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IMPUREZA “Sangre y Hierro”
IMPUREZA “Sangre y Hierro”
By Dr. Abner Mality
By Dr. Abner Mality
Few nations have had a stormier history than Spain. They were conquered by the Islamic Moors for several centuries marked by constant conflict and then became the seat of a mighty Catholic empire. During that Catholic reign, the Inquisition held a brutal sway over the land. In the 20th century, Spain was the last of the fascist powers of World War II to call it a day.
All this makes for great lyrical fodder for an extreme metal band. Although headquartered in France, IMPUREZA is deeply influenced by both Iberian history and music. They have combined the brutality of death metal with the romantic flair of flamenco and other Spanish music in a way that has never been done before. This combination can be heard nowhere better than the latest IMPUREZA album entitled “Alcázares”.
Lionel “Cano” Muňoz is the guiding light and lead guitarist behind these modern day conquistadors of metal. After being blown away by “ Alcázares”, I knew I had to find out more about the band...
WORMWOOD CHRONICLES: Greetings and thanks for talking to us, Lionel! My first question would be, what was your earliest musical memory? I’m guessing you were exposed to traditional Spanish music before rock and metal. Who was the first artist that really grabbed your attention?
LIONEL MUNOZ: Hi,greetings and thanks to you for according this interview to me. When I was a child, I used to hear a lot of Spanish music because of my parents and grand parents in general. So i discovered Spanish sounds and folklore really early with artists like Manolo Escobar, Julio Iglesias, Gipsy Kings and that kind of stuff. Then I discovered Paco de Lucia, who really grabbed me.
WC: What was the band or album that drew your attention to extreme metal? Who lit the fire for that kind of music?
LM: I started listening to thrash bands like SLAYER, METALLICA, PANTERA and TESTAMENT and at the same time I listened to a lot of Black Metal like MARDUK, IMMORTAL, MAYHEM, etc.. I started to like death metal a bit after with the mighty MORBID ANGEL and CANNIBAL CORPSE, which lit my fire for death metal.
WC: Did the idea of mixing traditional Latin music and extreme metal come to you in a flash of inspiration or was it something that took a long time to build?
LM.It came in a flash of inspiration. I was looking for something different, so i started making that with a little formation which was more a sort of psychedelic rock fusion band. Then i had the idea to make it metal.
WC: What’s the songwriting process like for IMPUREZA? Are you the sole architect or do the other members put in contributions?
LM: In general i will find main riffs and little combinations of successions of ideas, then we share everybody's ideas and we make the song evolve. I write a lot with my drum bro and the singer as well.
WC: The new album is “Alcázares”. How does this one compare to your past works and what’s the inspiration for it?
LM: In this opus we made big progress in the production that is really cool, and we are still playing the same style of music but we increased the fusion with more hispanic elements and added orchestrations that make it a bit more cinematic.
WC: Regarding your lyrics, are they all taken from Spanish history or is the scope wider than that?
LM: We take inspiration from the history and legends from Spain and South America, but we don’t give history lessons. We used these things in a more fantastic and evil way. We make fiction.
WC: Do you see your mission as helping to keep traditional/folk aspects of Iberian music alive in a unique way?
LM: I don’t think so because Iberian music will never die, I don’t think it needs our help to survive..
WC: Your vocalist Esteban Martin is an exceptional talent and very good at both “normal” and extreme vocals. Tell us a little about him and how he contributes to the project. I understand your bassist and drummer are of French nationality. Do they share your strong interest in Spanish history and culture?
LM: Esteban is really a cool guy with a huge passion of music, he has good skills and good notion of how to be and live inside a band. He knows how to speak Spanish, and for the band that's primordial and he does his job well. For the second part of the question, i won’t reply for them because i really don’t know.
WC: .Is there on particular track on “Alcázares” that you are most proud of or drawn to?
LM: Here are my top 3 songs: "Bajo las Tizonas de Toledo","Pestilencia", " Castigos Eclesiasticos"
WC: Spanish history has some very dark eras to it. Is there any aspect of it that is “off limits” or is everything on the table?
LM: We tried to make this the most evil album possible, so everything is out there to be used. Inquisition, Divine Punishments, conspiracies ,etc
WC:What are some of your acoustic/traditional music influences? Any players you think should be more well known?
LM: Paco de Lucia, Tomatito , Vicente Amigo and many others. Yes, I think that Paco de Lucia for example is not well known enough.
WC: Does IMPUREZA play live much? Any plans for tours or to visit the U.S.?
LM: We don’t play as much as we would like to... We would like to play much more, and especially outside of France's borders. Playing all around foreign countries and continents like USA or South America would be a great pleasure and honor for us.
WC: If you could have dinner with any three people from history, who would they be?
LM: Cervantes for the Spanish emblem - Paco de Lucia for flamenco lessons - Salma Hayek then for the dinner. (I would have her there for more than dinner, amigo!--Dr. M)
WC: Has IMPUREZA ever had a Spinal Tap moment where things went crazy that you could tell us about?
LM: Not so much, we used to pass time partying after playing but always in a respectful way, haha!
WC: Any last words or messages for the fans?
LM: Hi, people around the U.S.A., thanks for reading and don’t miss our next album out in July 2025!! ALCAZARES POWA !!
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