La Oreja de Van Gogh
Formation and career
La Oreja de Van Gogh formed in San Sebastián in 1996, originally featuring Amaia Montero as lead vocalist alongside Pablo Benegas, Álvaro Fuentes, Xabi San Martín, and Haritz Garde. Their sound, a melodic pop style with carefully crafted harmonies, quickly found a very wide audience in Spain and, soon after, in much of Latin America.
The band reached enormous popularity in the early 2000s, becoming one of the biggest sales phenomena in Spanish pop of the era, with tours that took them across Europe and the Americas.
Notable discography
Albums such as “El viaje de Copperpot” (1998) and “Dile al sol” (2003) include some of their best-known songs, such as “Rosas,” “Cuídate,” and “Muñeca de trapo,” tracks that became massive Spanish-language radio hits for years.
Lineup changes and legacy
In 2007 Amaia Montero left the band to pursue a solo career, and was replaced by Leire Martínez, with whom the band continued its career for more than a decade, maintaining notable commercial success. In 2023 Amaia Montero returned to the group, in one of the most celebrated reunions among fans of recent Spanish pop. La Oreja de Van Gogh is still regarded as one of the best-selling pop bands in the history of Spanish-language music.