| Fermin Muguruza | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Born | 20 April 1963 Irun, País Vasco, Spain |
| Genres | Punk rock, ska, rock |
| Occupations | Musician, songwriter, producer |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Associated acts | Kortatu, Negu Gorriak, Dut |
| Website | muguruzafm.com |
Fermin Muguruza (born 20 April 1963 in Irun, Basque Country) is a Basque rock musician, singer, songwriter, producer, record label manager, and co-founder for the ska punk band Kortatu, active from 1983 to 1988, and for the crossover group Negu Gorriak, active from 1990 to 1996.
He is the brother of musicians Iñigo Muguruza and Jabier Muguruza and is one of the personalities interviewed for the documentary film The Basque Ball, released in 2003.
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Muguruza has taken part in more than twenty albums, and is one of the most important artists from the Basque Country.
In 1983 he founded a fusion ska punk band called Kortatu with his brother Iñigo and drummer Treku Armendariz, among the first to popularise ska in Spain. They were clearly influenced by The Clash, in fact, Muguruza decided to create the band after seeing Strummer's band in a 1980 gig in Donostia. In 1988 the group disbanded, but Fermin and Iñigo would come together again in 1990 to create the crossover group Negu Gorriak, along with Kaki Arkarazo, who had produced Kortatu's last records.
In 1997 he collaborated with Dut. More recently he has developed a solo career, always defending the use of the Basque language and the need for social justice.
His socio-political views have created problems, especially in Spain outside the Basque Country, where he is often accused of being an apologist for ETA, a Basque paramilitary organisation banned as a terrorist organisation.[1] He denies such accusations, expressing a desire for a peaceful process of independence, which he considers in abeyance until both parts leave behind their prejudices. This position, which Muguruza frequently argues for during interviews, contrasts with his lyrics, which don't express criticism of ETA's violence — some of them, especially from his early career in the band Kortatu, show respect for ETA members: For instance, the song "Sarri, Sarri" (a Basque cover of Toots & the Maytals' "Chatty Chatty") applauds the escape of two ETA members from prison. In interviews he has persistently denounced the actions of the Basque, Spanish and French governments and police corps as well as of Spanish nationalist groups. At an international level, Fermin Muguruza holds acute left-wing views that lead him to criticize the U.S. government, corporations and the globalization process, all of which he denounces as imperialistic and homogenizing.
In an interview with Freemuse, Muguruza speaks about his experience as a musician under the democracy of today. He has performed in concerts where fascists would come to his concerts with bombs, threatening him and his Basque hip-hop music. However, Muguruza experiences censorship within Spain for his political and social messages, but Muguruza still performs and makes music, saying “authorities are afraid of my music because it is a tool against the ignorance. And these authorities want the ignorance so that they can do what they want”.[2]
Musically, he has been influenced by the oppression that, in his opinion, Spain has over Basque Country and, although most of his lyrics are in Basque, his compositions are a melting pot of different cultures, with a big influence of Jamaican and electronic music (especially drum and bass), which he commonly mixes over Basque instruments. In his track "Euskal Herria Jamaika Clash!, Fermin Muguruza mixes Jamaican rhythms with sounds from Basque traditional musical instruments to produce unique musical hybrids that feature Basque heritage and culture.[3]