On the Rise
La Élite

He’s ruminating on the band’s upcoming trip to play at the Eurosonic music conference in Groningen, Netherlands. “I think sometimes in Europe, Spain’s all like Latin and Reggaeton. It’s an opportunity for the promoters and bookers that they can see in Spain, we make different shit. We are here and we are not only Flamenco.”

Alongside vocalist Nil Roig who calls in from a balmy holiday island, all sunglasses and chain-smoking, the pair are generating hype amongst Spain’s ever-evolving punk and DIY scene, aligning themselves with the likes of internationally acclaimed acts The Parrots and Mainline Magic Orchestra and growing a fervent following with their electric live show.

Taking their nihilistic synth-punk to the Netherlands this month, LA ÉLITE will showcase at the 38th edition of Eurosonic, an industry-focused conference that brings together more than 4,000 delegates, including representatives from more than 400 festivals spanning 40 different countries. Catalan Arts has been a festival partner for over a decade, giving a platform to nearly fifty acts from the region through the ESNS Exchange programme which spotlights acts from across Europe and the UK who are ready to take the next step in their artistry and careers.

LA ÉLITE were formed in the small town of Tàrrega, around an hour outside of Barcelona. Roig and Burgués met in high school and began making music together. “Our parents are workers and have no idea about music. When we were young we’d play football, basketball, the typical sports for a guy,” says Roig.

Growing up, their tastes focused on mainstream rock, the usual names associated with adolescent rebellion. Alongside punk bands from Spain, they soaked up the likes of Sex Pistols, The Clash, Joy Division and New Order. “When we get a bit more alt, we start to listen to a lot of electronic music, punk and when we were eighteen years old we tried to mix this,” says Burgués.

Bringing together their formative influences along with the likes of Daft Punk, Digitalism, Crystal Castles and MGMT, for which Roig had a particular interest, they began to make their own breed of synth-punk, purely for their own enjoyment. “We started the project like a joke, mixing his kind of music and my kind of music,” says Roig.

Although it felt like a hobby, it also became a form of escapism. “Music for us was a way to be outside of this reality - typical small city, normal works of your parents and normal things that you do; playing basketball, football, going to school,” says Burgués. “Music, it's a way to go outside and dream a little bit.

They started making music in 2015, self-releasing their own demos, but disappeared shortly after. “It was not really a break, but at this time we don't want to do shows,” says Burgués. “It's what Nils says, we started it like a joke, like having fun but never thinking about playing. It was like, make music, have a good time, put it on the internet, but no more.”

However, come early 2019 the pair found themselves together again and began to experiment, releasing their scruffy but confronting Sorry Not Sorry EP and sparking a string of further releases.

They continued to write and produce together over the pandemic, but once lockdown lifted the pair felt ready to release some energy. “It's like, everyone wants to party,” laughs Burgués. “In Barcelona, we have some friends and they started listening a bit to the music and were like, ‘Wow, that's good.’”

Roig’s flatmate was booking a stage across the Primavera Weekend and invited the group to perform. “We come, have really good time, was fucking crazy, and we start doing more things, more gigs, more gigs, and all natural, organic,” Burgués smiles.

The duo briefly partnered with the esteemed local label Montgri, giving them an insight into the rigmarole of the music industry and the processes for releasing music. On their debut record, 2022’s Nuevo Punk, they delivered a chaotic, playful and immediate collection of considered and soaring synth-punk. Tracks like “Bailando” act like a kitschy but formidable call to arms, while collaborations like “Trainspotting,” with The Parrots are direct cuts of incendiary punk.

The record also features a collaboration with Mainline Magic Orchestra. Roig was part of the Mainline collective in Catalonia and his former flatmates play in the group, who also performed at Eurosonic last year. “He told me about the festival and they say it was a good gig,” he smiles.

With a few international dates already under their belts, LA ÉLITE are hoping to continue to grow their audience. “This year we play mostly in Catalonia and in Spain, then we go one time to Berlin, one time to London, one time to Portugal,” Burgués explains. “You see how people do the things in a city and it's very interesting because you can learn a lot about what others do.”

“I like festivals because you can stay with a lot of friends that are musicians,” continues Roig. “I love to play music in small places, the energy is more powerful.”

Moving forwards, LA ÉLITE are going their own way. “They [Montgri] gave us the first opportunity to be in a record label. That was good, but now we prefer to do it ourselves. Now we start to do our own label because we think that DIY is the best way to do things,” says