, of whom Henry took the artistic name Bunbury based on one of the characters The importance of being called Ernesto.
• The Generation of 27, a group of Spanish writers who had great influence in Spanish literature, by whom Bunbury showed a great passion and inclination, and of which he was supposed to take some of his metaphors. In particular, "La sirena varada", which constitutes a synthesis of the homonymous work of the Asturian playwright Alejandro Casona.
• Mario Benedetti, a Uruguayan poet by whom Bunbury never hid his admiration, and whose influences in the form of metaphors become more felt in the band's last album.
• Pablo Neruda, in whose poem Opium to the East Enrique admitted to being based on the composition of "Opio".

Musicals

Led Zeppelin in concert in 1975. The London band is one of the coincidentals in the personal tastes of most components of Heroes, and is considered an influential training in their music.

Musically, the influences of the members of Héroes cover a wide spectrum:

• Enrique quoted at the beginning of his career to Lou Reed, Tom Waits, David Bowie, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, The Clash and Bob Dylan among his favorites. He has also highlighted Red Baron as one of his influences.
• The first album Juan Valdivia bought was one of Bob Dylan. In his first groups, he played versions of Tequila and Peter Frampton. However, with the passage of time their tendencies became closer to heavy music. In its beginnings he cited Mark Knopfler and Van Halen among his influences.
• The beginnings of Pedro Andreu to the battery have been compared to the style of Larry Mullen Jr. (U2) and Stewart Copeland (The Police). He later acquired a more rocky style influenced by groups such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, AC/DC, Def Leppard and The Cult.
• Joaquín Cardiel felt a very young inclination for rock and even heavy music. He became a musician with groups such as AC/DC, Led Zeppelin and Status Quo, among others.
• The band's first works were influenced by post-punk bands like The Cure, Echo and the Bunnymen and The Smiths.

Versions

Heroes has not been a prodigal group in interpreting versions of songs by other artists. In fact, in studio albums, the only version recorded by the group was the song "Apuesta por el rock'n'roll", by the group Más Birras, published by them in 1987 and included by Héroes on the single "Our names" in 1993 and on the album Rarezas in 1998.

Live, the group has performed songs by other artists, the most famous being "It's Only Rock 'n' Roll" by The Rolling Stones, "Rock and Roll" by Led Zeppelin, "Paranoid" by Black Sabbath and "Hound Dog" (popularized by Elvis Presley). The latter was included on the live album Forever, as was a fragment of "La mala hora" from Radio Futura.

Aesthetics

Enrique Bunbury personified the image of Heroes of Silence. The zaragozano was the composer of the lyrics of the songs of Heroes, although in the credit titles of all his discs were his four components as authors.

Image

The image, especially that of its leader, has been one of the most characteristic aspects of the group, and it has changed over the years. In its beginnings, dark wardrobe and long hair predominated, in keeping with the music of their first LP, as well as displaying a transcendent seriousness. In the 90s, which is when the group took a more rock turn, their appearance became he came back more heavy, with leather clothes and boots and tank tops.

Starting with The spirit of wine there were notable changes, personalized especially in the figure of Enrique Bunbury, with a more sophisticated and evolved appearance, without leather, military boots, or chains. In his later days, comparisons between the image of Enrique and that of Jim Morrison began to emerge. In certain quarters, Héroes have been accused of having an excessively arrogant and haughty image. Enrique Bunbury himself acknowledged that he had, at the head of the group, & # 34; a period of arrogance & # 34;. That could be, according to Bunbury, one of the reasons for the animosity that a part of the group always had towards them. criticism:

"The lynching that Heroes suffered from criticism, with that aggressiveness, I have not seen him again with another group" (...) "Arrogants? Our role was defensive (...) Was Bowie, Lennon, Elvis, Lou Reed or Marc Bolan not arrogant?"

Enrique Bunbury

Some of the characteristic symbols of the group. From left to right: the star representing Pedro Andreu, the group logo, and a heart with a spiral, symbol of Enrique Bunbury.

Symbols

Heroes del Silencio have always been surrounded by a very careful and particular symbology, designed since their first album by Estudio Pedro Delgado, in Madrid, who had already worked for various Spanish artists. Already on their first album, The sea does not stop, designed for its cover the shield with two dragons united forming an "H" which was very well received and, slightly modified, served as the emblem of the group for the following album.

With El espíritu del vino, in addition to a musical turn, a change in his image and that of the album was also appreciated. The design studio adapted the group's ideas to the album booklet. A monogram was created for each song, related to it but obviating its meaning, and a representative symbol of each member of the group (although these had already been used in Senda 91). The main novelty was the representative image of the band, consisting of an "H" and an "S" superimposed that would become its definitive logo. In Avalancha this same retouched symbol was used, and in later works it was used as a generic image of Héroes del Silencio.

Sociocultural impact

Relationship with the press

Heroes del Silencio's career was characterized by a complicated relationship with the Spanish press, attributed in many cases to their arrogance., with messages such as: "The more they annoy us, the better songs we will make". The mistreatment that, according to them, they suffered from a sector of the press, led them to an even greater distance, which contributed to reinforce their transcendent, cold and distant image. Already in the beginning, they were particularly annoyed by an article in the musical magazine Route 66, which said: "Now they want to eat the jar with us that Héroes del Silencio -a very slimy local band, supported to the point of madness- are the great hope of maña. And all because they have signed with EMI, a sign of truth, word from heaven"; they were branded as "banal" and "pretentious", in addition to being considered copies of groups like The Doors or U2, to which the group responded with acid statements or ironically, as when they included in the album booklet Senda & #39;91 a compilation of some of the harshest criticism they had received.

However, there were those who came to their defense, such as the writer Ray Loriga, who went so far as to declare: "Being Heroes of Silence in this country entails enormous arrogance, and therefore enormous merit". This difficult relationship was normalized with the return of the group in 2007.

Fan phenomenon

The discography of Heroes of Silence in the vitrine of a fan.

The fan phenomenon that Héroes del Silencio aroused from its early years was also worth mentioning. Its followers, characterized by their fidelity, constituted an important number throughout, especially in Europe and Latin America. Their official fan club, formed in 1994, grew to 3,000 members and 10,000 supporters. Even after the disbandment, their popularity remained, with the number of Internet pages dedicated to the band even growing. This fidelity brought some problems to Bunbury when he began his solo career, as a sector of followers did not accept his continuity as a soloist and the disappearance of the group. The phenomenon was especially evident during the reunion tour, as the demand for tickets was very exceeded the offer and exhausted the existing ones shortly after being put on sale. Precisely the insistence and loyalty of the fans after the separation of the group was one of the reasons argued for the ephemeral return of the band.

This fact led to the existence around Héroes del Silencio of an important collection trend, made up of articles related to Héroes that include official discography, pirated discography, merchandising and all kinds of objects related to the band. Pirated discography was in itself a true phenomenon, even recognized by EMI: it is estimated that up to 44 (unofficial) pirated discs have circulated, some of them of high quality, which even gave rise to a web page dedicated exclusively to to this type of recordings.

Influence exerted

The fan has originated an important stream of collectors around Heroes of Silence. In the image, bottles of Amber beer with the group image, in a special edition of 2007.

The most noteworthy versions of songs from Héroes by other artists are, among others, the interpretation of "Maldito duende" by Raphael in 2001, "Between two lands" by the groups Skizoo in 2008 and Sôber in 2010 and the singers Ralf Scheepers in 2020 and Till Lindemann in 2022 and the version of "The right spark" carried out by the Valencian band Uzzhuaïa in 2006. Also the Venezuelan singer Carlos Baute, in his video clip & # 34; Nothing compares to you & # 34; (2009) recreated the clip from "Between two lands" characterized as Enrique Bunbury. In addition, the song, "Avalancha" it was included as a bonus in the video game Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, and in Guitar Hero: On Tour for the Nintendo DS.

The main tribute album to Héroes del Silencio was released in 2010, when 22 songs by the band and by Enrique Bunbury were covered by the artists Andrés Calamaro, Ximena Sariñana, Ariel Rot, Pereza, Jaime Urrutia, Zoé, Catupecu Machu, Depedro, Aterciopelados, Adanowsky, San Pascualito Rey, Sôber, Macaco, Iván Ferreiro, Bebe, Quique González, Loquillo, Phil Manzanera, Saúl Hernández, Shinoflow, Danza Invisible and Raphael on the album Hechizo, published in November of that year.

The musical boom originated by the Héroes en Zaragoza phenomenon facilitated the birth of new bands, some directly related to them, such as Las Novias and Niños del Brasil. Also, throughout their career, they were on the covers of all kinds of magazines, such as El Gran Musical, Rolling Stone, Efe Eme, Primera Línea, Popular 1, The Country of Temptations, Heavy Rock or Kerrang!. In 2009, in a macro survey carried out by the music magazine Rolling Stone, Senderos de treason was chosen as the second best album in the history of Spanish rock, only behind Enemigos de lo ajeno by El Último de la Fila. For its part, Al Borde included the four studio albums by Héroes among the 250 best of all time Latin American rock In 2014, the REIS list relegated them to 39th place among the best musicians in the country, based exclusively on the lists of the best Spanish albums and songs made by Rolling Stone, Efe Eme and Rockdelux.

As a presentation of the book "Heroes of Silence. A phenomenon told in the first person", dedicated precisely to this phenomenon, its author, Raúl Minchinela, wrote: "Any person even minimally interested in Spanish popular culture should look closely at the phenomenon of Héroes del Silencio" In 2009 the Zaragoza City Council agreed, as a tribute to the group, to rename one of the streets in the center of the city as "Heroes del Silencio street".

Tours

In red colour, the 32 countries in which Heroes of Silence acted live throughout their history.

A moment of the action of Heroes del Silencio at the Olympic Stadium of the Cartuja of Seville, on October 20, 2007.

Live performances are a fundamental aspect in the career of Héroes del Silencio, which is inseparably linked to the history of the band; Throughout their career they offered more than 1,000 live performances in 16 European countries and 16 in America. This facility for performing had an important influence on their evolution, and they themselves came to affirm that it was also detrimental to stability of the group. Throughout their career, they have also participated in festivals such as Rock am Ring, Monsters of Rock and Pepsi Music. During these performances they have shared the stage with artists such as Leonard Cohen, Aerosmith, Iron Maiden, Bryan Adams and Robert Plant.

Although they already had some experience on the national scene, their tours promoted by EMI began after the recording of their first LP, El mar no cesa. The following titles are generic names that have sometimes been subdivided into mini-tours:

• Tour The sea does not cease (1988-1990): it happened to the recording of his first album, and included 150 concerts throughout the Spanish geography.
• Tour Senda (1991): called at first Trail 91, served as promotion to the album Tradition pathsand meant more than 100 concerts all over Spain. It culminated in a European tour through Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and France.
• European Tour '92 (1992): The group dedicated all year 1992 to its promotion in Europe, acting in 54 concerts in Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, France, the United Kingdom, Austria and Sweden. At the end of this tour, they gave their first concerts in Mexico.
• The Excess Tour (1993-1994): began on 21 May 1993 and culminated on 16 July 1994, during which 134 concerts were divided into three stages: Europe, Mexico - Argentina - Chile and Europe (Festivales).
• Avalancha Tour (also called) Tour of Consciousness1995-1996: the longest tour of the group, 152 concerts between Europe and America, after which they announced their separation.
• Heroes of Silence Tour 2007 (2007): was the farewell tour of the group, at 11 years of separation. During the months of September and October he toured the cities of Guatemala City (Guatemala), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Monterrey and Mexico, D. F. (Mexico), Los Angeles (United States), and Zaragoza, Seville and Valencia (Spain).

Discography

Original recordings

Compilations

Videography

The promotional video clips recorded by Héroes del Silencio have been the following:

The stage of the Teatro Principal de Zaragoza was the stage where the video clip of "The Wound" was shot in 1993. Its realization was carried out by Video Inferno, and the clip was co-directed by Jorge Ortiz and Pite Piñas.

Awards

Documentary

In 2021 the Netflix platform released the documentary film Heroes: Silence and Rock & Roll, directed by Alexis Morante, which covers the history of the band with the intervention of its members and unpublished videos. The documentary was a finalist for the 2021 Forqué Awards in the category of best documentary feature film, and for the Goya Awards 2022 in the category of best documentary film of the year.