June 1989. A group of visionaries who made fanzines by cutting and pasting photocopies with scissors and glue as the only tools, decided to take a leap of faith by creating a record label to give free rein to their highest musical passions. Subterfuge Records was born, a label that over time would become much more than that, becoming “a cultural shockwave that has crossed generations,” as its founder Carlos Galán describes. «Throughout its journey it has been a platform for artists, groups, performers, designers and illustrators, creating a human collage that mixes successes and failures, digital revolutions and industrial reconversions. Without artifice, without protection, Subterfuge has detonated its magic with an open heart, always faithful to its origins and the city where they were born. The indie circuit was still “non-existent as such,” recalls Galán while posing in front of the collage exhibited in La Vitrina de Carretas 12, which celebrates its 35th anniversary by combining fanzines, photos and memorabilia from iconic artists such as Dover, Fangoria or Los Fresones Rebeldes. «La Movida had already died, the neon colors had gone out and the media was already different, and everything that happened was in Malasaña, where there were forty or fifty people and we all knew each other. We were between 15 and 25 years old at most, we would meet at concerts in Agapo, San Mateo 6 or Ya’sta, and we would go to La Vía Láctea, Louie Louie or Nueva Visión. There were three fanzines and three independent labels, so everything had to be done. For Carlos and his fellow co-founder Gema del Valle, all this was a hobby parallel to their studies (he was in Art History, she was in Humanities and then in Journalism). ; They did not worry beyond editing the next issue of the fanzine or publishing the album of that band that fascinated them, and in short the thing was “to have a good time close to the music and its environment, in our humanistic and literary condition, of lovers of music and culture, very far from feeling like businessmen. But in 1993 they released ‘Pizza Pop’ by Australian Blonde, “the trigger” for the explosion of popularity of the ‘indie’ concept. «It coincided with the appearance of Los Planetas, El Inquilino Comunista, Sexy Sadie, the Maravillas room, the Revolver on Galileo Street, the first edition of the FIB…», recalls Galán, who believes it is essential not to forget that « The foundations were forged between 1989 and 1992 with bands like Psilicon Flesh, Los Imposibles, Sex Museum, Pleasure Fuckers or WipeOut Skaters, and with fanzines like ‘The Munster Inheritance’, ‘Romilar D’ or ‘Subterfuge’ himself. Related News Standard Si Carolina Durante and Alcalá Norte: instruction manual for surviving the ‘hype’ Nacho Serrano ABC brings together two of the groups of the most successful of the national indie circuit. Four years later, Carlos stayed one night with some girls from Majadahonda called Dover, without having the slightest idea of the turn they were going to take in his life. “We met very late because we all had jobs and on top of that we arrived late, Galán was already exhausted at that time,” his guitarist, Amparo Llanos, now recalls for ABC. «We went because Subterfuge seemed like the best label to us, but at the same time, we were very keen to defend our creative freedom. So at the time of signing we had that fear of not being able to do what we wanted. But yes we could. Carlos gave us all the freedom in the world.” “That same 1997 Dover explodes, a million copies are sold and it shows that there is a solid scene, capable of playing in the major league, which finally awakens the interest of all means,” explains Galán. “Yes, but it was more than all that,” adds Amparo. «What happened with ‘Devil came to me’ was worthy of sociological study. It seemed impossible for Spain to go crazy with a snowball like that, which was getting bigger every week. It was such an incredible thing that it should be studied. I remember him with affection and tremendous joy. We were aware of how lucky we had been, we knew that we had a very good album, but people had told us that with luck eight thousand copies would be sold…” The poster to promote the Subterfuge ABC exhibitionWhen Carlos called them to tell them That figure had been exceeded in the first week, they couldn’t believe it. “We lived it with tremendous satisfaction and enjoyment,” says Amparo, who at that time was not fully aware of the challenge that his group’s boom posed for a small record label that had not even completed ten years of experience. “When they ask me ‘what was your greatest success in the history of the company?’, I always answer: ‘There were two: experiencing the success of Dover and surviving the success of Dover,'” says Galán. «Everything that came was managed based on intuition and naturalness, which also included mistakes, disproportionate egos and everything that can arise with the success that arises from the work of three people and a cat on a fourth floor without an elevator in the neighborhood of Chueca. Looking back, I think we surfed the wave brilliantly and honestly, and it made us keep our feet on the ground, not succumb to siren songs, and be clear about which path we wanted to follow, making our own decisions. “Amparo values the 35th anniversary of Subterfuge as “the success of a label that takes risks with artists that are very different from each other, which bears economic fruit and the satisfaction of doing what they wanted. “I’m glad that so many bands continue to have the opportunity they seek within a company that knows how to do things very well.” And during these decades and a half, Subterfuge has become an essential part of Madrid’s cultural landscape. It has had its stage on Music Day, exhibitions at the City Hall, it has received the Community Culture Award… «Subterfuge is Madrid in vein, we couldn’t understand it anywhere else, we are in love with it to the core! our house!” exclaims Galán. «We have evolved parallel to Madrid in recent decades, and although we like some things about it more than others, our attitude is to pay almost constant tribute to our city, to our origins, to Malasaña, to the Rastro. to Atleti, to the Madrid bands of yesterday, today and always. to do what they wanted. “I’m glad that so many bands continue to have the opportunity they seek within a company that knows how to do things very well.” And during these decades and a half, Subterfuge has become an essential part of Madrid’s cultural landscape. It has had its stage on Music Day, exhibitions at the City Hall, it has received the Community Culture Award… «Subterfuge is Madrid in vein, we couldn’t understand it anywhere else, we are in love with it to the core! our house!” exclaims Galán. «We have evolved parallel to Madrid in recent decades, and although we like some things about it more than others, our attitude is to pay almost constant tribute to our city, to our origins, to Malasaña, to the Rastro. to Atleti, to the Madrid bands of yesterday, today and always. In 2025 Subterfuge will continue the dream that began in 1989, “continuing to enjoy what we do, being immensely happy to be able to decide our designs without impositions,” says Galán. . «It has been a luxury to be able to experience in first person the entire evolution of the business and its forms of consumption. And we continue to be restless, developing new adventures, such as the podcast platform Subterfuge Radio or the Ibero-American sound creation festival Estación Podcast. And of course, signing great groups like Niña Polaca, La La Love You, Vicente Calderón, Colectivo da Silva, Lady Banana, Canteo!, Finta or Jordana B. In all this time, there has only been one thing that has “saddened” Galán: the use and abuse of the term ‘indie’. «I have never liked him nor do I feel identified with him. We are an independent company, which implies ‘non-dependence’, the alternative, that is, going in parallel, but always attentive and actively participating, to the designs of the market and its trends. It simply saddens me that the terms are diluted and that all the work done is used as a trademark, or a style of specific music.” These types of controversies, however, have not made Carlos waste a second for a long time now. , Gema and the rest of the Subterfuge team, which at 35 years old stands as “a vibrant accumulation of albums, songs, comics, fanzines, documentaries, merchandising, books, festivals and, above all, an endless number of stories told from Madrid, that city that has always been its backdrop.
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