In the Canarian alternative world we know that the surname Dalton is associated with that band of the same name from Gran Canaria and that led to its head being Carlos Dalton for life (on the DNI it is Carlos Ramos). The summary is that Carlos gets together with the pianist Margarita Galván, whom we know mainly from his work with Carlos Catana. That’s where Rita Dalton emerges, although she was close to being called simply Margarita Galván because the starting point is her compositions. Separated in Tenerife and La Palma, «the project is developed thanks to WhatsApp, Marga sent me songs performed on the piano that I then developed; When she came to Tenerife between the two of them the idea was more rounded,” explains Carlos Dalton. Years ago he practiced a similar process at the origin of Brutalizzed Kids, when he lived in Gran Canaria and the other compositional half, Fafe Gamero, in Tenerife. “Only that was 2005 and we made the compositions through Messenger,” he remembers.
This journalist has a theory that the current wave of new bands with old members is a way to maintain momentum and get around the limitations of the Canarian alternative market. Carlos sums it up another way: «We are just people who never stop working on what we like. But the truth is that we are already of a certain age, which does not mean that the passion for music has to fade away.
The base of Margarita’s songs also leads to the debut of this pianist as a singer, a process that Carlos describes in a very natural way: “This project began with the intention of making an album of Margarita’s songs, but over time I asked her if she would like it.” It seemed good that I played with her, to which she agreed. As time went by, the songs that came out were composed between the two of us, and of course, the songs were already being thought of as for her project, and therefore, she would be the singing voice.
The result, the Fakir EP, is already on the streets with a start that is pure tribute. The chronicler says that it is a reference to A Town Called Malice by The Jam, but Carlos looks at another point: «Actually the drums that accompany the opening song, Manos de cera, are taken from Lust For Life by the great Iggy Pop. This “The song was originally a very slow ballad, but we decided to give it a twist, and that’s how it turned out.” The album exudes classicism with slight adaptations, a very personal look at the Anglo-Saxon influence.
The duo is already working on new songs that will be released next year, as well as on their presentations, this November at the Sótano Analógico in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and at the Lone Star in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in December.
‘Go diyei’
Subtropical Papaya
New different club that comes to this space from Fuerteventura
With the name it tells us almost everything. Subtropical Papaya arrives from Fuerteventura thanks to Laura Ledo, lxsyeyestribe and DJ Sudakita. They were previously known as Arepa: «It was born with the intention of organizing parties in Fuerteventura where you can listen to music from different corners of Latin America and Africa, above all. For this we bring DJs from the Canary Islands and the rest of the globe so that they can share their rhythms and the people of our island can enjoy them.
Faced with a very marked club system, even more so in Fuerteventura, due to its commercial nature, they seek to surprise: «We offer a space with a double aspect: alternative, with music that is present in the club culture of the world, and dynamic, in the sense that all Papayas play new songs. If you come to a Subtropical Papaya it is mainly to dance, and to surprise you with music that you may not know, dance music that is not eminently sexualized or that always talks about love. In a Subtropical Papaya, people dance and twerk the same while listening to a song that talks about making a revolution, as they do to a song that talks about respecting Pachamama.
A versatility full of suggestions, and even more so on a non-capital island like yours. Up next is a full double bill weekend. On Saturday, November 25 at night at La Tierra in Puerto del Rosario and a new residency that begins that Sunday, the 26th in the afternoon, from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., at Casa Marcos (“a restaurant in Villaverde that has enabled an outdoor space with a food truck and a bar, and that has beautiful views of the Escanfraga Mountain, which is the highest volcanic cone on the island,” they explain to us). The guest for these two dates is Thepiriexpirience and the tasty vinyls of her.
The big question arrives, its ideal lineup without a budget limit: «In the Canary Islands there is tremendous talent, some of the DJs from the islands have already come to play at Papaya Subtropical and we have enjoyed it. So the first thing we would do is bring them all and have a weekend festival-conviviality, which is more our thing. And with what’s left over, Captain Planet, Uproot Andy, Juls, Guts, Patchwork, DJ Spinall or Kaytranada, Izem, Gafacci, Onipa… Or even if there are no limits, groups like Ghetto Kumbé or Burna Boy could be brought in. It would be the bomb”, a most tasty constellation.
