Malpaís Records is the only record label producing vinyl records on Lanzarote. We chatted to label boss Carlos “Charlie” Romero last month.
How did you start the label, Charlie?
I’ve been a record collector all my life and had been helping to organise concerts for various local bands for years. In 2000 I started selling second-hand records from my own collection on the Discogs website, and the experience gave me the idea of starting my own record label. I’ve always been inspired by what Tony Wilson did at Factory Records in Manchester.
Where do the records get made?
I used to get them from a factory in the Czech Republic, but I’ve found a pressing plant in Spain now. The big problem here on the Canaries is customs – the records often get held up for long periods.
Which bands are on the label?
The first group was Ya No Te Quiero, whose Latinoamérica was the first record we put out in 2021. Then came Los Iguales, whose Malas Decisiones was our first 12” lp. We’ve also got an excellent indie group called Los Clavelitos and Drûpe, a coastal rock band based on Lanzarote.
Are you looking for more talent?
(Laughs) Not actively, no. It tends to happen spontaneously, through the scene, talking to people.
Do you have any input on the content?
No, I get on with what I do and leave the creative stuff to the bands. That goes for the artwork as well as the music – our first record by Ya No Te Quiero was designed by the bass player and features a photo of his daughter, with a design by another daughter on the back. And it’s great. They also wanted a printed inner sleeve and orange vinyl, so that’s what we ordered.
Tell us about the Lanzarote scene.
There’s been a rock scene on Lanzarote for decades, lots of bands. In the Canaries they’d often say that Lanzarote was the most modern of the islands. But things have changed a lot.
In Arrecife, for example, there are no longer any bars that put bands on. This is because of noise regulations, but also because owners are more conservative, I think. In the resorts there are plenty of venues, but everyone wants cover versions. Holidaymakers want to hear their favourite songs, not new stuff.
What we do have is festivals like Sonidos Líquidos and Arrecife En Vivo, but they don’t happen often, and there’s a real hunger from the bands to play live.
Is that hunger reflected by the public?
The festivals show that people don’t just go to concerts to see bands now, they go to take selfies and photos. But people are interested – the real problem is getting support from the authorities.
Why do you think that is?
In the UK people regard rock music as culture, worth supporting. Here it’s associated with drinking, alcohol and good times, and the authorities aren’t always that keen to support it.
How does it feel when the records arrive?
That’s a big moment, for the band as well as me. Not everyone puts a record out, and it’s something you can hold in your hand and say, “this is real”. That’s one of the reasons I’ve always preferred records to streaming– you can own them.
What are your views on streaming?
It’s how most people listen to music nowadays, and you can listen to some of the material on Malpaís at our Bandcamp page, but really, like so many other people at the grass roots, I think Spotify are the devil. When they pay 0.0003 cents for every listen, there’s no way a small band can get ahead.
But that’s how it is now. We live in a more immediate society. When I was young, I’d wait all week to record a song from the radio on my cassette player, and I’d hear all sorts of other things while I was waiting. Now it’s all just a click away.
Where can we get hold of Malpaís Records?
There are no longer any record shops on Lanzarote, but there’s a second-hand bookshop called La Madriguera in Arrecife that stocks them, and record shops in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and Santa Cruz and La Laguna in Tenerife.
Thanks, Charlie, and the best of luck.
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