The band started when Jorge González and Miguel Tapia decided to start their own band while being high school students. They were inexperienced but enthusiastic, after many practices and writing songs, they asked Claudio Narea if he would like to join them, and impressed by the music they were making, he accepted. Towards the early 80's they went through some name changes and before settling on "Los Prisioneros" they had the name "Los Vinchukas" as their original name. In 1983, they had played a number of local shows and that's when they met Carlos Fonseca, their future manager. Through him, they managed to score a record deal with Fusión Producciones.
In 1984, the band's debut album was released, with the hit song "La Voz De Los '80" (which was never a single). They reached acclaim in the radio and by the next year they would be touring. In 1986, their long awaited second album "Pateando Piedras" went double Platinum album in Chile. By that time, the group was invited to perform at Argentina's Chateau Rock Festival and later to a similar event in Montevideo, Uruguay. They continued touring and they became more successful mainstream wise.
The band disbanded in 1992, then as a quartet with additional members Cecilia Aguayo (keyboards) and Robert Rodríguez (guitar), since Claudio Narea had left the band earlier in 1990.
The original lineup of the band decided to get back together in 2001, offering two massive concerts in the National Stadium of Santiago, and then releasing "Los Prisioneros", their first original studio album in 13 years. However, internal problems between González and Narea led again to the departure of the guitarist in 2001. Los Prisioneros continued working as a duet with guest members like Álvaro Henríquez whom with they released a cover album. In 2004 two additional musicians joined the band: Sergio "Coty" Badilla and Gonzalo Yáñez, releasing their sixth album Manzana the same year. A little while after the release of the album band members decided to establish themselves in Mexico, attempting to get more international exposure. Yáñez decided not to leave Chile and left the band. After touring through several locations in North and South America, they finally disbanded in 2006.
Otro Día
Los Prisioneros Lyrics
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Seis
El bus
Seis y media
Un traje azul
Las siete
Preparar
Ocho y cuarto
Nueve
Amoldar
Diez y veinte
Enderezar
Doce y ya
El sandwich vendrá el vaso y
Ya no quiero cambios
Tengo el pulso firme
Ya no quiero cambios
Tengo el ritmo de las máquinas
Dos
Golpear
Tres
Revisar
Nueve
Asear
Diez y media
Descansar
Y tal vez un hijo tendré palancas de juguetes
Ya no quiero cambios
Tengo el pulso firme
Ya no quiero cambios
Tengo el ritmo de las máquinas
Mirar
Aprender
Empezar
Escalar
Desconfiar
Enseñar
Recordar
Descansar
Noche y ya es duro parar no quiero irme
The song "Otro Día" by Los Prisioneros describes the monotonous routine of a blue-collar worker in a factory setting. The lyrics describe the mundane tasks and time stamps of each process that go into producing a finished product. The worker seems to have accepted their fate and has become a part of the machine. The repetition of the phrase "ya no quiero cambios" (I don't want changes anymore) highlights the worker's resignation to their fate and the idea that they have become a part of the production process themselves.
The lyrics also hint at a desire for a more fulfilling life, as indicated by the line "tal vez un hijo tendré palancas de juguetes" (maybe I'll have a child with toy levers). However, this desire for something more is overshadowed by the constant drudgery of the workday. The ending lines of the song show the difficulty of breaking free from this cycle, with the worker not wanting to leave at the end of the night.
Overall, the song is a commentary on the repetitive, soul-sucking nature of factory work and a critique of the societal systems that perpetuate it.
Interesting facts about "Otro Día":
Interesting Facts
Note: This section uses generative AI, which can be inaccurate.
Line by Line Meaning
Otro día
Another day begins
Seis
Six o'clock in the morning
El bus
Taking the bus to work
Seis y media
Thirty minutes after six
Un traje azul
Wearing a blue suit
Las siete
Seven o'clock
Preparar
Preparing for work
Ocho y cuarto
Quarter past eight
Fundir metal
Melting metal
Nueve
Nine o'clock
Amoldar
Shaping the metal
Diez y veinte
Twenty past ten
Enderezar
Straightening it out
Doce y ya
It's already twelve
El sandwich vendrá el vaso y
Lunchtime, the sandwich and glass are on their way
Ya no quiero cambios
I don't want any more changes
Tengo el pulso firme
I have a steady pulse
Ya no quiero cambios
I don't want any more changes
Tengo el ritmo de las máquinas
I have the rhythm of the machines
Dos
Two o'clock
Golpear
Hitting the metal
Tres
Three o'clock
Revisar
Checking it over
Nueve
Nine o'clock
Asear
Cleaning up
Diez y media
Half past ten
Descansar
Taking a break
Y tal vez un hijo tendré palancas de juguetes
And maybe one day I'll have a child with toy levers
Mirar
Looking
Aprender
Learning
Empezar
Starting
Escalar
Climbing
Desconfiar
Distrusting
Enseñar
Teaching
Recordar
Remembering
Descansar
Resting
Noche y ya es duro parar no quiero irme
Night has come and it's hard to stop, I don't want to leave
Lyrics © SADAIC LATIN COPYRIGHTS, INC.
Written by: JORGE GONZALEZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ausland
Siempre la gente diciendo que González es un músico básico, que sus canciones son simples, etc... Pero este tema y varios más de La Cultura De La Basura me parecen dignos de una banda New Wave británica.
jupiterki
Claro que es básico todo, pero el ingenio que tuvo para hacer de algo simple a algo tan adictivo , magico y tan bien logrado, cuesta entender!
karicia2413
Basicos jamas Gonzalez es un Genio saludos ..
Leonardo Videos
Este disco tiene muchas joyas escondidas. Aun recuerdo cuando me compré el casette en 1988.
andres a
El boom del synthpop y del new wave cuando la verdadera musica era valorada....... saludos de Bogota D.C
victor duham
los prisioneros sin duda el mejor grupo de rock sudamericano . muy experimental en cada unos de sus discos donde pasan del punk rock , al synthpop , al rockabilly y del new wave . hacen de todos los albunes una obra maestra .. chile tiene una vision y una caracterictica muy especial de hacer musica, distinto a los otros paises afrolatinos llenos de carnavales ..
modo hater fan
Así es compadre
Daniel Parra Evaristi
victor duham EuropainfuenciA
Gonzalo Bastías
es lo mas sicodelico q he escuchado de los prisioneros. en chile pego muy poco, pero es un tema q igual trascendio. pa mi es el mejor disco q tienen ellos "la cultura de la basura"
Roberto Zapata Silva
Cada vez que escucho esto me acuerdo de mi pasado en la industria, en los fierros. Pegas así te automatizan.