Aguaviva

Aguaviva formed in 1996 with Manuel Martín on guitar and vocals, Manuel Barba on percussion, José Manuel Hernaiz on vocals, and Pedro Cortés as a multi-instrumentalist. They worked from a base in flamenco tradition but brought in other sounds, which didn't always sit well with purists who felt they were watering things down.

Their debut album 'Poetas Andaluces' came out in 1998. The title track, along with songs like 'Qué Grande És Tú' and 'La muerte me guede la palabra,' shows how they used the region's poetry as material, wrapping those words in arrangements that felt both familiar and expanded.

They kept playing, and the tension between their respect for flamenco forms and their willingness to stretch them became a quiet part of their story, more a condition of their work than a dramatic conflict.