Their musical style covers a wide variety of genres, though it is most commonly labeled as Rock en Español. Their music has been heavily influenced by Mexico's indigenous population and folk music traditions, most notable the Jarocho style of the state of Veracruz, but also by punk and electronic music and other bands in the Mexico City scene. Perhaps the most distinctive feature of their music is Albarrán's nasal voice, which, combined with his impressive lung capacity (as demonstrated on "La Ingrata", an homage to norteño music), makes for a very distinctive sound. They sing entirely in Spanish but have a significant Anglophone following regardless.
They have an especially eclectic sound, and it's commonly said that none of their discs is of exactly the same genre. For example, "Maria" is a bolero style ballad, "La Ingrata" is a mix of rock and "norteño" , while "Eres", a hit included in "Cuatro Caminos" album, is mostly pop-rock.
They were founded in 1989, and since then have had the same musical lineup:
* Rubén Isaac Albarrán Ortega aka "Pinche Juan" ("Fuckin Juan"), "Cosme", "Anónimo" (Anonymous), "Nrü" (pronounced "dshyoo", [dʃju] in IPA), "Amparo Tonto Medardo In Lak'ech" (or "At Medardo ILK"), "G3", "Gallo Gasss", "Élfego Buendía", "Sizu Yantra" (which is his solo moniker as well), "Rita Cantalagua", "Ixi Xoo" and many others. (vocals, guitar)
* Emmanuel "Meme" del Real Díaz: (keyboards, acoustic guitar, piano, programming, vocals, melodion)
* José Alfredo "Joselo" Rangel Arroyo: (electric guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals)
* Enrique 'Quique' Rangel Arroyo: (bass guitar, electric upright bass, vocals)
Mexican folk music player Alejandro Flores is considered the 5th tacubo, as he has played the violin in almost every Café Tacuba concert since 1994. Since the Cuatro Caminos World Tour, Luis "El Children" Ledezma has played the drums in every concert but is not considered an official member of the band.
**Previously known as "Alicia Ya No Vive Aquí" (a tribute to Martin Scorsese's Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore), the band took its final name from a coffee shop (el Café de Tacuba) located in downtown Mexico City. The cafe, which opened in 1912 and had its heyday in the 1940s and 1950s, was representative of the Pachuco scene at the time, something the band would later acknowledge as an influence. The Café de Tacuba is still in operation as a coffee shop and restaurant on Tacuba Street, in Mexico City's Historic Center. The band changed its name to Café Tacvba (changing the u for a v) in order to avoid legal issues with the coffee shop.
1989
Mexico City, Mexico
Debajo del Mar
Café Tacvba Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
a ahogar debajo del mar
con grandes fantasmas
que me llevan a caminar
ha, ha, ha, ha
Caminaba con una anciana
yo le hablaba de tus ojos
de tu olor, ternura, todo
A veces siento tristeza
tristeza de no mirarte
perderme en la eternidad
de tu oscuridad
A veces siento deseo
deseo de irme contigo
será un sueño infinito
serás solo tú
En otoño caen las hojas
llenas de nostalgia
en mis manos mareadas
de 96 grados saturados
Yo le hablaba solo de ti
de tus perfumes de tus flores
y ella me explico que
la eternidad eras tú
eras tú
A veces siento deseo
deseo de irme contigo
será un sueño infinito
serás solo tú
A veces siento tristeza
tristeza de no mirarte
a veces siento deseo
deseo de irme contigo
A veces siento tristeza
tristeza de no mirarte
será un sueño infinito
serás solo tú
The lyrics of Café Tacvba's song "Debajo del Mar" (Under the Sea) suggest a sense of escapism, with the singer wanting to drown under the sea, accompanied by imaginary ghosts. The first verse describes the singer's intention to drown, and his/her willingness to be guided by these figures throughout this journey. The use of laughter might suggest a sense of irony or even madness.
The second verse is more introspective and a tad pessimistic. The singer walks with an old woman who is crying for her children. The singer speaks of another person's eyes, smell, and tenderness while the old woman speaks of the eternity that resides in the sea. The use of nostalgia in the following lines, comparing the fall of leaves to the singer's "saturated" hands, suggests a certain amount of hopelessness. The third verse repeats the same idea seen in the first, with the singer expressing both sadness and desire at various points of the song.
The overall tone of this song might be interpreted as a yearning for a love that can never fully be realized, with themes of escape and an exploration of the unknown infused throughout.
Line by Line Meaning
En la noche me voy a ahogar
I am overwhelmed with feelings of drowning, sinking into an abyss of sorrow and longing.
a ahogar debajo del mar
I am going to drown under the ocean, where nothing can touch or reach me.
con grandes fantasmas
I am haunted by intense emotions that threaten to consume me whole.
que me llevan a caminar
I am being led by overpowering forces, unsure of where I am headed.
Caminaba con una anciana
I walked with an old woman, pain etched deep into the lines of her face.
que lloraba por sus hijos
She wept for her lost children, gone too soon from this world.
yo le hablaba de tus ojos
I spoke to her of your eyes, the way they sparkle with life and love.
de tu olor, ternura, todo
Of your fragrance, your tenderness, your essence that fills my every sense.
A veces siento tristeza
Sometimes I feel immense sadness, a bottomless pit that engulfs me.
tristeza de no mirarte
Sadness that I cannot behold you, the dear person who completes me.
perderme en la eternidad
I feel lost in an infinite void, without you by my side.
de tu oscuridad
In this endless abyss, your presence is the only piercing light.
A veces siento deseo
Sometimes I feel an intense longing, a burning passion that engulfs me.
deseo de irme contigo
A longing to be with you, to be a part of your self and soul.
será un sueño infinito
Perhaps it is a never-ending dream, one that will never come true.
serás solo tú
But you are the one who I yearn for, who I love with all my being.
En otoño caen las hojas
In autumn, the leaves fall, a reminder of the fleeting nature of life.
llenas de nostalgia
These falling leaves are heavy with memories and loss.
en mis manos mareadas
In my shaky hands, those memories become tangible and real.
de 96 grados saturados
I am weighed down by the heavy load of 96 degrees of sorrow.
Yo le hablaba solo de ti
I spoke only of you, of the love that consumes me and never fades.
de tus perfumes de tus flores
Of the sweet fragrance of your spirit, of the beauty that blooms in your heart.
y ella me explico que
And the old woman explained to me that
la eternidad eras tú
You are the eternal light, the beacon that shines even in the darkest night.
eras tú
You are the one who gives my life meaning, my reason to keep breathing.
será un sueño infinito
Perhaps it is a never-ending dream, one that will never come true.
serás solo tú
But you are the one who I yearn for, who I love with all my being.
A veces siento deseo
Sometimes I feel an intense longing, a burning passion that engulfs me.
deseo de irme contigo
A longing to be with you, to be a part of your self and soul.
A veces siento tristeza
Sometimes I feel immense sadness, a bottomless pit that engulfs me.
tristeza de no mirarte
Sadness that I cannot behold you, the dear person who completes me.
será un sueño infinito
Perhaps it is a never-ending dream, one that will never come true.
serás solo tú
But you are the one who I yearn for, who I love with all my being.
Contributed by Taylor B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Matilda
on Desperte
What does it mean is he a recovering alcoholic? I want to know