There’s a French zine called The Re(a)d Zone that has been specialising in the legendary Spanish Oi band Decibelios for four issues now, and its editor, Saul Essame from Tours, says he wants to to continue the theme for at least another two or three. He originally tried to contact the band in 2007 but, due to their unresponsiveness, it took another 13 years until he finally got to interview them in 2020, on the 40th birthday of the band. Once he had that under his belt, he decided he wouldn’t leave it at that.
The Re(a)d Zone has been going since 2008. In the past, special issues have included one about Paris skinhead rock ‘n’ roll legends La Souris Déglinguée, but the zine has also dealt with rap, funk, reggae, movies, history and politics. It’s also linked to the Saul’s radio show, Maggot Brain.
For the latest issue, number 43, he approached the legendary Bologna Oi band Nabat, NYC Oi band 45 Adapters as well as us, asking everyone questions about Decibelios.
There’s also an interview with Paco, drummer of Basque 80s punk band Eskorbuto. Among the well-known Basque bands of their generation, I like Eskorbuto the least, both musically and in terms of attitude: too individualistic, too druggy, too scummy. All kinds of subjects are discussed in the interview, but there’s a special two-page section dedicated to questions about Decibelios (whom Paco dislikes).
I was a bit bewildered to be interviewed about Decibelios: although I like their music a great deal, I don’t really know that much about them. Having said that, here’s my answers and those of Nabat – together, we are the ‘voice of Bologna on Decibelios’, so to speak. If you want to read what 45 Adapters and the guy from Eskorbuto had to say, you can contact the zine at sauldaniel666@yahoo.fr and place your order. The zine is free, but Saul might charge you a postage fee.
Again, I’m by no means an expert on Decibelios. I know their 80s recordings and I’m more or less guessing the rest. This means I might be completely wrong and am open to any corrections.
I answered the questions as early as January 2022, whereas Nabat replied in October 2022, i.e. when their line-up was slightly different from the current one (although guitarist Marco Farini and of course Steno were already on board).
Matt Crombieboy
How and when did you hear, or read, about Decibelios for the first time?
Nabat: We first noticed Decibelios in the 80s when reading about them in Italian fanzines because it’s a very memorable name. A few years later, we participated in the compilation Chaos in Europe, which also featured them.
Matt (Creases Like Knives): I can’t speak for the others, but I heard a song by Decibelios for the first time in when I bought the compilation LP Bloodstains Across Spain, which came out in 1997 and had the song ‘Botas Y Tirantes’ on it. There was a short description of every band on the back cover. The Decibelios blurb said that in the 80s they were a favourite band of Spanish football hooligans and that their wild stage shows involved destroying TV sets with chainsaws. To this day I don’t know if this is true, but it must have made an impression considering that I still remember it now.
[Come to think of it, I must had heard them earlier on the Chaos in Europe compilation, but didn’t remember them – MC]
Did (or do) the lyrics in Spanish bother you?
Nabat: Punk is a worldwide music, so it’s always awesome to hear this genre being played and shouted in many different languages. Plus, Spansh is a Latin-based language, so it’s much easier for us to understand than English.
CLK: In the case of Decibelios it never really bothered me because I think I got the gist just from the tone and delivery of the words. The way they sing, you can tell their words probably aren’t very serious. My guess would be that they’re silly or even absurd. If I’m not mistaken they even shout ‘sieg heil, sieg heil’ in one song, but you can tell from the way they play and sing that it’s just provocative fun.
If you had to cover a song from Decibelios, which one(s) would you pick, and why?
Nabat: We never did a Decibelios cover, but we love their sound! If we had to choose a song to cover, I think we’d choose ‘Dadat no ha muerta’ because we are really attached to that song.
CLK: ‘Oi! Oi! Oi!’ from the first album because it’s so simple and dumb, a child could cover it. I also like the 80s video of the song where they sync to the song in a rehearsal room. They really have a great energy going there.
Did you attend any Decibelios gig?
Nabat: We saw Decibelios for the first time when we played together in Montpellier (France) at The Secret Place a few years ago. We remember being impressed with the awesome sound of the band. They are amazing musicians and have wonderful songs in their set list.
CLK: No, never.
What do Decibelios mean/represent to you?
Nabat: For us, Decibelios are brothers in arms. We have been doing the same thing and playing to the same heartbeat since the old days. They are the founding fathers of the Spanish Oi sound, so we respect them very much!
CLK: Last year I contributed a ’10 Best Euroskin Albums of the 80s’ list to Freddy Alva’s Oi! The Black Book, and here’s what I wrote about the first Decibelios album. This is all I know about Decibelios and it’s all they mean to me:
“Decibelios: Caldo de pollo (1984)
The Orwellian year of 1984 was certainly an important one for Euro Oi – note that this is our fourth pick released during those ominous twelve months. Decibelios from Madrid were a cult band for football hooligans, not least because of their chaotic stage shows, which featured wanton acts of senseless destruction, such as demolishing television sets with the aid of chainsaws. They lacked the leadenness and seriousness that sometimes bogged down their British counterparts. There’s a quality of insanity to this album, which jumps about nonchalantly and without constraints – we get to hear some very fast punk (but not hardcore), a rudimentary Oi stomper entitled ‘Oi! Oi! Oi!’, spaghetti western soundtrack music, women moaning orgasmically, ska and power pop. At one point in ‘Soc Un Upstart’, Carlos Fray Trevino is heard shouting “sieg heil, sieg heil” – but it doesn’t mean much. Decibelios weren’t nazis, nor did they play RAC. They were a tongue-in-cheek Oi band with a provocative punk attitude they’d be unlikely to get away with today.”
[I had remembered that one wrong – Decibelios weren’t from Madrid, but from El Prat de Llobregat just outside Barcelona, Catalonia – MC]
The only other thing I know about them is that they’ve reformed, but people I talked to from Spain have a poor opinion about their new incarnation: they say they’re now a sterilised version of the former self, a kind of acceptable party-ska band without the edgy attitude of the past. And of course, there’s that unpleasant fairly recent story about their guitarist soliciting sex with minors…
[Please note that the guitarist was not a member of the original Decibelios line-up but a recent addition and is, as far as we know, no longer a band member now – MC]
Which is (or are) your favorite song(s) or album(s)?
Nabat: Our favourite Decibelios albums are Caldo de Pollo and Insurgents, the first one and the last one. It’s a bit like the sunrise and the sunset, the beginning of a journey and the stage where you are at the moment.
CLK: Fave album: Caldo de Pollo. Fave track: ‘Botas y tirantes’ (which I can tell means ‘boots & braces’ without looking it up)
In your opinion, why did Spain boast only one major Oi band, while the UK, France and Italy had several ‘headliners’ (in Italy, for example, you had Nabat, Basta, Rough, Asociale, Dioxina…)
Nabat: From the very beginning we have tried to build an Oi scene in Italy, always looking for new bands and new opportunities to become a bigger subculture. We have always acted with solidarity and mutual help on our minds, so that led to a wonderful diffusion of knowledge of what punk and Oi music means. We think that Spain has many ‘headliner’ bands, such as Non Servium, Rude Pride, Suspenders and many others, at least as many as Italy.
CLK: Difficult question. I honestly don’t know Spain well enough to answer it, let alone Spain in the 80s. If you count Kortatu that’s another big band, but they weren’t playing Oi and would probably take issue with being referred to as ‘from Spain’…
Creases Like Knives 