ANDONI TOLOSA
Born in Hernani in 1963 Morau has always been a keen music lover. A self-taught musician who learned in a folk group formed during his college days, he used his elementary guitar skills to write his first songs. In addition to this love of music, Morau also has another passion: writing. This second passion was in fact the first to bear fruit, in a book of poems entitled ‘Satorrak’ (Moles) which was published in 1989 by the Susa publishing firm.
In addition to this book and a number of contributions to various literary magazines, during this period of his life Morau also started collaborating with various rock groups, for whom he wrote lyrics (Madarikatuak, Kantoi, Deabruak teilatuetan, Ama Say, etc.). In 1991 he started writing his own songs under the pseudonym ‘Morau’, and in the same year brought out his first rough cut entitled ‘Morau eta Galipot’ , giving his first live performances soon afterwards.
This first rough cut, which was the direct heir of the previous book of poems, was followed by two others: ‘Morau’ in 1993 and ‘Morau, Bakalau’ in 1994. Thanks to these two albums, the name Morau became commonplace in the local circuit of bars and small clubs. During this period, he also went on a long tour (lasting nearly a year) with Xabier Montoia (the ex – member of A’AK who made a solo comeback after a number of years of silence). Having overcome his shy beginnings, at this point, the singer from Hernani started giving highly intense live performances, full of humour and irony.
In the autumn of 1996 he published his first album under the name of Morau: ‘El Disco del Sifón’(Gaztelupeko Hotsak), accompanied by the musicians from the group Deabruak Teilatuetan.
The result was 14 songs which merge pop and intimate airs in order to highlight the sometimes ironic, sometimes dramatic background of the lyrics and melodies. The reviews were fantastic and the album was ranked in the top 10 Basque albums for 1997, by the magazine Mondo Sonoro.
The name ‘Morau’ became a common feature on the billboards of festivals, as the musician played with Mikel Laboa, Tapia eta Leturia, Joxe Ripiau, Gozategi, Balerdi Balerdi and many others. At the end of 1998 Morau published his second CD under the title ‘Kantu Galduak’ (Lost Songs). The album contained 7 songs with a strong acoustic flavour; some classic tracks by the Hernani singer which had not hitherto been recorded and a number of remakes. During this project, he collaborated with Tapia, Petti and Ñaco Goñi, among others.
Following this collection, in which the singer made his acoustic loyalties clear, and emphasised his belief in the importance of song as both a melody and a text, at the beginning of the year 2000 Morau brought out his second album: ‘Amodio domestikoa’, in collaboration with a new group of musicians led by Beñardo Goietxe, the always skilful musician from Bera (Noiz Hole) and the drummer from Ibarra, Josu Gabellanes (Uncle Mussls).

The album contains 14 songs in which the development of the singer towards a more ballad and country-based style becomes evident. It also contains a number of different remakes (Mikel Laboa, traditional melodies, Josi Ubeda), with a clear electro-acoustic flavour that shows the maturity gained by the singer on stage, where his live performance is enhanced by the presence of a group that is both basic yet full of intensity and guaranteed by the stable presence of Jesus Aguirresarobe (Txamuto, Larrua Truk) and the change in drummer with the arrival of the young but highly imaginative Igor Mendia. Thanks to these changes, the group now has more personality as well as a name of its own: ‘Agotak’, and has played with Morau now since 2002.
‘Morau ta Agotak’ then started work on a new album - a meticulous and slow work which came out at Christmas 2003. In ‘Txukalda’ (which is the title of the album) Morau worked with the same record company, Gaztelupeko Hotsak, and stresses the basic formula: good medium-rhythm songs and a simple development, where melodies, voices and teamwork are the most noticeable elements. Without a doubt the most complete album to date by this wonderful song writer.