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 A heavy metal rendition of the Catalonian
national anthem "Els Segadors," or "The Reapers" has turned a
virtually unknown Virginia-based band, A Sound of Thunder, into
celebrities in the politically sensitive region in northeastern
Spain.
Within days of its release, the song racked up more than a
million hits on YouTube, making it the band's most popular
single since they started in 2008.
Thousands of Catalonians voted for independence from Spain
during a banned referendum in October that ended in violence and
spurred a constitutional crisis in the euro zone's
fourth-biggest economy.
Back in Manassas, Virginia, Nina Osegueda, the band's lead
singer, made a quick decision to release a video of the band's
version of "Els Segadors" on Youtube.
Osegueda, whose mother is Catalan, has strong ties to the region
and originally recorded the anthem as a tribute to her mother.
The song was never intended to be released as a single, but
instead was part of the band's new full-length album, "It Was
Metal," to be released in March 2018.
The violence that surrounded the referendum vote changed all
that.
"We have a couple other singles that we were planning on
releasing in advance to show people what the new album is going
to sound like," she said. "But then the vote happened and 800
people were injured by the police trying to vote. So I said we
should try and just put the song out to show our support against
police brutality."
"Suddenly it was spreading all over the place... And then I
noticed that someone shared us on Twitter and it wound up
actually being a Catalan politician," Osegueda said.
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Music stations in Catalonia picked up the song and Osegueda was
interviewed on several radio shows. The attention she has received
has spread to her relatives as her Catalonian uncle was interviewed
on local radio.
On the band's YouTube page, fans have left messages saying they
prefer the metal version to the original and many have said the song
has struck an emotional chord.
Osegueda recorded some parts of the song in Catalan. She doesn't
speak the language and singing with proper pronunciation was
intimidating, but she says the enthusiasm and support from her new
found fans has been humbling.
"I think the biggest emotional response we've gotten has been, 'it
brought me to tears which is not normal for a heavy metal song'. So
for us that was like a big deal," Osegueda said. "You know, we're
not on a label. We do everything ourselves. So when we see this many
people responding it's like it's overwhelming."
The band, whose albums have been crowdfunded through various
Kickstarter campaigns, will tour Catalonia for the first time in
December, just days before regional elections on Dec. 21. They have
shows planned in Barcelona, Tarragona and other Catalonian cities.
For Osegueda, who has traveled to Catalonia a number of times, the
upcoming visit feels different.
"I've always enjoyed going there on vacation. But now it's a lot
deeper because there's so many people out there who saw our song as
inspiration. So I feel like I definitely have a deeper connection
now," she said.
(Editing by Dan Whitcomb and Diane Craft)
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