The Dock Of The Bay

Saturday, April 14, 2007

Makina music



This movement was born around lately 80's and early 90's.
The beginnings of this musical movements are linked with Nando Dixkontrol in 'Psicodromo' Barcelona disco and Chimo Bayo in 'Arsenal' Valencia disco. It was (maybe it already is) a cultural movement rooted in Catalunya and Valencia, where it was born, and later exported to other places. From year 1996 to 2000 was its more successful period of time.

Makina music is based in giving beat or rhythm to pop or melodic songs, otherwise are not very dancing, unless that's makina disc jockeys' opinion. So it uses two music styles in order to create a third one. Makina music is usually made of two mixed songs, a melodic one and hard beat one, called base song. Hence a makina disc jockey can become famous or peculiar, since the music quality consists in the skill of making good mixes.

Chimo Bayo is very known for his singles. He created real popular songs. He was not only a disc jockey but a singer.

Nando is considered the promoter or 'father' of the Barcelona and Catalunya makina music disc jockeys. He was the first person to refer to this kind of music as 'makina'. As a disc jockey, he started playing industrial, hard, high beaten sounds. He was a very innovative disc jockey. Afterwards he created his own label.


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Oriol Carrió started a radio show in Ràdio Gràcia in 1993, called 'Lo que más rompe'. Later, Amadeu H. Rodríguez and Xavi Escolano joined him. This show was short, and it was about 'makina' music and humour. It got more and more audience, so in 1996, Flaix FM hired the tree presenters to do the radio show from this radio station.

The new radio show in Flaix FM was called 'El que més trenca' and it was produced by Toni Morell. It was on the air from 21:00 to 23:00 from Monday to Friday.


It became very successful, so successfull that in lately 1998 it was one of the most listened radio shows in Catalunya. In fact, it was the most Flaix FM's valuable radio show.

In 1997, due to its success, they decided to organize once a year an anniversary party. In 1998, the second anniversary party took place in Palau d'Esports de la Vall d'Hebron. Later, Xavi Escolano would leave the radio show.

At the end of 1998 the radio show was getting more and more audience, so in 1999, the third anniversary party was in Palau Sant Jordi, it was called Mega Aplec Dance, and 23.000 people gathered in the biggest disco ever seen. Mega Aplec Dance kept on organized in Palau Sant Jordi every year until 2001.

In 2000, Oriol Carrió left Flaix FM and went to 40 Principales, and his new show was called 'Dance Kontrol'.

During that period of time, several discos where makina music was played became real famous, due to the makina music boom, specially because the popularity of Carrio's radio show.

Disc jockeys became popular, as if they were the music band in the concert. People used to go to these discos to listen to the music the played and to watch them. People were facing the disc jockey cabin and having fun with them. They were demanded from lots of places.

Most of them are from Catalunya or Valencia. Probably, D. Álvarez and D. Pàmies, from a Girona disco, and Marc and Xavi Escudero brothers, from a Terrassa disco, were the most popular.

The greatest success ever got by a makina music LP was in 2000, when Marc and Xavi Escudero's compilation got the Gold Record Award.

From my point of view, I think Carrio's radio show was a very important part in the success of this movement. The best time of this movement matches with the period Carrió's show was in Flaix FM.