Diandra Interviews Bandalos Chinos: Icons of Pop Paranoia

We all have an artist that plucks our soul like feather from a pillow. Somehow, they take out all our “stuffing” like, the negativity, over-thinking, theories, and concepts, to remind us that, at the end of the day, we really our feelings. For all that we place rationales and frame our experiences, it is our emotional connection to them that frames our heart. In our interview, Bandalos Chinos’ drummer Matias Verduga discusses framing a sound that captured their heart in their newest record: Pop Paranoia.

Diandra: I believe you made Pop Paranoia before the pandemic. Do you feel any different about its songs, now that it is released in this totally different world and climate?

Matias: Every time you release an album, after its release, its meaning changes for you. Time has passed, and the songs you wrote before don’t really match with how you feel after. What makes Pop Paranoia different is that we based it off a concept. So we knew already the vision we were going for.I feel really close to this music.

Perhaps, our previous album was more experimental because we didn’t know what would come from us every time we got together to create. With this one, we were more specific in themes and sounds.It is a really strong, powerful album, and it was chill in its lyrics. It impacted me because we really planted what we wanted to see from it. I love the universe we entered with these songs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FqH71p8ZmY

Diandra: Is there a particular theme that runs in Pop Paranoia?

Matias: I think the album reflect the general feeling of touring for 2 years and entering millions of emotional states because of the success from Bach. We toured across the continent, and this album is really about connection. What it means to be an influencer. It can be a bad twisted trip, and a good one, to be so exposed. There is something that happens to you when you are seen by so many and you see people singing your words. There is a sense of paranoia that builds because it can be good or bad. That became a point of introduction to enter our universe.

Diandra: How would you describe the universe of Pop Paranoia?

Matias: I feel like when we enter a studio, it is like we are entering a universe, and we are there to kind of rotate around it or make it turn. That is how I felt in our previous album. Bach, and, with this one, Pop Paranoia. With Pop Paranoia, we went to Texas, to record, for a month. We went when it was winter, and, in Argentina, it was summer. So it was a total turn for us. That distance furthers puts you in a universe, and effects your lyrics and sounds because of what you are going through. In this album, I feel we made a record that you have to listen to from start to finish. From there, you can understand my “universe” perspective. It is a really eclectic world that can be very sarcastic and fun and sad.

Diandra: Is there a movie you would turn into a concept album?

Matias: Relatos Salvajes. It is about 5 people and how their lives and love stories intertwine. It is drama and comedy and complex. I think it would be a great album to take those stories and turn it into music.

Diandra: You call music a refuge. What do you feel it has protected you from?

Matias: Psssshhh! Absolutely Everything! Music has been my safest vest. It is a channel for everyone. It is the channel from which I have stayed united with my friends. We go off to our own lives, but then we meet up and play music and find out we like the same songs. Music is apart of me, and, during quarantine, every way I saved myself was through music. You have to take advantage of how much you can learn from music. In quarantine, I learned electronic and Trap music and learned more about production.

Diandra: Is there a trap artist you like?

Matias: Travis Scott. I was listening to Astroworld, and I saw the documentary and it moved me.It gave him so much dimension in how he effects people. There are so many though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpcTXa15Bv4&list=OLAK5uy_msEloB0KHLI4zJ9KXf1KeE1HdRQYxojG4&index=7

Diandra: Is there a way to tell when artist is authentic?

Matias: I think it is about perception, and, the people who perceive it, never know quite where is the key is. You can see though in their showmanship and presentation. You can just feel it in their connection to the songs, the fans, and the stage. I think how you get along with people give us a sense of justice like, if you are a good person, we feel it more. It really is about how people feel about your music truly. In the end, they are who matters, but I do find that how you transmit your music, especially if you are genuinely good, people feel more impacted by it.

Fito Paez. His music came into my life when I was really young. I was shared so many of his songs by his family. I was only a few years old when I learned his name, and both my parents loved him. They had totally different music tastes but they connected him, and I have so many family memories of with his music. Obviously, when I grew up, I learned more about his music, his history, and his style. I noticed, in his life, that it is only when he started to look inward, in his music, that he became an icon and became a spokesperson for the nation. Imagine having an entire country agree with how you sing to its reality? He was a craze. He filled stadiums and started as a kid.

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