At the beginning of the 90s, the “cantaor” (flamenco singer) from Granada, Enrique Morente, contacted Leonard Cohen. From that encounter, Morente got the idea of adapting four of his favourite songs by the Canadian master. As such, ‘Take This Waltz’, ‘First We Take Manhattan’,  ‘Priests’ and  ‘Hallelujah #2’ were rebaptised by Morente as ‘Pequeño vals vienés’, ‘Manhattan’, ‘Sacerdotes’ and ‘Aleluya’.  At the same time, their countrymen and friends, Lagartija Nick, were playing with the idea of putting Federico García Lorca’s poems to music. Suddenly, it all came together and started to make sense: ‘Lagartija Nick would be noise of the big city, and Morente the voice of the blood’ (David Saavedra, Rock de Lux Especial 20 Aniversario).

A bit by chance, and yet a lot on purpose, a band in a state of grace –Lagartija Nick- and an unparalleled singer-songwriter –Enrique Morente- joined forces on a sublime album, ‘Omega’ (1996), of thrilling rock and soaring flamenco vocals, with the poetry of Lorca and four Leonard Cohen songs –Morente’s favourites- as the thread running through this monumental work, one of the most essential highlights of all times in Spanish popular music.

The remastered release contains an extra song, ‘Oriente y Occidente’, the fruit of the collaboration between the flamenco singer from Granada and the New Yorkers Sonic Youth at the first edition of Heineken Greenspace.

This digitally remastered album, originally released by El Europeo in 1996, has led to the return to the stage of its authors, baptised for the occasion as Morente Omega con Lagartija Nick. Mexico City, Barcelona, Madrid and Benicàsssim are the cities where you can see this long-awaited return live. FIB Heineken will be the perfect ending to this unique comeback tour.

More information at [1] fiberfib.com and [2] morenteomega.com