Héroes del Silencio

35), El espíritu del vino (no. 117) and El mar no cesa (no. 119). Their song «Entre dos tierras» has been considered by the digital magazine Satélite Musical as the nineteenth best of all time of general Iberian rock. The magazine Rolling Stone rated them in 2012 as the second best Spanish rock group in history. In 2007, they were honored by the record label EMI in recognition of their more than six million albums sold, as well as receiving the Ondas Special Jury Award. The origins of Héroes del Silencio are situated in the city of Zaragoza, at the beginning of the 1980s. There, the brothers Pedro (drums) and Juan Valdivia (guitar) began their first steps in the music world, along with their cousin, Javier Guajardo Valdivia —who was the singer— forming the group Zumo de Vidrio.

The musical context of that time in Spain was dominated by groups generated in the movida madrileña such as Alaska and Dinarama, Radio Futura, Nacha Pop, Gabinete Caligari and Los Secretos, as well as the Barcelona-based El Último de la Fila. The most influential foreign artists belonged to more diverse styles: Michael Jackson, The Police and Dire Straits. During that time, they met Enrique Ortiz de Landázuri (later Enrique Bunbury), who played bass and sang in Proceso Entrópico, a band with which they shared some stages, and who in 1984 was invited to join the group. Bunbury accepted and began (as a trio, after the Valdivia cousin left the formation) their first performances (the first on December 16, 1984), as well as recording their first demo with the songs «Olvidado», «Sindicato del riesgo», «Héroe del silencio» (later called «Héroe de leyenda») and «Hologramas».

As the dark and symbolic style, with clear post-punk influences, of the new compositions had very little to do with the pop of Zumo de Vidrio, they decided to close their phase and re-form the group. In 1985, a new bassist, Joaquín Cardiel, was added to the group to relieve Enrique, who sang and wrote the lyrics. That same year Pedro Valdivia left the formation to focus on his studies, and was replaced by the Zaragoza-based drummer Pedro Andreu.