With three EPs and twenty albums, as well as more than three hundred concerts across the Iberian Peninsula and many more in England, France and Italy under his belt, Joseba Irazoki (Bashoan, Onddo, On Benito, Atom Rhumba) is now releasing the fourth instalment of his collection «Gitarra onomatopeikoa». Unlike previous instrumental volumes, this time he is accompanied by friends who lend their voices to each of these five beautiful semi-composed or semi-improvised pieces, all of which were written through instant composition (structured improvisation).
Recorded in his own studio in Eztegara —except for «Baga biga higa», which was recorded with Guillermo Mutiloa at Motumusika (Iruñea)— «Gitarra onomatopeikoa IV (+ Lagunen ahotsak)» begins with «Laphane», an intriguing and minimalist piece in which Ihitz Iriart sings an adaptation of a basahaide: a traditional song (without lyrics) originally from the mountains of Zuberoa, inspired by nature and the communication between shepherds. This is followed by «Lof», a playful song in which Verde Prato’s voice emotionally describes the first spark of love. In the percussive «Pajarillo», Carlos Jimena makes us contemplate the flight of a bird, before arriving at one of the most idiosyncratic adaptations ever made of Mikel Laboa’s classic leketitio. In «Baga biga higa», Niño de Elche modulates his torrential voice with great sensitivity, settling each of his motifs among the monodic and arpeggiated ostinatos into which Irazoki has transformed the original piece. The EP closes with «Kapsula batean», surely the most evocative song of the five, in which Elena Setién describes the oppression of living in a capsule.
In addition to being a first-rate performer for artists such as Nacho Vegas, Rudiger, Petti, Rafa Berrio, Mikel Erentxun and Elena Setién herself, among others, in such personal works as this, Joseba Irazoki confirms his status as an international reference point for the contemporary experimental guitar scene, and his discography is one of the most iconoclastic repertoires of today. Furthermore, over the years, his concerts have become unmissable collective sensory experiences based on introspection. Now, once again, in «Gitarra onomatopeikoa IV (+ Lagunen ahotsak)» Irazoki masterfully combines experimentation and tradition with naturalness, managing to convey a nostalgia that evokes his origins, challenges the limits of traditional song and resonates timelessly.
