CUMBRE FLAMENCA METRO DE MADRID 2005. TOMATITO

Underground guitar

Silvia Calado. Madrid, September 16th, 2005

Tomatito: guitar. Diego Amador: electric bass and voice. Lucky Losada: percussion. Juan de Juan: baile. Bernardo Parrilla: violin. Nuevos Ministerios Station. Madrid, Friday, September 16th, 2005. 10 p.m.

	Tomatito (Photo: Daniel Muñoz)

Neither the eight hundred seats, nor the giant screen, nor the station itself were enough to keep up with the crowd, young in its majority, which came to listen to Tomatito and his band at Nuevos Ministerios Subway Station on Friday, September 16th, 2005. Around three thousand people, according to the organization's calculations, drawn not just by free admission, but above all by the artist's magnitude.

Aware of the particulars of the audience and the auditorium - wedged-in between the entrance turnstiles and the trains' hustle and bustle - he got straight to the point. Instead of warming up with the usual taranta, he kicked off with bulerías, with bailaor Juan de Juan as guest artist. The young Morón-born artist was all the rage... and rightly so: for esthetics, for quality, for power. Now that the ambience was warmed up, a little bit beyond the high reigning temperature, the band continued with rhythmic styles of the kind the Almería sonanta does to perfection. The energy oozes freely through the station's pores.

Juan de Juan (Photo: Daniel Muñoz)

Bits start to come out of 'Guitarra gitana', 'Spain', 'Manantial' and 'Aguadulce'. Crystal-clear, swift, skillful toque. And in the band, though hidden behind the column, shining in his own light is Diego Amador, who plays the bass with immense pleasure while ripping his voice, looking in Camarón's direction. "La vida, la vida, la vida es... es un contratiempo" ("Life, life, life is... is a mishap"). But here, in this little underground plot of the city, in this short stint of music, life is either on time or timeless. It's about enjoying yourself, making others enjoy themselves, forgetting about the background noise and hurries. It's seven minutes to go till the El Escorial train arrives... but what does it matter?

A giant ovation signaled the conclusion of Tomatito's concert, and at the same time, that of the Cumbre Flamenca Metro de Madrid 2005 series, which for one week saw performances by Manuela Carrasco, Antonio el Pipa, El Lebrijano and Falete. The initiative, which has operated successfully on the rock scene for years, will continue in future editions in order to give Madrid's subway another color and flamenco another stage.

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