Capsula Interview: SXSW 2010

Things are coming full circle for the Spanish by way of Argentina band Capsula. It was a high-octane performance at SXSW in 2009 that landed the band in the pages of Rolling Stone. This year, the three band members -- Coni Duchess [singer-bassist], Martin Guevara [singer-guitarist] and Alberto Diaz [drummer] -- will attempt to build on their big splash with another newsworthy SXSW performance. Spinner recently spoke with Duchess about the band's formation, influences and favorite pizza toppings.

Describe your sound.

We sound like a mix of sonics with guitar sounds, crazy lyrics and the South American psychedelic rock of the '60s and '70s. That's the stuff we listened to as kids.

How did this music influence you?

We listened a lot to the Velvet Underground. That is the band that really reached us inside. It showed us a new world that we could belong to. For Martin, David Bowie is a huge influence. We were big into psychedelic and blues-rock and were influenced by the Rolling Stones and the Who. But we do it like today. We're not a retro band at all.

Why the Velvet Underground?

When we listened to that music in Buenos Aires, it was all about the sound and atmosphere more than the lyrics, because we didn't understand a lot of the lyrics in Argentina. The sounds they use really get into you deeply.

How did your band form?

We started in 1998 in Argentina. From the beginning we decided to move to Europe, because we wanted to play every day. In South America, the distances are really long from one city to another. So we moved to Europe to play and to tour as much as we could, every day. After a few years, we moved to Bilbao [Spain] and are living there now.

How did you come up with your band name?

The word capsula is Spanish for "capsule." Martin is a huge fan of David Bowie, and the word capsule appears in some David Bowie songs, so he really liked it.

When you get to Austin, what is the food you have to have first?

We have to get their burritos and tacos. And pizza [laughs]! Argentina has a lot of Italian influence in our food, so we love pizza.

What's your favorite topping?

We like peppers.

David Dennis Jr. is a contributor from Seed.com. Learn how you can contribute here.