The compilation gathers the sounds of that short but brilliant period in the final years of the Franco regime – a time when Spain trembled with both oppression and a longing for freedom – when flamenco merged with urban rhythms and transformed into a new form. In the 70s, the country was socio-politically suffocated; channels of cultural expression were limited, and music was a small window cracked open for breath. The songs on this album carry the air from behind that very window: both an internal tension that implodes and a desire for dance growing on street corners.
The compilation features some of the most rebellious and innovative artists of the era, such as Lola Flores, Dolores Vargas “La Terremoto”, Trío Galleta, Las Grecas, and El Turronero. Their common thread is this: they don't simply repeat traditional flamenco; they blend it with funk, soul, Latin rhythms, and at times psychedelic textures, transforming it into a new urban music. Las Grecas' rumba-rock attitude with electric guitar riffs, Dolores Vargas' vocal explosions almost reaching James Brown's energy, El Turronero's dramatic delivery gliding over funk basslines... All of these seem to be seated at the same table in this compilation.
The transformation dubbed “nuevo flamenco” grew quietly. The anguished sound of traditional flamenco became more "groovy," more street-rhythmic, more urban during this period. The album’s title, “on the verge of a nervous breakdown,” describes not only the tension of the music but also the general atmosphere of the country:
Naino / Queens reminds us that flamenco is not just about red dresses and tablao romanticism. What you hear here are bulerías accelerated by funk bass, palmas sitting in the shadow of a wah-wah guitar, screams reminiscent of soul vocals—it's fair to say, the heartbeat of a people:
