UHF

New cycle and return to success (1986–1996)

The intricacies of Portuguese rock began to improve in 1986, but the UHF went through a deep crisis that led to a tour with some instability. Guitarist Renato Gomes was the last member of the initial line-up to leave the group, “saturated with so many laps to go around in such a small country.” In 1987 the UHF were without a label and António M. Ribeiro ventured out solo, discreetly, taking the opportunity to renew the band and start a new cycle. Fernando Delaere (bass) was joined by drummer Rui Beat Velez and guitarist Rui Rodrigues who replaced, respectively, Manuel Hippo and Renato Gomes. In the last fortnight of that year, they returned to Germany for some concerts with the Portuguese community.

On April 20, 1988, the theme “Na Tua Cama” was premiered at the old Estádio da Luz, in front of 120,000 people, in a performance during the break of a game of the European Champion Clubs’ Cup. The release of the single , outside the radio and television space, was an innovation in Portuguese music. In June, the fifth studio album Noites Negras de Azul (1988) was released, self-produced by António M. Ribeiro, and which was a bet by A&R António Manuel Rolo Duarte who believed in the group after hearing the model “Na Tua Cama” . They signed a three-year contract with Edisom . The singleoccupied the first place of radio preferences and the album had a direct entry to the top of sales.

It is a work with a strong sound, and the most ‘black’ album by the UHF, marked by the hangover from the success experienced by António M. Ribeiro in the Portuguese rock boom in the early 1980s. The album itself is a retrospection of the author’s personal stories – achievements, failures and revolt – noted more clearly in the texts of the songs “Nove Anos”, “Quero Estoirar”, “Na Tua Cama” and “Íntimo (regresso do inferno)”. They managed to overcome the national rock crisis by introducing some musical influences from the gray wing of rockalternative, thus captivating new fans.

Lyrics and themes

The band’s lyrical content is often worked with autobiographical and social intervention texts. Songs like “Notícias de El Salvador”, “Comédia Humana” and “Sarajevo” were motivated by current events of the time. The first was written about El Salvador’s devastating civil war, while the second takes an approach to the first conflict in the Gulf, recounting the barbarity between men in the war. “Sarajevo” gives continuity to war capitalism, this time in the struggle for the independence of the republics that formed the Yugoslav Federation.

It is performed live as a song against all wars. Other societal themes are addressed, such as police violence (“Hunt”), hard drugs (“Jorge Morreu”) or the portrayal of artistic success in the ruse of drug fascination (“Rumo ao Céu”). Questions and existentialism found in the lyrics of “Drunks (for life)” and in the enigmatic “Smooth Dance of the Wind” the serenity of Jim Morrison, becoming more philosophical in the theme “I’m in Ticket”. In the theme “Hey! Hey! Bora Lá” the word stimulus is used in the face of any setback.

The songs “Um Mau Rapaz ” , “Persona Non Grata” and ” Corpo Eléctrico” form a trilogy and were inspired by the turmoil and internal conflicts that occurred in the band in 1982 . the breakdown of the marvel quartet, addressed in the theme “De um Homem Só” which sums up this period. Time of retrospection for the resistant of the UHF, noticed in some songs of Noites Negras de Azul (1988). The musician recalls the mendacious behavior of certain agents of the show, confided in the text “De um Artista”, to then face their own questions with “The Last Test”. After establishing an unstoppable, fast and troubled life, witnessed in the track “(Vivo) Na Fronteira”, the limits of lucidity were several times exceeded and referred to in themes such as “Rumo ao Céu (It doesn’t hurt anything)” or in the enveloping “From Heaven to Hell”.

The strong connection to Lisbon is highlighted in the texts of “Rua do Carmo”, “Noites Lisboetas” and “Apetece Namorar Contigo em Lisboa”, updated in a new urban sensation of living, more critical and freer. The band’s repertoire is also filled with unavoidable love songs. Themes such as “Anjo Feiticeiro”, “Eu Sei Recomeçar”, “Devo Eu”, “Na Tua Cama” and “Juro que Tentei” were embellished by the inspiration of muses linked to the author, while the tribal song “Sonhos na Estrada de Sintra” proposes a dazzling journey through the cosmic dimension of love. “Kill me with your eyes” demonstrates the power of poetry – so much ancestral certainty in a single sentence – fullness, peace and rediscovered complicity.

Influences

The sound of the UHF was initially expressed in punk with some influence from the Ramones. The singer talks about his early musical tastes: “My first connection to British music was through the Rolling Stones. With the battery-powered radio under my pillow, I was listening to those magical voices and discovering music.” In terms of what was being done in his country, he said: “He followed the career of Filipe Mendes , Quarteto 1111 and Pop Five Music Incorporated . The Chinchillas were a fantastic band”.

The influence of Quarteto 1111, in the early 70s, and the poetic path of José Afonso, were decisive for the attribution of Portuguese in the writing of songs, reinforced by the vocalist’s need to communicate with the public. His musical growth was also accompanied by folk rock by the Fairport Convention , Bob Dylan and Neil Young , allowing him to tell folk stories in union with the violent explosion of punk.

UHF leader reveals admiration for Patti Smith ‘s punk poetry and the musical simplicity of Lou Reed, one of the influences, as he pointed out: “He is a reference of my generation, he is a myth like John Lennon , who helped me to be a musician”. On the other hand, the avowed passion for the Doors, associated with the unbridled life at the beginning of his career, were attributes that gave António M. Ribeiro the right to be known as the Portuguese Jim Morrison. It was in his teens that the Doors knocked on Ribeiro’s door with ” Light My Fire “. He later discovered ” Hello, I Love You ” and was definitely entranced by the group’s psychedelic sound with ” Touch Me “.

The UHF quickly created a sound of their own and the Doors became a reference among many that musicians always have. However, José Afonso’s talent is still present in the band’s repertoire, as Ribeiro stated: “When I announce in I stage a song by José Afonso I say that a man does not die, he leaves, and the work he left us prolongs his existence among us. That’s what we want to bring to the youngest, songs from another time that don’t have a certain date.
They belong to us.