Café Tacvba (often spelled Café Tacuba*) is a band from the Lomas de Sotel… Read Full Bio ↴Café Tacvba (often spelled Café Tacuba*) is a band from the Lomas de Sotelo neighborhood in Mexico City, Mexico.

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 ciclon
Café Tacvba Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Yo, flecha
Flor, polen, flecha
Abeja, oso, pez
Flecha, agua
Sube, nube
Llueve, árbol, flecha
Oxígeno, flecha, pulmón
No piense, hija mía

¿Acaso Dios nunca muere?
¿A qué Dios te refieres?
Todo de eso depende
Hay dioses que pensaron
Que el mundo era infinito, y
No hay equilibrio entre los reinos, hijo mío

Yo, flecha
Flor, polen, flecha
Abeja, oso, pez
Flecha, agua
Sube, nube
Llueve, árbol, flecha
Oxígeno, flecha, pulmón

Gira y da vueltas
Y rueda girando
Gira y da vueltas
Y rueda, y rueda

Quiero hacerla un cuadrado
Deformarla en un triángulo
Pero la vida siempre vuelve a su forma circular
Vuelve a su forma circular

La única que puede darnos vueltas es Dios
Hay tan pocas flores ya, peces, agua que pensé
Que la vuelta no daría
Hoy tu hijo me respira
Si el equilibrio es Dios, y el equilibrio murió
¿Qué pasó con Dios?

Gira y da vueltas
Y rueda girando
Gira y da vueltas
Y rueda, y rueda

Quiero hacerla un cuadrado
Deformarla en un triángulo
Pero la vida siempre vuelve a su forma circular

Gira y da vueltas
Y rueda girando

Gira y da vueltas
Y rueda, y rueda

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Café Tacvba's song "El Ciclón" are an enigmatic and thought-provoking exploration of the cyclical nature of life and the concept of God. The opening lines of the song introduce a series of images that are juxtaposed with the word "flecha" (arrow): "Flower, pollen, arrow. Bee, bear, fish. Arrow, water. Climb, cloud. Rain, tree, arrow. Oxygen, arrow, lung."

The repeated use of the word "flecha" suggests that the arrow is a symbol of direction or purpose, while the other images evoke different elements of the natural world. The chorus reinforces this idea with the lines, "Spin and turn, and roll around. Spin and turn, and roll and roll." These lines suggest that everything in the universe has a natural rhythm and cycle, like the spinning of the earth.

The song also grapples with the idea of God and questions whether or not God is eternal. This is suggested in the verse, "Does God never die? Which God do you mean? Everything depends on that. There are gods who believed that the world was infinite, and there is no balance among the kingdoms, my son." The lyrics indicate that the concept of God is fluid and depends on one's perspective.

Overall, "El Ciclón" is a poetic and philosophical exploration of the cyclical nature of life and the mystery of God. Through vivid imagery and enigmatic lyrics, the song encourages listeners to contemplate the fundamental nature of existence and their place within it.

Line by Line Meaning

Yo, flecha
I am an arrow

Flor, polen, flecha
Flower, pollen, arrow

Abeja, oso, pez
Bee, bear, fish

Flecha, agua
Arrow, water

Sube, nube
Cloud rises

Llueve, árbol, flecha
Rain, tree, arrow

Oxígeno, flecha, pulmón
Oxygen, arrow, lung

No piense, hija mía
Don't think, my daughter

¿Acaso Dios nunca muere?
Does God never die?

¿A qué Dios te refieres?
Which God are you referring to?

Todo de eso depende
Everything depends on that

Hay dioses que pensaron
There are gods who thought

Que el mundo era infinito, y
That the world was infinite, and

No hay equilibrio entre los reinos, hijo mío
There is no balance between the kingdoms, my son

Gira y da vueltas
Rotate and spin

Y rueda girando
And rolls while spinning

Quiero hacerla un cuadrado
I want to make it a square

Deformarla en un triángulo
Deform it into a triangle

Pero la vida siempre vuelve a su forma circular
But life always returns to its circular form

La única que puede darnos vueltas es Dios
The only one who can turn us around is God

Hay tan pocas flores ya, peces, agua que pensé
There are so few flowers, fish, water that I thought

Que la vuelta no daría
That the turn wouldn't come

Hoy tu hijo me respira
Today your son breathes me

Si el equilibrio es Dios, y el equilibrio murió
If balance is God, and balance died

¿Qué pasó con Dios?
What happened to God?

Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Ruben Isaac Albarran Ortega, Emmanuel Del Real Diaz, Enrique Rangel Arroyo, Jose Alfredo Rangel Arroyo

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS