Biography

RAFAEL BERRIO (Donostia 1963)

Rafael Berrio formed his first group at the Corazón de María school in 1979, with José Manuel Puerto, Endika Cámara and Ignacio de Lucas. He was called to go on the Donosti-Sound tour (which culminated in the mythic Rockola in Madrid) at the same time as he recorded his first EP, a young work in vinyl created under the inevitable and giddy influence of new wave. (U.H.F. Shanti-Records, 1981).

(...) During the second half of the 80s he disappeared into the shadow zone. For many long and obstinate years he hid with his colleagues in rehearsal halls, performing in public only very rarely (often with the wonderful musician from Donostia, Poch, who was also a close personal friend) until finally, in 1991, he recorded his first LP for Shanti Records in the Du Manoir studios in Las Landas. Unfortunately, this work was a disaster and remained unpublished due to the subsequent bankruptcy of the said record company. Rafael had to wait for his next opportunity, during which time he created a new repertoire in collaboration with his brother, the writer Iñaki Berrio. Much to his surprise, this repertoire caught the attention of the multinational company Warner, which produced it in their IZ studios in Amasa. This was, at last, his first real album, consisting of twelve rock and acid tracks, that was warmly received by the critics despite not enjoying a resounding success as regards sales and promotion. (Amor A Traición-A.A.T. -DRO-Warner, 1994)

Thanks to the indifference of the record company, Rafael soon gained his freedom, which he used to start preparing his second LP in the recently opened Estudio DeLucas, the property of the band’s drummer. The album was produced altruistically by Diego Vasallo, with only a limited number of copies being issued, and the band then embarked on a self-managed tour, which is perhaps why the work enjoyed a relative amount of success among both the critics and the general public, although in a minority and fairly small way. (Amor A Traición-Una canción de mala muerte. Galerna-1997)

Two years later, with Iñaki De Lucas as producer and arranger, Rafael Berrio recorded a new collection of songs which caught the attention of the independent record company from Valencia Criminal. The musician signed a contract with them for the publication of what was to be his third LP, which was followed by a series of club recitals, mainly in Valencia and the Basque Country, with a new band and a new name. (Deriva-Planes De Fuga; Criminal Discos, 2000).

(...) And this brings us up to the present day, in which Rafael has just brought out his latest work, recorded and produced by Iñaki De Lucas in his San Sebastián studio. The album is an independent production following the break with the Valencian company, and the distribution and recording of the work is being carried out by the Gipuzkoan company Gaztelupeko Hotsak. This is Rafael’s fourth album (Deriva-Harresilanda. Autoedición/Hotsak, 2005) and a small minority will have the opportunity to enjoy it live in the small recitals that are scheduled for the near future. (...) It is not unthinkable that one of these songs may bury itself firmly in the minds and memories of an audience that is inevitably (and perhaps to the dismay of the musician) becoming larger and more passionate by the day. From ‘Future biographies’ Koan Amiama; Pub. Limbo