Homero Tolosa: True to the essence

“I am proud never to have lost the small-town kid I used to be. Of course, I have evolved inwardly, but without ever betraying that essence.” Drummer and composer Homero Tolosa reflects aloud at the bar counter following a dinner of shared bites washed down with fine wine, now savouring the smoky complexity of a Lagavulin as Sonny Rollins’s St. Thomas drifts through those “early night hours – an interlude suspended between what is happening and what is yet to come.”

He grew up in Longchamps, a small town in the province of Buenos Aires, where he discovered a love for music through his older brother. Cassettes and records shaped his sonic and emotional education, and before long he yearned to play. “When I was twelve, my mother gave me a choice: she could either pay for my end-of-year school trip or buy me a drum kit. I didn’t think twice,” he recalls, with the faint, nostalgic smile of someone trying to hold onto a past so immediate it still feels within reach.

His was a musical adolescence. “Friends back home would tell me I was a musician, but the label felt too grand for me then; I only truly owned it in my twenties, when I moved to Buenos Aires to study and work.” His trajectory is a textbook example of someone who never stops learning yet quickly finds something vital to say: he was simultaneously student and instructor at the Buenos Aires Blues School and joined Easy Babies, a blues and R&B combo formed by the school’s faculty that toured widely abroad. “With them, I toured Europe several times backing American legends like Bob Stroger and Deitra Farr.”

Later, he co-led Támesis, a soul and rock outfit that spent a decade playing to sizable crowds and released three albums. He then threw himself into pure, unvarnished soul and funk, drawing inspiration from the output of independent labels like Daptone and Colemine. “That gave birth to Los Negronis, an instrumental combo with whom we recorded an album and even shared the stage with organist Adam Scone.” That project was firing on all cylinders until the pandemic struck and brought the world to a standstill. “We cut a second album that never saw the light of day, and that was the moment I began thinking seriously about moving to Europe.”

When Plan B was really Plan A

Tolosa was twenty-four when he first visited the continent on one of his tours supporting American blues greats. “On that very first trip, it became clear to me that I would end up moving to Europe sooner or later.” Bringing Los Negronis to an end meant simply setting the wheels in motion for a decision made long before: crossing the Atlantic. He took the plunge in 2023.

“Coming to Barcelona was a leap of faith, but it turned out even better than I could have imagined.” In the Catalan capital, the musician feels he has found a home where his artistic sensibility fits – a remarkable feat for someone who, creatively, has never compromised on his vision. No concessions. Never betraying the essence.

Alongside organist Lucas Herrera Fernández and guitarist Pablo Sánchez, he fronts The Soulful Trio, a vibrant soul-jazz organ outfit releasing their second record, Second Hand: nine original tracks steeped in the spirit of Billy Larkin, Jimmy Smith, Joey DeFrancesco, and Jack McDuff, impeccably produced by Marc Tena – an added stamp of quality. “We are also cutting material for the blues outfit led by Víctor Puertas and Martín Burguez, where I play drums, and for another venture I’ve formed with saxophonist Fede Álvarez and Girona organist Raül-Marc Portell under the name The Blackmailers.” The point, after all, is never sitting still.

The wisdom of steering clear of the Rambles

Arriving in the city nearly four years ago, the musician was unsure what he would find. “I chose Barcelona because I had friends here and the chance to forge a career.” Things fell neatly into place. “I feel completely at home with this rhythm of life, and I love walking through a city that is compact yet remarkably diverse, where every single neighbourhood has its own distinct character.” Tellingly, the standout track on his debut record at the helm of The Soulful Trio was titled La Barceloneta – a love letter to the historic seaside quarter.

“Mind you,” continues the regular, “it didn’t take me long to realise that the city centre – above all the Rambles and the Gòtic – has to be avoided, almost as if it were no longer Barcelona. I enjoy visiting the Gòtic in winter, but the rest of the year that entire stretch is overwhelmed by mass tourism, making it impossible to walk through,” he laments, finishing his last drop of whisky.

– One place you won’t want to avoid at any time of year is this bar. Tourists rarely find their way here and the drinks are generously poured… in case you fancy another round…

Tolosa takes the hint instantly and smiles, glancing around as he observes the clientele settling into nocturnal mode. Kenny Dorham’s Blue Friday drifts from the speakers, and the musician beams.

“I’m in,” he responds at last, ready to embrace a night that invariably holds the finest surprises in store.