The Mexican band MUVA that has managed to create a thrilling audio-visual global fusion music has the ability in conquering the complex nature of emotions through music. This is evident in their most recent release, a song dubbed “Sin Un Adiós” which came out on September 6, 2024. Starring the beautiful voice of Bulgarian Milena Jeliazkova the track evokes emotions of sorrow and longing inflicting the listeners.
At the heart of “Sin Un Adiós” is the poignant tale of a young girl who lost her mother to the pandemic, one that encapsulates the pain and sorrow of parting with a loved one without choice. This is a feeling that is very applicable in the present times that we live in, with a lot of people having lost loved ones during the pandemic and being unable to perform funerals.
In this exclusive interview, we sit down with MUVA to unpack the inspiration behind the work. We inquire how they adeptly contain the feeling of grief in the leaning of the will-power, and into the whole, creative aspiration of theirs. They talk about how collaboration while in different countries has its downsides and their plans for a demanding future.
And now we would like to take the opportunity to discuss the important release and the aims that MUVA has with ‘Sin Un Adiós.’ It is about music and emotions, as well as about the common feelings experienced by everyone.
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What inspired you to write “Sin Un Adiós”? Can you tell us about the story behind the song?
The idea was to reflect this duality of feelings, where on the one hand, they tried to portray the deep sadness of losing someone so loved, and where the track quotes him with a passage of darkness and calm sadness, and on the other hand the rage and anger with which he claimed to fate, gives color to the part of the chorus, where as in the texts there are a thousand ideas that make the scene chaotic and aggressive.
In essence, I tried to musically portray the lines that at the time a little girl described in her personal blog, where after the hospital regulations, she was not allowed to approach her mother while her life was slipping away from her hands. Some of the lines that I remember now and that I read at the time shocked me very much said something like:
Why does the world keep turning? if for me life has stopped.
There will no longer be a reason to serve two cups of coffee in the morning, because no one will drink one of them.
How cruel this fate and this damned wall, which will not allow me to kiss your hands to be able to say goodbye.
At that time she was a person relatively close to me, because her mother (of whom the song speaks) was working with me at the time.
The title “Sin Un Adiós” translates to “Without a Goodbye” in English. How does this theme play out in the lyrics and mood of the track?
The idea was to reflect this duality of feelings, where on the one hand, they tried to portray the deep sadness of losing someone so loved, and where the track quotes him with a passage of darkness and calm sadness, and on the other hand the rage and anger with which he claimed to fate, gives color to the part of the chorus, where as in the texts there are a thousand ideas that make the scene chaotic and aggressive.
How would you describe the sound of “Sin Un Adiós” compared to your previous releases? Did you experiment with any new musical elements?
MUVA in essence tries to walk on paths where there are no protocols, paths where we do not seek to belong to a commercial segment, but we pursue honesty and beauty, and where that freedom allows us to play with many styles that come in a little planned way to each of the tracks.
Therefore, at times there are tracks that seem to be closer to some styles, as in this case that rhythmically quotes a mid eastern atmosphere, but that does not mean that from now on the composition will lean towards some specific currents. The only thing that is a little different is that it is a little less electronic and a little more organic, compared to the last album.
Can you walk us through your creative process for this single? How did the song evolve from its initial concept to the final version?
Usually, and unlike what many colleagues do, in the case of MUVA, the compositions come out from a fact, which awakens in me a feeling that I think is worth reflecting on and is usually accompanied by a melody or a poem, then I generate a central idea and a general mood, which I bring to the other musicians of MUVA to propose ideas and possibilities, and once we have that, we think of a musician to invite that we feel has the interpretive qualities of what we are looking for. In this case we have the collaboration of Milena Jeliazkova. But dealing with long distance productions is always a challenge because the lines of communication are slow, and it is never easy to concretize ideas, and even more so when the communication is not so immediate.
Are there any particular artists or genres that influenced the style of “Sin Un Adiós”?
Not really, although the rhythmic base is selected is a bit Rai, the styles from which MUVA feeds its composition could be any. Let’s say that the only guideline and influence in the general composition is the search for no borders and no protocols.
The song is in Spanish. Do you feel that the language choice adds a specific emotion or cultural context to the track?
The choice of language was more related to the search for a balance between the languages we usually use and to revalue the reach of Spanish (Mexican) in a more globalized environment. But yes, in this case, I wanted to quote the context and the cultural reality of today’s Mexico.
What was the most challenging aspect of creating “Sin Un Adiós”?
On a technical level, of course the distance and the language. Because many times I tried to say something and it was interpreted in another way, and vice versa. And secondly, I wanted the proposal to respect the girl’s grief, but also to portray as faithfully as possible the feelings that came out of the event.
Is “Sin Un Adiós” part of an upcoming album or EP, or is it a standalone single?
Yes, SIN UN ADIOS, is one of the singles that will be released prior to the release of a new album, which in this case will be with our new label Audiomaze, for 2025.
How do you think your fans will react to this new release? Does it signal a new direction for MUVA’s sound?
So far the response in the media has been good with our public, but in Mexico it is a little difficult, because there is no scene that allows fusions with styles from around the world. But what we noticed on the other hand is that SIN UN ADIOS, has had a response from the Mexican public that lives outside of Mexico and where, like the girl in the blog, due to border issues, they don’t have the opportunity to be close to their loved ones when one of them passes away.
Are there any plans for a music video or live performances to promote “Sin Un Adiós”?
We hope that we will be able to produce a video but not until 2025, and we will tour a little bit in Mexican stages during this 2024 and hopefully by 2025, we will be able to do some dates in Europe.
Looking back on the production of this single, is there a particular moment or achievement that stands out to you?
In the case of MUVA, the fact of making a project survive where for the government we are almost outlawed, is already a great achievement.
What do you hope listeners will take away from “Sin Un Adiós”?
Specifically with sin un adios, a reflection full of empathy for all those who by the vagaries of fate, often have no chance to say goodbye to a loved one at the time of leaving this plane. And in the case of MUVA, we would like to be able to reach the right ears, ears that are free to listen to honest proposals.
