2023-09-16 14:56:45
“Surely you saw Raúl’s story. That video was circulating and, well, it is the story of Raulito, who we met the other day. To celebrate the world championship, my face was tattooed,” says Walter “Mosca” Velázquez from Santa Fe, while he was settling in for the telephone note with YOU.
“Yes, that was the most bizarre thing that happened to me as a musician. Notice that in the video I make myself laugh, but I am grateful to all the people who tattoo my face or the band’s logo,” he responds.
2 Minutos will arrive in Córdoba to continue celebrating its more than 35-year career. The event will be at Captain Blue XL, in the old Abasto area and the place where many rock bars are concentrated, the kind Enrique Symns talks about in the introduction to Mosca de bar, one of the most iconic songs of the group formed in Valentín Alsina, south of Buenos Aires. “I haven’t been to bars in a long time. The last two times we played in Córdoba we went straight to the hotel,” he says.
–35 years with the band and people who get tattoos at 2 Minutes. Are you aware of what you can generate in people with your music?
–We began to realize when we grew older. There we realized that we influenced many people. There are many kids who come and tell you: ‘I grew up listening to you’ or ‘because of Valentín Alsina and the joy is back, old lady! I put together a band.’ People who met at one of our concerts and continued their relationships until they had children, say.
2 Minutes and 36 years of punk
As an emblematic punk band, 2 Minutos managed to position itself in Latin America and over the years they achieved trips and obligatory visits to stages in the United States and Europe. Asked about his proximity to that audience, Mosca affirms that music reaches the same everywhere, therefore the affection is received in the same way, everywhere. “Music generally shortens distances,” he adds.
Regarding his extensive career and the moments he went through, the singer considered that in every type of project there are always ups and downs. “We keep going because we like doing what we do. We have a band and we never thought about how long it would last or where it would go,” he says. “The first objective was to have 12 or 15 songs to play and reach as far as possible. We never thought that we turned 36 on July 8 and we continue to play everywhere, we continue to be reactive and current.”
–How do you see the punk scene looking at it not only on a local scale, but also thinking about the countries you usually visit?
–It is very strong. The moment is very good and everywhere. When I started watching punk or hardcore bands it was something in the minority, the style had a hard time becoming known and respected. Over time it consolidated as a style more alongside blues or rock & roll. It was difficult, but we planted the flag.
With no new material in sight, 2 Minutos keeps releasing singles that are nothing like singles. After the hits they hit with Die Toten Hosen, Trueno and Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, they recently published Otra mujer together with Mimi Maura.
Mosca agreed with the results of these crossovers and was careful to detail how the invitation from the young rapper, winner of the recent Gardel de Oro award, was conceived.
“We know Trueno when he was little. He is the son of Pedro, with whom we have a relationship from the La Boca neighborhood, through his band Comuna 4. The crazy thing about the version of Ya no sos Igual is that both Die toten and Trueno recorded it in Germany. In the end the little boy recovered.”
The departure of guitarist Marcelo “Pedro” Pedrozo
At the end of 2002 and in 2023, fans began to notice the absence of Marcelo Pedroza, a historic guitarist who belonged to the band for 24 years. After speculation, and without official words from the group or the protagonist himself, in July of this year “Pedro” was in charge of detailing the situation and confirmed that he was abruptly separated from the band.
In a lengthy Instagram statement, the guitarist accused his former colleagues of asking him to address his health problems. In short, he accused 2 Minutes of putting him out of a job and gradually removing him from the band. After the separation, a legal problem began in which Pedroza requested that his contribution over so many years be financially recognized.
Asked about this complex issue on which 2 Minutos has not yet commented, Mosca did not want to go into depth. “That is between the two parties. He made the statement about him, we talked about it with him and we didn’t get involved in answering or anything else,” he concluded.
To go
Discounted pre-orders are available at pre-sale #3 ($5,500 + 900 service charge). They are available at Oktubre Rockería, 9 de Julio 138 Local 7 of the Paseo del Sol gallery and through the xlabasto.com.ar system.
#Punk #stronger