INTERVIEW WITH MUSIC BAND SOMOSHM
Music Band SomosHM
Today we have a special interview with the music band SomosHm, for me, this interview is really special, because Erick and I study together in the Friedman School of music, and we have been together since kindergarten, despite the fact that I change schools, now thanks to Facebook I could find some of my old friends back then.
When I found Erick on Facebook, we discover he was living in Madrid, and that I am living in Vienna, but more than that, I became a fan of his songs. He and his brother Richard create this great music band where both sing, write songs and of course play the instruments.
I know some of you don’t speak Spanish, but the songs are special, my favorite is Magia, but the debut is Manana es Tarde ( tomorrow is late), but to know more about Richard and Erick and how this journey started and where they are going, I made them an interview so you can also discover how great this band is.
Richard, Erick, tell us about yourselves (what did you study, where were you born, where are you now)
E: We are both Venezuelans currently living in Madrid. My brother Richard is BA in Mass Communication graduated in “Universidad Monte Ávila” (Venezuela), with extensive experience as a singer and host of major events in Venezuela, Panama, Dominican Republic, and the Caribbean Islands. He has been a singer in recognized bands such as SGrupo, sharing with National and International artists who have been part of his musical influence, such as Juan Luis Guerra, Chino y Nacho, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Guaco, Amigos Invisibles.
R: My eldest brother Erick is BSc in Business with a Master in Finance (Madrid – London). He has been involved in the production of musical and artistic events in Venezuela. He has dedicated his life to learning various musical instruments on his own since he was 14 years old. He applies all this background in song-writing, using the transverse flute, guitar, piano and Latin percussion which are his favorite instruments.
How did the idea of SomosHM start?
R: The idea came in 2011 when I was developing my final career project, and I was proposing to launch a musical artist through social networks. After discussing this idea with Erick, we decided that instead of promoting another artist, why not promoting ourselves… we began to develop this project that has slowly been grabbing force and today is a reality.
You both studied at the Emil Friedman (a musical school). Is that a big influence on your music now?
R: Indeed, we studied in Emil Friedman, we both practiced Transverse Flute and we were part of the ensemble of wind and school orchestras. Also, we had the opportunity to sing at the “Gaitas” Event that is the most important cultural event for the country, in which each school musically represents its institution. In addition to our family musical influence, we cannot deny that having studied at Emil Friedman gives us a significant competitive difference, because we have the background of classical music education with all the implications therein. All those hours of the conservatory, listening/playing music and that is ultimately what our fans may enjoy in our songs.
Who writes the songs?
R: My brother Erick is the composer of the songs.
E: I write songs based on the experiences in life, and always write the verses based on what each of us has to express… my brother Richi has a lot of vocal strength, and I focus on that quality when I write his verses … on my part, I try to put phrases strongly representative for me, every word has a meaning to me…
What is your inspiration for the songs?
E: I am really inspired by many things. Mainly on things that I have lived in my love life and try to mix them with the common things that everyone lives in relationships… we all believe that what we experience is unique, but reality is that if we could tell everyone what we have experienced, for sure we would feel identified with 90% of the things… love is not all, I also write about family and try to motivate people to say what they feel, so either through our songs.
You are both from Venezuela, but at the moment you are living in Spain, what is the difference between the Spanish and the Venezuelan public?
R: Although in Spain and in Venezuela we speak the same language, cultural differences are definitely present … especially when we refer to musical preferences. The Venezuelan public asks a lot of Caribbean rhythms, but there is also a strong public who likes the romantic move … instead, in Spain, they focus more on the lyrics, songs with deeper content and not necessarily with dynamic rhythms.
Tell me about your single “Mañana es Tarde” (Tomorrow is late)
E: This song tells the story of a boy who has many things to tell someone he likes, but does not dare to express himself because every time he thinks about it his voice trembles with fear… But he uses the phrase “Tomorrow is Late” as a mantra that he repeats to grab forces, be brave and definitely tell her that he loves her… in the last part of the song you can feel that he finally managed to tell her about his love, and then is when the chorus starts to shout out with excitement…
Can we expect a video soon?
R: Yes, we just visited Venezuela on a media tour and recorded the video for “Mañana es Tarde” in our hometown … mainly using the view of the mountain “El Avila” to show the beauty of our city Caracas. We wanted to give a different approach to the song, with the aim of expressing that “Tomorrow is too late” to SomosHM, to present our music and our project. In the video, we use scenes where we work in parallel in our daily work, looking for those moments of inspiration and search for the muse to compose, the contrast of two lives in parallel, professional and music, highlighting that the artistic life is our real passion…
What is the next step?
E: The musical race is an endurance race… We have been preparing ourselves for this moment and “Tomorrow is too late” to share it with all the people who follow us. The next step will be the release of the video of our newest promotional, with the main goal of being known on digital platforms and take the video to the TV. So we can give the boost it deserves to end this first promotional period in Venezuela.
R: In the coming months, we plan to launch a second promotional and parallel recording of 3 songs, which is currently in its final stage. 2017 promises to be an important year in the launching of this project, with our first album “Se pronuncia Martó” (“it is pronounced as Martó” referring to our last name). It will be a unique project entirely composed by my brother Erick. We also want to promote “Mañana es Tarde” in Spain with the idea of live concerts, both in Madrid and in Caracas, to bring our music to all those people who gradually join the proposal SomosHM – Hermanos Marteau.
Where do you see yourselves in 10 years?
R: If we want to project SomosHM in the next 10 years, it is necessary to be planned in the short and medium-term. We would like to become a recognized duo in the music industry, we would like to produce music in other languages, presenting music tours, collaborating with influential artists and supporting emerging talents as well.
To be recognized as two brothers that make music, that their songs are sung and known all over the world. Fame is quite ethereal, and we are not after it as such.
What we can say for sure is that music accompanies us wherever we go and this is a project that will evolve at the same pace our feeling matures. In the future, we would like to be “Around the World, Where our music sounds”.
To hear their songs please visit: SomosHM Soundcloud
To know more about them please visit: SomosHM
