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
El Polen
Café Tacvba Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
nadie sabe que con mi canto la vida se va en lamentar,
y el fuego se va encendiendo y calor me vuelvo yo,
el día se va poniendo y con él, me acuesto yo,
Y el polen entró en el agua y toda se la tragó
nadie le dijo nada, su estómago la disolvió,
y parece que hay algo que sigue mi porvenir.
Y caí en una orquídea y del tallo me estiré,
hoy el cielo me envidió porque lo rebasé,
y mis frutos dispersos en las copas con lentitud,
caen con tonos espesos perdiendo su juventud,
Y lentos y silenciosos parecen los años ir,
y mientras más me lamento necesito del porvenir.
In Café Tacvba's song El Polen, the persona speaking seems to be from the perspective of a piece of pollen. The lyrics suggest that while being able to fly may seem like a charm, it is also a curse. The pollen, which may symbolize the fleeting nature of life, laments that nobody knows the value of its existence. The end of the first verse is quite impactful, as it foreshadows the damage that is to come. The persona sings, "y el fuego se va encendiendo y calor me vuelvo yo" ("and the fire starts and I become heat"). It suggests that the future holds destruction or demise.
The second verse talks about how the pollen ended up being dissolved in water, which nobody warned it about. There is an air of resignation and apathy in this verse towards the inevitability of death. The line "nadie le dijo nada, su estómago la disolvió" ("nobody said anything, its stomach dissolved it") showcases a sense of abandonment or lack of control.
The third verse is more metaphorical, as the pollen speaks of being scattered in orchids and becoming something the sky envies. The bittersweet ending of the verse talks about the slow, silent passage of time and the helplessness of being trapped in the cycle of life and death - "y mientras más me lamento necesito del porvenir" ("and the more I lament, the more I need the future").
Overall, the song seems to be a reflection on the cyclical nature of life, and how everything flows and ebbs with time. The beauty of existing and the inevitability of death are both explored in the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
No puede tener mucho encanto ser polen y poder volar,
Being pollen and being able to fly may not seem very charming.
nadie sabe que con mi canto la vida se va en lamentar,
No one knows that my song causes life to be full of sorrow.
y el fuego se va encendiendo y calor me vuelvo yo,
As the fire ignites, I become hot.
el día se va poniendo y con él, me acuesto yo,
As the day ends, I go to bed.
Y el polen entró en el agua y toda se la tragó
The pollen entered the water and was completely consumed.
nadie le dijo nada, su estómago la disolvió,
No one said anything as their stomach dissolved it.
Y lentos y silenciosos parecen los meses ir,
The months seem to pass by slowly and silently.
y parece que hay algo que sigue mi porvenir.
It seems like something is following my destiny.
Y caí en una orquídea y del tallo me estiré,
I fell into an orchid and stretched myself from the stem.
hoy el cielo me envidió porque lo rebasé,
Today, the sky envies me because I surpassed it.
y mis frutos dispersos en las copas con lentitud,
My fruits fall slowly from the branches.
caen con tonos espesos perdiendo su juventud,
They fall with a thick sound, losing their youth.
Y lentos y silenciosos parecen los años ir,
The years seem to pass by slowly and silently.
y mientras más me lamento necesito del porvenir.
The more I lament, the more I need the future.
Contributed by Jake B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Matilda
on Desperte
What does it mean is he a recovering alcoholic? I want to know