Heroes del Silencio started in 1984 as a band named Zumo de Vidrio. The original members were Enrique Bunbury, Juan Valdivia and his brother, and Pedro Andreu. Bunbury was originally a bass player but after Juan Valdivia heard him singing a David Bowie song and told him that he had a great voice, Bunbury became the vocalist. Later on, Joaquin Cardiel joins the line-up.
The band changed their name to Heroes del Silencio in 1986. At first they played in public places and made demos but their break came when they participated in a music contest in Salamanca and won second place - an EMI producer, Gustavo Montesano, saw the band in the contest and some time later, at a concert in Sala En Bruto, he signed the band.
Their first EP, Héroe de Leyenda, was released in in 1987 and sold 30,000 copies. The following year, the album El Mar No Cesa was released, featuring the songs "Mar Adentro", "Agosto" and "El Estanque", and sold 100,000 copies. The supporting tour followed in 1989, documented on the limited edition live album En Directo.
In 1990 they released Senderos de Traicion, their best-selling album with 2 million copies, including 400,000 copies in the first two weeks in Spain alone. The following year they started the tour "Senda 91" and released another live album, Senda 91. 1992 saw the most important CD in their career, El Espiritu del Vino. They sold 600,000 copies of this album which was played throughout America. They followed this with a tour for El Espiritu del Vino. In 1993, Alan Bogulavsky joined the band.
Due to tensions within the band, they took a hiatus and went to Benasque to take a vacation and heal the rifts within the group. After this break they gained a new producer, Bob Ezrin (Lou Reed, Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel, Alice Cooper, Kiss, etc.) and in 1995 released Avalancha, widely considered their best album. Avalancha was more hard rock than previous albums, with songs like "Avalancha", "Deshacer El Mundo" and "Iberia Sumergida". The album was followed by the "Avalancha" tour in 1995 and 1996, which produced the live album Para Siempre.
The band split in 1996 though this did not prevent the release of the Rarezas album in 1998.
2007 Reunion tour
20 years after their first album, and 10 years after they split up, the band announced a ten concerts reunion tour, taking in Guatemala City, Buenos Aires, Monterrey, Ciudad de México, Los Ángeles, Sevilla, Zaragoza and Valencia. For this tour, guitarist Gonzalo Valdivia (Juan Valdivia's brother) replaced former band member Alan Bogulavsky. More than 10,000 people attended each concert. The tour was followed by another live album, Tour 2007.
After the tour, singer-songwriter Enrique Bunbury announced the definitive split of the band and that he would be focusing in his solo career.
Tumbas De Sal
Héroes del Silencio Lyrics
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Ni las danzas agresivas,
Ofrecen lo mejor de ti,
Quién sabe si es mejor así?,
Abandona el palacio al azar y a la suerte,
Abandónalo,
Si las garras felinas se empeñan,
Ni la visita a letrinas es lo que se tienta,
Quién sabe si es mejor así?,
Condena al exilio las verdades a medía s,
Condenalas,
Occidente cargado de miedo,
"Podría tratarse de magia chamán",
Ideas más torpes se han visto,
Entre, océanos de oro y tumbas de sal,
Si las palabras escritas,
No te las puedes creer,
Fue una inútil manera,
De marcarnos un son,
Quién sabe si es mejor ceder?,
Contempla el estado en que se nos dejó,
Contémplalo,
Occidente cargado de miedo,
"Podría tratarse de magia chamán",
Ideas más torpes se han visto, entre,
Océanos de oro y tumbas de sal,
Occidente cargado de miedo,
"Podría tratarse de magia chamán",
Ideas más torpes se han visto, entre,
Océanos de oro y tumbas de sal,
The lyrics to Héroes del Silencio's song Tumbas de sal seem to speak to the dangers and pitfalls of trying to escape reality through various means. The first lines mention "psychoactive drinks" and "aggressive dances," implying that these things don't provide a real escape or solution to problems. The next lines ask if it's better to give up and leave everything to chance, abandoning the "palace" (perhaps a metaphor for comfort and security) to the whims of fate. The "clawed felines" that keep you from sleeping could be a metaphor for anxiety or stress that keeps you from finding peace. The chorus asks if it's better to live in a world where truth is only half-exposed or hidden, and suggests that even the most unorthodox solutions, like "shamanic magic," may be worth considering.
The second verse continues to explore this theme of grappling with reality. The "oceans of gold and tombs of salt" seem to represent places of excess and decay, and the idea that written words may not be trustworthy adds to the sense that there's something fundamentally unreliable or unstable about the world being described. The singer suggests that the only way to deal with this situation is to "yield" or give up, and the final lines repeat the idea that Western society is paralyzed by fear and uncertainty.
Overall, the lyrics to Tumbas de sal seem to be a cautionary tale about the dangers of trying to escape from reality or dismissing it altogether. The song suggests that even seemingly radical or unconventional solutions may only offer a temporary respite, and that the only way to find true peace is to accept the world as it is and try to make the best of it.
Line by Line Meaning
Las bebidas psicoactivas no bombean suficiente,
Drinking mind-altering substances does not provide sufficient stimulation,
Ni las danzas agresivas,
Neither aggressive dancing,
Ofrecen lo mejor de ti,
Brings out the best in you,
Quién sabe si es mejor así?,
Who knows if it's better that way?,
Abandona el palacio al azar y a la suerte,
Abandon the palace to chance and fate,
Abandónalo,
Abandon it,
Si las garras felinas se empeñan,
If feline claws persist,
En no dejarte dormir,
In not letting you sleep,
Ni la visita a letrinas es lo que se tienta,
Nor is a trip to the latrine very tempting,
Condena al exilio las verdades a medía s,
Exile half-truths,
Condenalas,
Condemn them,
Occidente cargado de miedo,
The west is loaded with fear,
"Podría tratarse de magia chamán",
"It could be shamanic magic",
Ideas más torpes se han visto,
Dumber ideas have been seen,
Entre, océanos de oro y tumbas de sal,
Among oceans of gold and tombs of salt,
Si las palabras escritas,
If written words,
No te las puedes creer,
You can't believe them,
Fue una inútil manera,
It was a useless way,
De marcarnos un son,
To mark us with a rhythm,
Quién sabe si es mejor ceder?,
Who knows if it's better to give in?,
Contempla el estado en que se nos dejó,
Contemplate the state in which we were left,
Contémplalo,
Contemplate it,
Occidente cargado de miedo,
The west is loaded with fear,
"Podría tratarse de magia chamán",
"It could be shamanic magic",
Ideas más torpes se han visto, entre,
Dumber ideas have been seen, among,
Océanos de oro y tumbas de sal,
Oceans of gold and tombs of salt,
Occidente cargado de miedo,
The west is loaded with fear,
"Podría tratarse de magia chamán",
"It could be shamanic magic",
Ideas más torpes se han visto, entre,
Dumber ideas have been seen, among,
Océanos de oro y tumbas de sal,
Oceans of gold and tombs of salt,
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ENRIQUE ORTIZ LANDAZURI YZARDUY, JOAQUIN CARDIEL GERICO, JUAN VALDIVIA NAVARRO, PEDRO LAPIEDRA, PIEDRO LAPIEDRA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind