The subway station adjacent to the National Stadium around 5:00 p.m.. A sea of people, including young people, adults and teenagers, came to the main sports venue in the country, to witness the first of the two shows by Los Bunkers in the place. T-shirts alluding to the group, headbands and even street musicians who performed songs from the Penquistas repertoire, added atmosphere to a day that was presented as historic.
In the previous, the day had two numbers that spoke with the history of the group. After 6:45 p.m., singer-songwriter Pedropiedra, a long-time musician and close to Los Bunkers since his days in Mexico, came out to play. Supported by musicians such as Jorge Delaselva (with whom he joined Jorge González’s backing band a few years ago) and Leo Saavedra, the artist displayed a repertoire that reviewed his career. “A lot of emotion playing in this stadium, a lot of people, very loving. I felt very well received by the audience at Los Bunkers. The kids were very generous in lending me their audience, their stage. We greeted each other just before we got on to play, they came running because they were arriving. We were super happy with the band, we were able to do our set in the budgeted time and happy to play at this concert that doesn’t happen every day,” he told this media when he got off stage.
The other guest was the comedian Fabrizio Copanowho after 7:35 p.m., came on stage to deliver the first stand up comedy show at the historic venue.. In some way, a return of the hand for the surprise appearance of the Penquistas in their successful presentation at the Viña 2023 Festival. Of course, he made reference to that night and joked about his new television facet in The Antidote. After getting off the stage, Copano pointed out that for his presentation at this Sunday’s show he will make some changes to his routine and will incorporate a surprise.
More nods to the group’s history? As in Santa Laura, the packaged music was provided by Marcelo Aldunate, former director of Radio R&P and one of the key people in promoting the group’s radio rotation when they were a promising group from Concepción settled in Santiago.
Until the time came. A countdown on the screen was the preface. Punctually, at 9:00 p.m., Los Bunkers took the stage to the thunderous applause of the public that filled the National’s offices. The cold autumn night was the setting.
And immediately, the quintet showed off their forceful live performance, starting with Come herethe title song of their reunion tourfollowed by You get dressed and you goyes, the beatlesque I sowed my sorrows of love in your garden and Song from afar, the song that titled their second album, which they dedicated to those who came from afar to see them. That was a hectic start with high decibels, which immediately generated harmony with the public. The massive karaoke was heard loudly, making clear the communion between the artists and the public. “This is a very special night for us”greeted Álvaro López.
They continued with cuts like Whoever it wasfrom his tribute album to Silvio Rodriguez, Free Music (with the usual exchange of instruments between Francis Durán and Gonzalo López), in addition to Under the treesone of the new songs published in Novemberthe album released in 2023, which gave the artistic support to the meeting. It also sounded Kingthe first single that the group released after their reunion and which, according to SCD data, was among the 20 most played songs of 2023 on Chilean radio stations.. And in the manner of Hendrix with the US anthem at Woodstock, Francis Durán added a brief and distorted interpretation of the melody of Thanks to lifeVioleta Parra’s immortal anthem, before starting with Now that you are not herethe electric heartbreak song included in Dog’s life (2005).
Just as it happened in the past presentation at the Viña Festivalthe singer-songwriter Cancamusa (Natalia Pérez) accompanied the group playing the drums, replacing the main drummer, Mauricio Basualto. He is still in the process of recovering from a delicate health problem (a hypertensive condition with a history of heart disease) that affected him during a presentation in the city of Iquique, last February. Cancamusa, in fact, participated as the opening number in the quintet’s first return shows in Santa Laura, in March 2023, that is, he was at the start and closing of the reunion tour.
As they have done in their comeback shows, Los Bunkers incorporated an acoustic set. The occasion called for something special, so the group moved to the memorial dedicated to the detainees who passed through the facility, when it was used as a detention and torture center during the first days of the installation of the civil-military dictatorship, in 1973.
The moment was received with applause from the public, in which (wearing ponchos) they performed songs like The southern exile and Streets of Talcahuano. They continued with The detainee (inspired precisely by the missing detainees), introduced by an emotional Mauricio Durán, who offered a reflection on the consequences of violence, before and today. “This place is very special, because it was built to receive and multiply the joy of a country“But history has shown us that a place as beautiful as this, in the wrong hands, can become a vessel of much pain and much fear.”
That was an emotional moment, followed by people with cell phones as flashlights and not a few in the audience shed a discreet tear. The section closed with In my arms, another theme from its beginnings.
The surprises did not stop. After returning to the central stage, Guaripolo, the character from 31 Minutes (the children’s favorite), was seen on the screens. to introduce to A cloud hangs over medoing the classic question and answer game. That marked the entry onto the scene of some of the characters from the famous children’s series, such as Tulio Triviño, Juan Carlos Bodoque, Patana and Mario Hugo. A moment that surprised the audience and served as a counterpoint.
Likewise, there was space for less obvious songs, such as The same place, Late and Aprilfrom the album Station Neighborhoodwhich had not been performed by the group since its release in 2008. A novelty was the incorporation of brass and string sections, something unusual in the band’s presentations.
For this concert, Los Bunkers did not skimp on the technical display. The group wanted to make history with a show on par with the great international shows that have been presented at the Ñuñoa Coliseum in recent years; from Daddy Yankee, through Coldplay, to those of the Colombian Karol G, last weekend.
For this reason, since the beginning of the week, the team led by Anthony Guterac (who is the production manager of the Chilean edition of Lollapalooza), set up an imposing stage 70 meters long by 30 meters high, which has an extensive 20-meter catwalk that goes into the court, but then opens into three arms that extend another 30. Alvaro López walked there, with his usual style, a mix of the charm of Bowie and the plasticity of Jagger. Durán and Gonzalo López also passed by in key minutes, marking special moments for each musician. And of course, there was applause for Cancamusa and dedication from a distance for Mauricio Basualto.
In addition, 8 tons of audio equipment, more than 500 lighting lights and delay towers were moved along the sides of the stage and half of the court. Visuals developed for the occasion were displayed on the screens. It is a monumental work, in line with the band’s interest in showing that a Chilean band can face such a challenge.
The two performances of the Penquistas at the National, which will bring together 100,000 people in total, are a milestone for Chilean music. This is an achievement that has not been achieved since another historic meeting, that of Los Prisioneros at the end of 2001, which was captured in a live album. A curiosity is that in those San Miguel shows, Guterac and sound engineer Gonzalo “chalo” Gonzaléz worked, in charge of the room sound, the same work he did for Los Bunkers on the autumn night of Ñuñoa.
By the way, it is also an important event for the group’s career; marks the close of their reunion tour Come herewhich to date has gathered a whopping 1,200,000 spectators. An absolute success that confirms the group’s drawing power, from the first concerts at the Santa Laura Stadium, Ester Roa de Concepción and Quinta Vergara de Viña del Mar, which were followed by presentations in Chile and Mexico, as well as dates in Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid, Zaragoza, Bogotá and Lima. To these are added steps through the Viña del Mar Festival and the REC of his native Concepción.
The final section of the concert had songs like Nothing new under the sun, Dancing alone and the classic My no.
After the applause came the encore with another special moment, the interpretation of The right to live in peacethe Víctor Jara cover that Los Bunkers recorded for their first album and it was a classic of his repertoire in his early years. No longer with the slide arrangement, but with small variations in the choice of effects. On the screens, as if summoned by the music, the image of the legendary singer-songwriter appeared. A magical moment occurred there. Jara’s voice was synchronized with the quintet, as if they were putting themselves in the shoes of Los Blops, the band that recorded the electric and rock accompaniment in the original song.
The closing with song for tomorrow, Don’t talk to me about suffering and It rains on the city, He ended up making it clear that this was a high-class concert. Three hours of music, well-dosed emotions, precisely crafted sound and a well-thought-out show over the years on stage were the keys to a memorable night. One that will go down in the great history of Chilean music.
