RostbiF (Uruguayan Unsigned Artist) – Part 2: The Music

As I am sure you read in the first part of this article, RostbiF is a hard rock band that hails from Nueva Helvecia (an inland Uruguayan town). The guys cite AC/DC, Deep Purple and ZZ Top as their main references and musical heroes, and their sound is an effective amalgamation of what these bands have played since their inception.

RostbiF Playing Live: Lukas Künzler, Pablo Gonzalez, Mauricio Rode & Guido Quintela

RostbiF Playing Live: Lukas Künzler, Pablo Gonzalez, Mauricio Rode & Guido Quintela

The band comprises Lukas Künzler (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), Pablo Gonzalez (lead guitar), Mauricio Rode (bass) and Guido Quintela (drums).

I am actually acquainted with the guys since Guido e-mailed me about a year ago asking for some lyrics. I did like the fact that they were aiming for compositions that had a certain social content, and I was keen to try something different to the traditional romantic themes I have always used to favor. Thus, “Rebellion Winds” and “These Eyes” were conceived.

One thing that comes across when you listen to their music is how much they are enjoying themselves. They are no virtuosos, they know it, and that is not the point to begin with. They make up for it with a lot of stamina and passion: Guido hits the bass drum as he if were kicking a plancha in the mouth, the bass has true bursts of vigor (specially when it gets some space as on “Rebellion Winds”, their finest composition so far) and the two guitars act as the main offensive line of the band. Granted, nobody would mistake the interplay between Lukas and Pablo as the one that characterized Tom Verlaine and Richard Lloyd, but they are clearly in the same wavelength. Plus, when singing Lukas sounds like a chain smoker who hasn’t had a cigarette in three weeks. Take all that together and the result is the soundtrack for throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at the police during a riot. No wonder I have never attended one of their gigs personally. The last thing I want is someone smashing a bottle willy-nilly in my head. Continue reading

RostbiF (Uruguayan Unsigned Artist) – Part 1: Profile & Interview

It is with great pleasure that I introduce you to the Uruguayan unsigned artist of this week: RostbiF. They are one of the bands I collaborate with, and I can tell you that they are passionate believers in the power of music.

This is their PureVolume profile.

Below you will find the first part of the article, in which they introduce themselves and answer some questions. My own analysis of their music is included here.

    RostbiF Are Lukas Künzler, Pablo Gonzalez, Mauricio Rode & Guido Quintela

RostbiF Are Lukas Künzler, Pablo Gonzalez, Mauricio Rode & Guido Quintela

Band Information

Name: RostbiF

Genre: Hard rock

Band Members:
Lukas Künzler (Voice and rhythm guitar)
Pablo Gonzalez (guitar)
Mauricio Rode (Bass)
Guido Quintela (Drums)

Been Together Since: Juny 2009

Some Questions

Where does the name of your band come from?

It comes from playing with words and translating them from Spanish into German, but it has no real meaning. The first idea was “rost”, which means “oxid” in German, but we found it to short so we played a little bit with it and the result was RostbiF.

Is it possible to define or categorize your music? If you had to try, how would you do it?

Our music is a kind of mixture from different hard rock styles, it is based on bands like AC/DC, Aerosmith, ZZ Top, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin… just simple hard rock.

In which ways could your music be deemed as innovative within the Uruguayan scene?  Is that a concern for you?

We think there is no real innovation in our music, we play hard rock the traditional way, that is the music we like to listen to. There is a difference from other Uruguayan bands in the influences, and the type of music we play, but there is nothing new or innovative in it at all.

In which sense being in Uruguay gives you an edge over musicians in other parts of the world? And how does it hinder you? Continue reading