In the fourth episode of Playlistthe audiovisual cycle in which Infobae seeks to give space to emerging artists, appears Island of Faces. Musical project originally from Buenos Aires that emerged in 2017 and, since then, has been captivating with its hypnotics. tracks with whom they got to share the stage with renowned artists and even participate in large festivals.
His debut album, monkey (2018), received international recognition and, in 2020, was reissued by the Japanese label P-Vine, which later earned them the praise of “masterpiece from South America, an indie-pop paradise” in the Tower Records Tokyo pans. . In 2021 they presented their second album titled A caress -through the Catalan label Costa Futuro- which they recorded between Buenos Aires and Berlin. Young artists such as Rosario Ortega, Vanessa Zamora, Clara Cava, Delfina Campos, Juana Rozas and Axel Fiks.
The presentation tour took them to more festivals and even visited different cities in the United States and Europe, along with stops in Mexico, Peru and Guatemala, which expanded them internationally. In 2023 and after having been released with singles titled “Terca”, “Insurgentes” and “My favorite drug”, they released their third album which they named Grand Tourism.
Currently, the band is recording what will be their fourth album and planning their most important show at the Teatro Coliseo for next August 3.
María Figueiras: —What was the process to consolidate your current training?
Isla de Caras: — It was a nice process. We were all kind of friends by the time Isla de Caras started releasing music. We had several interests in common and when we took out A caress, the pandemic was almost over and we had to go out and play the album, this band of five began to put together and establish itself. That year I think we played almost 60 times, It was crazy. And there a dynamic was established to say: “It’s the five of us, let’s move forward with this.” We were super excited to have found the formula. And then, that momentum, that connection between us, helped us create this third album, Grand Tourism.
María Figueiras: — How do you balance the evolution of your sound to stay true to yourselves, to your roots, to the identity of the band? And, how do they handle the need to adapt to new musical trends without losing their essence?
Isla de Caras: — I have no idea. We kind of disbelieve the idea of essence in the sense that at the time our first album was born, there was a framework, a scene, an ecosystem of bands like Sylvester and the orange, Chinese Bandalos and else; and I think that whole scene mutated. We are also mutating. So, rather than adapting to new moments, we continue trying to build our own refuge, of retreat, to find what we want to say beyond the fact that we have certain roots or that we have to obey a certain aesthetic identity. We always play for ourselves, I don’t know if we give so much importance to what is happening around us. That feeling of juncture sneaks into the unconscious, we listen to new music all the timebut it’s not that we make decisions based on that, but rather based on what entertains us at that moment.
María Figueiras: — What strategies do you use to connect with a new audience?
Isla de Caras: — Now, suddenly, we have to do tiktoks, Instagram reels… There is a whole part of being artists that we don’t enjoy as much, but one has to adapt and do it, because on the other side it’s fun. Sometimes I find myself consuming reels from other artists I listen to, and in the end it works.
María Figueiras: — Their experience on stage: their first Extended Play (EP), which they released and they went to Córdoba to play at a recital in which they were very nervous… I read that you didn’t open your eyes for thirty minutes. And then, later on, I read that before a show you are like in an animal mode, your antennae stand up, your body rises and you concentrate. How did you go from that transition, from the beginning to now?
Isla de Caras: — I notice that there is a kind of personal evolution: At first I was terribly afraid of playing live.. And then, as it becomes necessary to play live and a higher volume is imposed, because we go from playing 5 times in a year to 60, and that gives you a kind of learning of the times. It is always a learning experience and that is also interesting. The feeling that you can always be better at what you are doing.
María Figueiras: — What legacy do you aspire to leave with your music?
Isla de Caras: — It is very difficult to think about a legacy because we feel like we’re still getting started, in some way. But we are certain that the only formula or the only thing we have to leave behind is to continue making new songs that are great. And continue working and transforming ourselves, with different people or with ourselves, that gives us the desire to continue doing that. Leave work, repertoire. It happens more because of the songs than because of what we leave behind, like our ideas.
