JOSÉ MERCÉ, ‘RUIDO’. TEATRO DE
LA ZARZUELA IN MADRID
Above all else
S.C. Madrid, October 26th, 2009
‘Ruido’. José
Mercé, cante. Moraíto, guitar. Diego
del Morao and Daniel Méndez, guitar. Güito,
box drum. Marce, Negro and Rafa, choruses and clapping.
Teatro de la Zarzuela. Madrid, October 26th, 2009. 9 p.m.
Although presenting an album without having
an album is apparently a contradiction, there are artists
who are above their work and even the market’s agendas.
And that’s the case of José
Mercé. Due to circumstances beyond his control,
the release of ‘Ruido’ has been delayed time
and time again, but the presentation tour had been scheduled
and was already underway. It kicked off one
month ago in Jerez and it was now time to make a stop
in Madrid, at no less than the unique Teatro de la Zarzuela.
He was awaited there by his audience and having an audience
of his own, devoted and numerous, is a factor capable of
overcoming any setback. Moreover, those who bought tickets
knew they would get an extra reward; that is to say, they
would be among the first to listen to part of that new repertoire
which has yet to leave the studio. And as all of them were
expecting, so it was.
First and foremost, deep-roots cante. But
scarcely had the last breath been felt of the seguiriya,
than the Jerez-born cantaor drastically turned the tables
in order to premiere a handful of new songs. The intimacy
of the cantaor and his guitarist, Moraíto…
Great, it gave way to the hustle and bustle of the group,
with box drum, the guitars of Diego del Morao and Dani de
Morón, and a trio of clapping and choruses. And the
depth of the cante jondo gave way to the fickleness of song,
now then, to the compás of bulerías, alegrías
or “strange tangos”. ‘Contigo’,
‘Fe’, ‘Amanecer’ and, to finish
off, ‘Ruido’ were some of those hits which were
revealed in the last stretch of the night. Very mushy, little
substance in the lyrics… but everything enhanced with
José Mercé’s capacity to perform and
his stage know-how.
And with that gift of us, he can just as
easily sing a malagueña by El Mellizo or an everyday
coplilla of the kind composed for him by Isidro Muñoz.
His mighty voice is always there, his solid presence on
the chair, the personality he stamps on each phase, that
way of his of accompanying with his hands, of crossing them
over his chest, of stretching them out and embracing, of
smiling generously even when the soleá tightens...
The affectionate words, the solo by Morao, the bulería
and the little spin, the unaccompanied fandango, the reference
to Madrid and his real team... And the constant applause
from the crowd cheering him on in a phase just as easily
as in a refrain. All of that’s there, and that other
stuff which has no translation, above any circumstance,
including not having an album yet which his fans can carry
away in their hands. Of course what was lived here, for
that is neither sold nor packaged, will be surely worth
the wait for them.
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