Hailing from the Margen Izquierda region in Nervión, Ibon RG (Sestao, 1978) has been actively involved in the local indie and experimental music scene in Bizkaia as a concert promoter (Kafea eta Galletak), producer, arranger (Mursego, Manett, Xabier Montoia, etc) and, most importantly, musician. Throughout four albums released with his own band, Eten, as well as in his project on vocal improvisations, Gargara, IbonRG has been weaving a repertoire that stands out for its strong message and visceral and intimidating delivery. Today, another project can be added to this collection: his first solo effort.
The first rough ideas for the songs were left to simmer for quite some time. It was the accidental rereading of a poem by Koldo Izagirre, called Baldintza subjektiboak, that seemed to fit perfectly with a melody Ibon used to wake up humming to. As he puts it -The songs were meant to be sung a cappella, but I sat on the piano one day to simply get the tone of a melody, and I ended up adding music to a few of the sketches I had (…).
In ‘Hil zara’, Ibon showcasts these leanings. He sings a cappella in one record, and over the piano on the other. The first one was recorded in four different locations (a hermitage, a cave, and two bunkers). Ibon’s naked voice resonates against the edges, reliefs, and carvings on the walls of these spaces. In contrast, ‘Hil zara II’ was recorded in the music school in Eibar, using a single piano and the same microphone set up throughout the entire recording session. Two different songs in this album share the same title, ‘Hil zara’ (you died), which is also the album title. One is the album opener, and the other closes it. What happens in between is that Ibon, using an accurate language of his own that at times borders on abstraction, recites a collection of poems that is both restrained and solemn and, above all, moving. Ibon makes a foray into a symbolic dimension where, as if his song served the purpose of exposing the hoax through which time is made rational, the poet in him tries to decypher the calculations we use to measure it. His words point out and highlight, and us readers and listeners make out in nature a deformed reflection of memory.
