Su Ta Gar - Biography
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Biography
At the end of 1987 four friends got together - Aitor Gorosabel Garai, Asier Osoro, Xabi Bastida and Borxa Arrillaga - with the idea of forming a band. Although for most of us it was the first time we'd played an instrument, we were very keen on creating a music project and making it work. The four of us have known each other since we were kids in Eibar, a Basque city whose economy is built on industry. We've always had a lot in common, including the excitement getting this project off the ground. Just one week before our first public appearance (14-8-1988) we decided to name our band Su Ta Gar.
We recorded our first rough-cut CD in May 1989 at our own expense at a rehearsal studio that belonged to some friends from Eibar. The success of our first recording gave us the chance to make another rough cut, this time at a professional studio, marking a major step towards our first CD release. In the interval we recorded a version of the Mikel Laboa song 'Haika mutil', which was one of the tracks on our CD entitled 'Txerokee', a tribute to Laboa. In 1990 we were co-award winners at the pop-rock competition Villa de Bilbao. The award came with the opportunity to make a joint recording with Estigia, the other prize winning band, but we turned it down, opting instead to record 'Jaiotze Basatia' in IZ studios in 1990. Our first CD was released under the Zarata record label in 1991 and was promoted primarily in Euskal Herria. In October of that same year we travelled to Switzerland, Germany and Austria, playing concerts in squats.
In April 1992 we recorded 'Hortzak estuturik' also at IZ studios. Kaki Arkarazo, who had also worked on our first CD, was our sound technician. The new CD was released in June of that year but this time under the Esan Ozenki label. After presenting our work live throughout Euskal Herria and Spain for a year, in April 1993 we went on a European concert tour with the band E.H. Sukarra. We finished off the tour with a special celebration concert in Eibar which was recorded on video and later released under the name of the tour 'More volumen tour' and the album title 'Su Ta Gar Zuzenean'.
By September 1993 we'd already prepared new material, which we recorded at Lorentzo Records with sound technician Aitor Ariño. It was released in early December under the same record label as before. We started out promoting 'Munstro Hilak' in Euskal Herria at the beginning of 1994 and then took it to France and Spain. In January and February 1995 we went on the road for another European concert tour, this time performing in Italy, Austria and Germany.
In May 1995, just as we were about to record another album, our plans changed drastically with Borxa's accident. We began playing with his brother Galder on drums and in 1996 recorded 'Sentimenak Jarraituz' with the same production team and under the record label as earlier. The CD was released in May and for the first time we made a video clip for the title track which won awards at different festivals.
After taking the songs on tour to various cities in Spain and France, we changed our drummer again. Galder Arrillaga was replaced by Iban Zugarramurdi, with whom we finally recorded 'Agur Jauna Gizon Txuriari between September and October 1997, also backed by the same production team and record label. The CD was presented live in Cuba in November of that same year. Starting in December it was promoted in Euskal Herria and then in Spain in 1998.
In summer of that year we recorded the song 'Eromena' at Elkar studios, which was later to be included on the anthology album, 'Gaur olerkiak bihar presoak Euskal Herrirat!' at the end of 1998. The compilation CD was released by 'Iparraldeko presoen sustengu komiteen koordinaketak', an organisation that promotes the transfer of Basque prisoners to jails in Euskal Herria. The album is made up of 11 songs the lyrics of which were written by Basque prisoners and bertsolaris and put to music by different Basque music groups. The lyrics to 'Eromena' are by Carmen Gisasola from the town of Markina.
In response to requests from our fans, we released 'Su Ta Gar 1987-89' in June 1999 under the record label Gaztelupeko Hotsak. It is a special edition which includes the the songs from the first two rough-cut albums, in addition to a video of the song 'Jo Ta Ke', recorded at the same time and which can be viewed on your PC.
When we finished the special edition album with the first rough cuts, we began to record a new CD at the Lorentzo Records studio in Berriz. Recorded took place in July and September 1999, and on November 8th our new production, 'Homo_Sapiens?' recorded for the GOR DISKAK label, saw the light of day. At the end of 1999 and early 2000 we promoted the CD with our 'Homo_Sapiens? Tour'00', which included a spectacular stage production. The technical difficulties and cost of the production made it impossible to take the tour further than Euskal Herria. Instead, we video-taped the last concert on the tour, in the town of Iholdi, which later on became our second live concert video production.
The 'Homo_Sapiens? Tour'00' came out in video in June 2000 under the Gor Diskak label, featuring the concert mentioned above.
October 2000 saw the release of 'Metal Gods', a CD that pays tribute to Judas Priest and which includes our version of the song 'The Sentinel'. The song was recorded at the Lorentzo Records studio in Berriz the last week in September. Released by Zero Records the CD also includes features such as µLT, Berri Txarrak, Hamlet, Ktulu and Baron Rojo.
Our first live album, 'Su Ta Gar Jo Ta Ke', was released on April 17th 2001. The CD includes 23 tracks from different time periods and two extra computer videos in the CD version, much the same as we did for your special rough-cut edition. This project includes four concerts performed in late 2000 and is the outcome of an enormous amount of work.
When we were preparing the live presentations for 'Su Ta Gar Jo Ta Ke' we changed drummers yet again. Borxa's brother, Galder Arrillaga, joined Su Ta Gar for the second time, replacing Iban Zugarramurdi who had been playing with us for a few years.
On December 3rd 2001 a record entitled 'Gaztetxeak Martxan', the proceeds of which went to support the Vitoria-based Gaztetxe (Basque cultural centre). The CD features unpublished songs by the best Basque bands, including our new song 'Gaztea'. The song was recorded and mixed at the Shot studio in Arrasate on October 11th and 12th.
In early 2002 we began putting together the songs for our new record while continuing to give concerts as part of our 'Su Ta Gar Jo Ta Ke' tour. Our initial intention was to publish the album in November 2002. However, it ended up being record in February and March 2003 and released at the end of April under the GOR DISKAK label like our previous albums.
At the end of May 2003 we began giving concerts to promote 'Itsasoz Beteriko Mugetan' in Euskal Herria. Some of the concert dates had to be rescheduled because of an operation Aitor had to undergo on this throat. As part of these promotional concerts, May 29th marked our 600th concert, performed at the Artsaia hall in Pamplona.
We should also mention that almost all of the 'Itsasoz Beteriko Mugetan' promotional concerts scheduled for Spain were cancelled for 'democratic' reasons we are all aware of. Our concerts are still banned in Spain.
To help promote 'Itsasoz Beteriko Mugetan' we recorded a video clip for the song 'Bizitzaren Borroka', produced by Iker Treviño.
In 2004 and 2005 we continued with the 'Itsasoz Beteriko Mugetan' concerts, taking part in important festivals such as Viñarock and Metalway. We also gave a few concerts in Spain at venues that defied the ban.
In the second half of 2005 we began working on a new set of songs. When they were polished we went to Lorentzo Records again to record another CD with sound technician Aitor Ariño. After several months of production, on April 5th 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean' was released, this time under our own record label, 'Jo Ta Ke Ekopizpenak'. The band has also begun to manage its own concerts, thus giving us full control over our projects.
Our new CD, 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean' also includes a video clip entitled 'Itxaropen Hitza'. Directed by the brilliant film director Juanma Bajo Ulloa, it can be viewed on either PC or Macintosh. Recorded during a concert in Valencia and on the streets of Gasteiz, the CD has received very good reviews from the audiovisual media and our followers.
With the release of the new album in April 2006, we started presenting the project live, first in concert halls and later at open-air venues such Bilbao's summer festival, Aste Nagusia. This autumn, for the first time ever, we gave two concerts in the British Isles. Not only that, but the music video "Itxaropen Hitza" bagged an award at the prestigious Cinemad'06 festival and a place on the shortlist at Malaga Film Festival in March 2007.
We launched into 2007 with a highly emotional concert in Eibar, our home town, setting out on the 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean' tour in March. In May we re-released our 'More Volumen Tour 93' in DVD format with our 'Jo Ta Ke Ekoizpenak' label.
In December 2007 we brought out the DVD 'Une Iraunkorrak' with our own 'Jo Ta Ke Ekoizpenak' label, just like our other recent productions, with a view to registering moments, sensations and experiences since we recorded 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean'. In this DVD, as well as the main video of shots from the concerts at the Bilbao 'Big Week' in 2006, Eibar in January 2007, and Pamplona in October, you'll find the 'making of' for the recording of 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean' and the music video 'Itxaropen Hitza', images full of emotion, plus a good handful of photos and other extras. This work also earned acclaim from the different media.
We've given almost 800 live performances to date, sharing stages with groups that play all sorts of different music.
(source: [url]http://www.sutagar.com/Ingelesez/history.htm[url/])
We recorded our first rough-cut CD in May 1989 at our own expense at a rehearsal studio that belonged to some friends from Eibar. The success of our first recording gave us the chance to make another rough cut, this time at a professional studio, marking a major step towards our first CD release. In the interval we recorded a version of the Mikel Laboa song 'Haika mutil', which was one of the tracks on our CD entitled 'Txerokee', a tribute to Laboa. In 1990 we were co-award winners at the pop-rock competition Villa de Bilbao. The award came with the opportunity to make a joint recording with Estigia, the other prize winning band, but we turned it down, opting instead to record 'Jaiotze Basatia' in IZ studios in 1990. Our first CD was released under the Zarata record label in 1991 and was promoted primarily in Euskal Herria. In October of that same year we travelled to Switzerland, Germany and Austria, playing concerts in squats.
In April 1992 we recorded 'Hortzak estuturik' also at IZ studios. Kaki Arkarazo, who had also worked on our first CD, was our sound technician. The new CD was released in June of that year but this time under the Esan Ozenki label. After presenting our work live throughout Euskal Herria and Spain for a year, in April 1993 we went on a European concert tour with the band E.H. Sukarra. We finished off the tour with a special celebration concert in Eibar which was recorded on video and later released under the name of the tour 'More volumen tour' and the album title 'Su Ta Gar Zuzenean'.
By September 1993 we'd already prepared new material, which we recorded at Lorentzo Records with sound technician Aitor Ariño. It was released in early December under the same record label as before. We started out promoting 'Munstro Hilak' in Euskal Herria at the beginning of 1994 and then took it to France and Spain. In January and February 1995 we went on the road for another European concert tour, this time performing in Italy, Austria and Germany.
In May 1995, just as we were about to record another album, our plans changed drastically with Borxa's accident. We began playing with his brother Galder on drums and in 1996 recorded 'Sentimenak Jarraituz' with the same production team and under the record label as earlier. The CD was released in May and for the first time we made a video clip for the title track which won awards at different festivals.
After taking the songs on tour to various cities in Spain and France, we changed our drummer again. Galder Arrillaga was replaced by Iban Zugarramurdi, with whom we finally recorded 'Agur Jauna Gizon Txuriari between September and October 1997, also backed by the same production team and record label. The CD was presented live in Cuba in November of that same year. Starting in December it was promoted in Euskal Herria and then in Spain in 1998.
In summer of that year we recorded the song 'Eromena' at Elkar studios, which was later to be included on the anthology album, 'Gaur olerkiak bihar presoak Euskal Herrirat!' at the end of 1998. The compilation CD was released by 'Iparraldeko presoen sustengu komiteen koordinaketak', an organisation that promotes the transfer of Basque prisoners to jails in Euskal Herria. The album is made up of 11 songs the lyrics of which were written by Basque prisoners and bertsolaris and put to music by different Basque music groups. The lyrics to 'Eromena' are by Carmen Gisasola from the town of Markina.
In response to requests from our fans, we released 'Su Ta Gar 1987-89' in June 1999 under the record label Gaztelupeko Hotsak. It is a special edition which includes the the songs from the first two rough-cut albums, in addition to a video of the song 'Jo Ta Ke', recorded at the same time and which can be viewed on your PC.
When we finished the special edition album with the first rough cuts, we began to record a new CD at the Lorentzo Records studio in Berriz. Recorded took place in July and September 1999, and on November 8th our new production, 'Homo_Sapiens?' recorded for the GOR DISKAK label, saw the light of day. At the end of 1999 and early 2000 we promoted the CD with our 'Homo_Sapiens? Tour'00', which included a spectacular stage production. The technical difficulties and cost of the production made it impossible to take the tour further than Euskal Herria. Instead, we video-taped the last concert on the tour, in the town of Iholdi, which later on became our second live concert video production.
The 'Homo_Sapiens? Tour'00' came out in video in June 2000 under the Gor Diskak label, featuring the concert mentioned above.
October 2000 saw the release of 'Metal Gods', a CD that pays tribute to Judas Priest and which includes our version of the song 'The Sentinel'. The song was recorded at the Lorentzo Records studio in Berriz the last week in September. Released by Zero Records the CD also includes features such as µLT, Berri Txarrak, Hamlet, Ktulu and Baron Rojo.
Our first live album, 'Su Ta Gar Jo Ta Ke', was released on April 17th 2001. The CD includes 23 tracks from different time periods and two extra computer videos in the CD version, much the same as we did for your special rough-cut edition. This project includes four concerts performed in late 2000 and is the outcome of an enormous amount of work.
When we were preparing the live presentations for 'Su Ta Gar Jo Ta Ke' we changed drummers yet again. Borxa's brother, Galder Arrillaga, joined Su Ta Gar for the second time, replacing Iban Zugarramurdi who had been playing with us for a few years.
On December 3rd 2001 a record entitled 'Gaztetxeak Martxan', the proceeds of which went to support the Vitoria-based Gaztetxe (Basque cultural centre). The CD features unpublished songs by the best Basque bands, including our new song 'Gaztea'. The song was recorded and mixed at the Shot studio in Arrasate on October 11th and 12th.
In early 2002 we began putting together the songs for our new record while continuing to give concerts as part of our 'Su Ta Gar Jo Ta Ke' tour. Our initial intention was to publish the album in November 2002. However, it ended up being record in February and March 2003 and released at the end of April under the GOR DISKAK label like our previous albums.
At the end of May 2003 we began giving concerts to promote 'Itsasoz Beteriko Mugetan' in Euskal Herria. Some of the concert dates had to be rescheduled because of an operation Aitor had to undergo on this throat. As part of these promotional concerts, May 29th marked our 600th concert, performed at the Artsaia hall in Pamplona.
We should also mention that almost all of the 'Itsasoz Beteriko Mugetan' promotional concerts scheduled for Spain were cancelled for 'democratic' reasons we are all aware of. Our concerts are still banned in Spain.
To help promote 'Itsasoz Beteriko Mugetan' we recorded a video clip for the song 'Bizitzaren Borroka', produced by Iker Treviño.
In 2004 and 2005 we continued with the 'Itsasoz Beteriko Mugetan' concerts, taking part in important festivals such as Viñarock and Metalway. We also gave a few concerts in Spain at venues that defied the ban.
In the second half of 2005 we began working on a new set of songs. When they were polished we went to Lorentzo Records again to record another CD with sound technician Aitor Ariño. After several months of production, on April 5th 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean' was released, this time under our own record label, 'Jo Ta Ke Ekopizpenak'. The band has also begun to manage its own concerts, thus giving us full control over our projects.
Our new CD, 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean' also includes a video clip entitled 'Itxaropen Hitza'. Directed by the brilliant film director Juanma Bajo Ulloa, it can be viewed on either PC or Macintosh. Recorded during a concert in Valencia and on the streets of Gasteiz, the CD has received very good reviews from the audiovisual media and our followers.
With the release of the new album in April 2006, we started presenting the project live, first in concert halls and later at open-air venues such Bilbao's summer festival, Aste Nagusia. This autumn, for the first time ever, we gave two concerts in the British Isles. Not only that, but the music video "Itxaropen Hitza" bagged an award at the prestigious Cinemad'06 festival and a place on the shortlist at Malaga Film Festival in March 2007.
We launched into 2007 with a highly emotional concert in Eibar, our home town, setting out on the 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean' tour in March. In May we re-released our 'More Volumen Tour 93' in DVD format with our 'Jo Ta Ke Ekoizpenak' label.
In December 2007 we brought out the DVD 'Une Iraunkorrak' with our own 'Jo Ta Ke Ekoizpenak' label, just like our other recent productions, with a view to registering moments, sensations and experiences since we recorded 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean'. In this DVD, as well as the main video of shots from the concerts at the Bilbao 'Big Week' in 2006, Eibar in January 2007, and Pamplona in October, you'll find the 'making of' for the recording of 'Jainko Hilen Uhartean' and the music video 'Itxaropen Hitza', images full of emotion, plus a good handful of photos and other extras. This work also earned acclaim from the different media.
We've given almost 800 live performances to date, sharing stages with groups that play all sorts of different music.
(source: [url]http://www.sutagar.com/Ingelesez/history.htm[url/])