La Banda Trapera Del Rio

Emerging from the San Ildefonso neighborhood of Cornellà de Llobregat, on the industrial outskirts of Barcelona, La Banda Trapera del Río formed in 1976 around vocalist Miguel Ángel Sánchez, better known as Morfi Grei. Their surroundings were a long way from the fashionable image of punk then developing in London and New York. This was a working-class area of apartment blocks, factories, immigration and difficult living conditions, and that environment became an important part of the band's identity and songwriting. 

Morfi had moved to Cornellà with his family from Melilla. His early musical tastes ranged from the Beatles, Rolling Stones and Chuck Berry to Deep Purple, before Lou Reed became a particularly important influence. Around 1976, he began putting a band together with friends from the area around the Casino Cultural San Ildefonso. They initially played rock and roll covers, but soon started writing their own material and developing a much more confrontational sound and attitude. 

The lineup changed frequently during the early years, with musicians such as Tío Modes, Juan “Raf” Pulido, Rockhita and El Subidas passing through the group. Their musical backgrounds were not always rooted in punk either, with some members having previously played in progressive and symphonic rock bands. That mixture helped give La Trapera a sound that drew from rock and roll, garage and hard rock as much as from the raw energy of punk. 

Their first widely recognized performance took place on November 13, 1976, at the Poble Espanyol in Barcelona, during a tribute to Lina Ódena. From there, the band began building a reputation through increasingly wild and provocative live shows. Their songs dealt with drugs, sex, boredom, poverty, institutions and life on the outskirts, using deliberately crude language and humor rather than the more traditional political rhetoric of Spanish protest music. 

Songs such as “La Regla”, “Venid A Las cloacas”, “Curriqui De Barrio”, “Padre Nuestro” and “Nos Gusta Cagarnos En La Sociedad” captured that attitude, while “Ciutat Podrida”, sung in Catalan, became one of their best-known tracks. Their lyrics were direct, confrontational and deliberately offensive, reflecting the language and atmosphere of the streets around them rather than trying to make their music respectable.

 
In 1978, the group signed with Belter, a record company better known for commercial Spanish music and copla. They recorded their first material for the label that year, and 'La Regla / La Cloaca' appeared as a single in the summer. Their relationship with Belter was far from straightforward, however, and the release of their debut album was delayed. 'La Banda Trapera del Río' finally appeared in April 1979, although the musicians were unhappy with the finished sound and later raised complaints concerning promotion, sales and royalties.

 
The album brought together eleven tracks from their early repertoire. The record was pressed in relatively small numbers and also circulated through cassette copies, while the group's lack of interest in playing by commercial rules kept them firmly within the underground. 

Their live work was just as important as their records. By the end of 1978 they were already travelling to the Basque Country, where their concerts attracted considerable attention. During 1979 and 1980 they played in places including Gallarta, Barakaldo and Bilbao, establishing links with the rapidly developing alternative and punk scenes outside Barcelona. 

After several lineup changes and increasing problems, including drug-related difficulties, the original period came to an end in 1982. That year they recorded the material that would eventually become 'Guante De Guillotina', but the album was shelved and remained unreleased until 1993.

Interest in the band's early work resurfaced in the early 1990s, leading to a reunion and a second period of activity. They released the live album 'Directo A Los Cojones' and, in 1994, returned to the studio for 'Mentemblanco'. The group subsequently split again, while their original recordings continued to be reissued and collected. In 2006, Munster Records released '1978/1982. Grabaciones Completas', bringing together their first two albums alongside demos and live recordings from the period.