He has long since turned sixty and still goes by the nickname El Drogas, which he earned before he went into military service and formed Barricada, an important Spanish rock band. Enrique Villarreal has lived since childhood in the Txantrea district of Pamplona, marked by workers and neighborhood struggles since the end of the Franco regime, and whose epic pervaded his lyrics. He is thin and usually wears a flashy outfit of retro and disheveled elegance and a headscarf like a pirate on his head. He’s always had a vision problem: He says he has to walk askew to see straight ahead.
He’s not a curse, he’s not a villain. He is a homely and sensitive guy, sober and well-read, who writes poetry, who fights for historical memory, who is involved in charitable work, who tenderly cared for his mother, who was suffering from Alzheimer’s, in her final days. That he would like to have his family together: his longtime partner Mamen Irujo, two children and two grandchildren with whom he laughs a lot. And that, far from denying his nickname, he named it after the band he continues to record and tour with.
Natxo Leuza’s documentary El Drogas (on HBO Max) is an intimate and intimate portrait that belies the label of Spaniard Keith Richards, the rocker’s wild life icon. Not much is said of his vices that existed; Enrique and Mamen prefer to tell how they managed to get rid of all addictions. His traumatic departure from Barricada has not been fully clarified: the others decided in 2011 to continue without him, accusing him of his involvement in parallel projects. The mythical band didn’t last much longer because Boni, the other founder and singer, lost his voice due to throat cancer. Long before that, in their early days, a tragedy had both scarred them: the death of the band’s drummer, Mikel Astrain, at the age of 24. Just as they were beginning to taste success.
Here the reunion between Boni and El Drogas in 2018 is reconstructed after years without words in the dressing room of Rosendo Mercado on his farewell tour that caused tears to flow. Boni died in 2021, months after this film was released. Reconciliation is shown as another step toward inner peace, which the protagonist tirelessly seeks. That which his environment assures him and that which he is able to convey to the viewer.
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