In 2003, the band was fully formed with bandoneonist Pablo Gaitan, keyboardist Lucas Polichiso and violinist Maximiliano Natalutti.
MTW: Musically speaking, your project is very rich and dense, combining elements of tango, jazz, electronica, rock, pop. How did you set such an intriguing mix up, and how do you approach composition? Did you have any particular musical inspiration from other artists?
Martin: I believe that in each composition, I try to merge diverse genres, but end up emphasizing one element or the other, pulling the music towards a particular aesthetic. In this sense, the influences are diverse, which is both a luck and a problem. What mixes all together is the tango thread, that comes in different doses. At the time of writing, I am approaching composition in the style of European classical composers, in front of a computer with guitar and piano at hand. I start developing a basic idea by playing around. Once a basic theme comes up, I proceed writing a first arrangement in digital score for quintet— violin, bandoneon, guitar, piano and bass. After that is done, I make a demo with a drum sequencer. Usually 95 % of the composition is done and finished before I proceed to rehearsal. The composition may sound a lot more tango-like if the typical elements of this genre prevail, or it may just suggest an idea of tango with the mere presence of the bandoneon.
Anyway, I think that the main definition of genre is given by the rhythmic structure. For example, you can recognize tango looking at the bass patterns, at the accompaniments of piano and guitar, and at the melodic structures. A strong tango rhythm makes it possible to clearly identify tango even if there are no traditional acoustic instruments, such as the bandoneon, to incarnate that tango feel. In the case of San Telmo Lounge, I can identify the top tango influences in Astor Piazzolla, Anibal Troilo and Osvaldo Pugliese. Beyond tango, I am inspired a lot by English rock artists such as Pink Floyd and by certain elements of European folklore which you can find in Sting’ s music. I sometimes find myself very close to the aesthetics of Tom Waits, Nick Drake and Fito Paez. From a jazz perspective, I am drawn to cool jazz. The idea is has always been to tighten a little the limits of genres. San Telmo Lounge originated as an experiment, and I think this innovative desire accompanies us in all our records. It is also true that all electrotango bands are beginning to sound quite the same. We want to differentiate ourselves from this trend, trying to always surprise our listener by expanding the possibilities of the musical genres we work with.
MTW: What about your lyrics? Where do they come from? Do you get inspiration from tango classical lyrics subjects or those from any other musical culture? Or do they rather come directly from you and your life experiences? Or maybe both? How do you approach and develop lyrics composition?
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