El Bueno Y El Malo

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Hermanos Gutiérrez | Interview | New Album, ‘El Bueno Y El Malo’ Hermanos Gutiérrez is a two-piece band formed of the brothers Alejandro and Estevan Gutiérrez. Taking influence from 1950’s Latin America sound they transfer the listeners to journeys through beautiful landscapes. Perhaps because people were looking for an escape from their worries or were traveling to new landscapes without leaving their homes, the music of Hermanos Gutiérrez spread by word of mouth, eventually finding its way to Auerbach. After a twenty-minute conversation, they signed with Auerbach’s Easy Eye Sound Records and started writing songs for their forthcoming album. The latest single is part of the upcoming album, ‘El Bueno Y El Malo’. Can you reveal some further details from the newest album?

I, Alejandro was mostly inspired by my brother at my younger age. Listening to him made me buy my own guitar. I came across so many talented musicians collecting vinyl in the last few years, but I never felt drawn to a particular style of a specific guitar player. I never liked to play covers and wanted therefore always to find my own style of playing the guitar. But I definitely look up to Gustavo Santaolalla, Ry Cooder, Mark Knopfler, J.J. Cale, Alessandro Alessandroni, Los Indios Tabajaras and Enrique Delgado from Los Destellos. El Bueno Y El Malo gently expands their sound, retaining the foundation while adding drums, castanets, strings, and congas. The additions are more than subtle; they’re subliminal. They focus the attention on the two main figures and the intricate, almost telepathic interplay of their instruments. In perhaps the most significant addition to their two-guitar sound, their producer even played on one song. As the brothers struggled with an arrangement, Auerbach suggested an idea for a melody, even plugging in and playing it for them. They loved it so much they invited him to record it for them, even retitling that song “Tres Hermanos.” That initial take set the tone for the sessions: They worked on the fly, hewing closely to the songs they had brought over from Switzerland while remaining open to any and all new ideas. “We came to Nashville with a clear sense of what we wanted to do,” says Alejandro. “The more structure you have, the more you can improvise. You can feel prepared, but also open to changes. Nobody tried to impose an idea or change our essence. It was all about adding subtle things and enriching the whole—expanding this universe we had created.” El Bueno Y El Malo gently expands their sound, retaining the foundation while adding drums, castanets, strings, and congas. The additions are more than subtle; they’re subliminal. They focus the attention on the two main figures and the intricate, almost telepathic interplay of their instruments.

Hermanos Gutiérrez Tour Dates

How did you two decide to start a project together? What was growing up like for you? Do you come from a musical family? Started a few years earlier, Hermanos Gutiérrez began releasing music on their own, all of which gained traction in 2020. “My brother and I”, says Estevan, “we did everything by ourselves— all the music, even the artwork. But during Covid, our music was streamed all over the world”, especially their 2020 album, ‘Hijos del Sol’. Perhaps because people were looking for an escape from their worries or were traveling to new landscapes without leaving their homes, the music of Hermanos Gutiérrez spread by word of mouth, eventually finding its way to Auerbach. After a twenty-minute conversation, they signed with Auerbach’s Easy Eye Sound Records and started writing songs for their forthcoming album. Oh yeah, definitely. We could have written way more albums using all those sketches which didn’t feel right. But we believe it’s exactly about that. In so many moments you have to reject some sketches to get to the right thing, to get to the bottom of it. Once you get there it just feels right. We honor the process of rejecting and evolving ideas. Photo by Jim Herrington

I, Estevan, started to play the classic guitar (Milongas & Boleros). Dilermando Reis was a Brazilian guitar player from the 40s/50s which had a big influence on my style. The sons of a Swiss father and an Ecuadorian mother, Hermanos Gutiérrez have only been playing together for a few years, but music has always been a point of connection for them. “I started playing guitar because of my brother,” Alejandro says. “He was always playing, and I loved the sound of it. Then he went to Ecuador for a year, and as an expression of missing him, I started playing the guitar as well. I learned by trying to imitate other songs, but soon realized that I didn’t like playing covers. I wanted to play my own music.” We don’t think we ever intended to create music with a timeless quality. It feels so difficult to try that intentionally! We’re just making the kind of music we love and within our capacities. We just wish we can pass on this music to future generations and inspire them to create their own thing. Just the way we got inspired by so many musicians in our life.

Then he went to Ecuador for a year, and as an expression of missing him, I started playing the guitar as well. I learned by trying to imitate other songs, but soon realized that I didn’t like playing covers. I wanted to play my own music.” Playing together since their early childhood, a profound musical and interpersonal symbiosis ties the two brothers. If one of them has a melody, the other one completes it with harmony. There is a deep understanding between the two of them, without any need for words. What are some of the most important players that influenced your own style and what in particular did they employ in their playing that you liked? Their mix of identities, that constant search across different countries clearly emerges in their songs. Their music takes the audience on an intimate journey through time evoking remote spaces. A magical sound that touches the heart, that sparks passion and nostalgia. An open invitation to a constant dialogue of melodies and instruments. While the format might sound limited, it’s not at all —the songs drift by in an unhurried, almost impressionist fashion, segueing gently from one to the next, with moments standing out more than individual songs. The brothers mix up the approach, with one anchoring the rhythm with a gentle arpeggio or bass-like melody, keeping time with a soft tap on the strings, while the other carries the main melody. Like their previous releases, it’s the kind of album you can put on and leave on all day, and the relatively amorphous nature of the songs helps make it not feel repetitive.