Let the Music Play... talks to Jesus Gallego (Cadena Ser)

Jesus Gallego presents the daily sports show Ser Deportivos on Cadena Ser, one of Spain's leading radio networks.
In the past few years Gallego has emerged as a leading taste maker in the alternative rock and indie scene with his musical selections in the Carrusel Deportivo show (the "Gallego on Fire" section).

Thanks to him bands such as Franz Ferdinand, Kasabian, The Killers, Two Door Cinema Club etc. have managed to gain some profile on Spanish national radio whilst sadly traditional local daily music stations focus on mainstream pop.  

Apart from presenting his daily sports show Gallego can also be found in the DJ cabins of many Madrid clubs and is a regular contributor to AS & El Pais (Spanish daily sports and newspapers respectively).

We caught up with Jesus recently to get his answers on a few music and football related questions. 

Q - At best the quality control applied to football related songs over the years  has been somewhat dubious !
What in your opinion has been the worst football related song ever and what has been the best and why.

JG - True, there have been some really dodgy songs, Waka Waka by Shakira comes to mind.... even "We Are the Champions" by Queen has been transformed.
The best, any Oasis track is perfect for football, but I don't think the best has been written yet !

Q - What was the first record (single or album) bought by the young Jesus Gallego and the motivation behind it.

JG - Mmmm.. not sure but it was pretty late on. When I was a kid, on a trip to Ceuta my folks bought a cassette deck and I got a Beatles cassette.

 
Q - Over the past years Pep Guardiaola has used the likes of "Viva la Vida" (Coldplay) and "Human" (The Killers) to motivate the Barça team prior to each home match, if you were a Primera Liga manager what song would you use as a pre-match motivational tool in the dressing room?

JG - Muse, Uprising would work.  

Q - What was the last album you bought or downloaded ?

JG - I recently bought the début album from Noel Gallagher, High Flying Birds. 12 Euro it cost me from the local FNAC

Q - You´ve constantly pushed new music and championed and played many groups on national radio, that are/were total unknowns for the average Carrusel Deportivo listener. What track has generated the most interest and positive reaction from the listeners ?

JG - The Killers, Somebody Told Me straight away generated a positive  reaction. Same thing with MGMT´s Time to Pretend. Even the listeners who weren't convinced first time around ended up humming along to tracks that are now considered semi classics.

The Killers - Somebody Told Me - 

MGMT - Time to Pretend -

Ok, a few football related questions -

Q - Given that the 1st and 2nd places are foregone conclusions in the Spanish Primera Division, who do you see securing 3rd and 4th place this season?

 
JG - Valencia will certainly be there and I´d say Malaga too.

Q - In recent times the battle to avoid the drop from La Liga has been more exciting than the title race, who do you see occupying the bottom 3 positions this season?

 

JG - Its going to be incredibly tight. I think we´ll see Racing, Zaragoza, Mallorca, Real Sociedad and Granada all in the battle. Others like Getafe, Betis and Rayo Vallecano will also need to be careful.

Q - Finally .... 80´s indie band Half Man Half Biscuit immortalised Czech side Dukla Prague with their track "All I Want for Christmas is a Dukla Prague Away Kit", without the assistance of Google or Wikipedia, a guess as to what colour the Dukla Prague away kit is ?

 

JG - Is it Red ? Let me check, close .... Red & Yellow !

Follow Gallego on Twitter @JGALLEGOSer  for his news and views on sport and the best in new music.