Xutos & Pontapés are celebrating 45 years of “rock à portuguesa” today, with a concert in Lisbon for 200 people, which is already sold out, and a tour to commemorate the group’s career has been announced for this year.
The official birth of Xutos & Pontapés took place 45 years ago today, on January 13, 1979, at the Alunos de Apolo ballroom in Lisbon, on a night when they played four songs in just over five minutes.
At the time, the group, which came to be called Delirium Tremens and then Beijinhos e Parabéns, was made up of the youngsters Zé Pedro, Kalú, Tim and Zé Leonel, influenced by the punk-rock that was coming on strong in the foreign music scene.
In the early 1980s, in different years, Zé Leonel left the group and João Cabeleira and Gui joined.
Forty-five years after their first concert, the group persists in Portuguese music with more than a dozen albums and many songs that serve as an anchor for a rock clan with thousands of fans from several generations.
On Friday morning, the band announced on social media that they would be holding a “one-off concert” in Tokyo to celebrate 45 years of “Portuguese-style rock”, for which 200 tickets would go on sale.
A few hours later, it was announced that the concert was sold out, with “the promise of a 45th anniversary concert to be announced soon where everyone can be present”.
In December, Xutos & Pontapés announced a concert for April 13, at the Pavilhão Multiusos in Guimarães, as part of their “Olá, vida malvada” tour to celebrate 45 years of the group’s career.
Even after the death of guitarist Zé Pedro in 2017, the band remained active, on stage and in the studio, with Tim (vocalist and bassist), João Cabeleira (guitarist), Gui (saxophonist) and Kalú (drummer).
At the end of 2019, they released “40 Anos a Dar no Duro”, a double album that brings together the 40 most remarkable songs of the band’s career, lined up in chronological order.
The collection begins with “Sémen”, the band’s first single, with lyrics by Zé Leonel and music by Tim, released in 1981 by broadcaster António Sérgio and producer of the band’s debut album, “78/82”, released in 1982.
The line-up celebrating the 40th anniversary of Xutos & Pontapés closes with “Mar de Outono”, taken from “Duro”, the band’s most recent original album, released in January 2019.
“Duro” was the first album they released after Zé Pedro’s death, but the record includes recordings still made by the musician.
In 2022 and 2023, the band marked the 35th anniversary of the album “Circo de Feras” with several concerts around the country, which included the participation of guitarist Tó Trips.
