A Deep Dive with Espera

Lucas Holloway 

Local Music Journalist 

For a long time, I viewed music as a means for an end. I started developing my own music taste halfway through high school during the pandemic, when for whatever reason I gained consciousness; as many other people my age can attest to. Whether bugged by the constant question of, “what do you listen to?” or trying to impress certain people, I have the clear memory of sitting down and making a Spotify playlist at 2 a.m., skipping through songs deciding at whim whether or not to curate them as cornerstones of my “highly important” musical portfolio. The first thing I learned was that I couldn’t name more than ten bands, and then it took a few years to learn the second, that people weren’t just “filling air” when they talked about music, that some bands really are that good. 

This moment would only come after I had checked into my dorm at the University of Texas San Antonio two years ago. I shared a dorm with my best friend, and being the freshman party animals we were, we spent our nights streaming movies. Basically, anything we could find for free online. These watch parties were the dawn of many discoveries for me, but most importantly, the discovery that music was meant to be something greater in my life.  

At one point we stumbled upon the movie “Mysterious Skins;” and to anyone familiar with this movie, all I can say is I apologize for bringing it up. After recovering from the movie itself, and the shock finally worn off; I was immediately obsessed with this film’s soundtrack to an almost unhealthy degree. I streamed hundreds of hours of it on Spotify before I needed to hear it in different ways. I hopped in my car and drove to the nearest record store I could find, Brainwave Records on Woodlawn Avenue, San Antonio.  

Sealing my fate to this music, they had the actual sealed soundtrack on CD from 2005; I immediately bought it, whether I had a CD player or not. After checking out, the store owner Ryan McKnight and I got into a conversation about the music from the film, where I learned about bands like Slowdive, Cocteau Twins and Ride: the trinity. Ambient and shoegaze groups such as these have been important to my musical tastes ever since. But when I was told that a similar group had existed for years right here in central Texas, I was finally enlightened to the presence of THE arbiters of sonic pleasure, Espera.  

I am proud to say that I had the privilege of being able to ask Espera a few questions this weekend when I reached out to them on Instagram @the.esp.era, less than a month out from their upcoming show in July; their first live performance in 11 years. Rarely would I make the claim that a band’s music speaks for itself, but that has never been easier to say than with Espera. After conversing with them about their history, my preconceived notions were verified; Espera is a culmination of passion, experience, and dedication.  

Espera consists of Jason Gonzales, who plays drums and does vocals, Matt Anderson, who plays bass, and Nic Gonzales, who does vocals and play guitar as well. Jason and Nic are brothers who had “played in bands since the early 2000s. [they] formed Espera around 2005 and performed as a two-piece for several years.” Nic notes that their first bassist was his former partner Amy,”[who] really provided a lot of what was missing for [their] sound.” After Amy and Nic separated, Jason and Nic realized that they needed a new bassist, and thus “Matt contacted [them] in 2008,” saying ,“he’d seen us play shows and really liked what [we] were doing and, his influences and talent.” 

Matt and Jason have a lot of similar influences, “Punk and post-hardcore stuff like Fugazi and Navio Forge,” describe their tastes, while Nic notes that, “they tend to like heavier things than [he does], but [they] all overlap with stuff like MBV, JAMC, Swervedriver, and Bailter Space.” Nic even mentions the extent of his love for new wave, pointing out his “unnecessarily abundant collection of Howard Jones vinyl.” 

Regarding their songwriting process, “It typically starts with [Nic] fumbling through some chords, and then sharing the result with the boys, [where they] refine the output during rehearsal.” The group notes that “a lot of times, there are pretty big changes involved or we scrap it altogether. So even though it starts with [Nic], it’s very collaborative throughout. Everyone has a voice.” 

In the final points of our interview, I asked what the group had to say about the scene in San Antonio, given their experience and veteran status, and what advice they could give to new bands in the area. They stated that, “San Antonio is a tricky place for creativity. The culture here is rooted in tradition and that impacts even the indie art scene.”  The band noted that, “anything outside of [rock, punk, and metal,] doesn’t get a lot of attention, so you have to create your own small scenes.” Nic notes that this is likely a culmination of the pandemic, the economy, and the new generation.” Espera concluded our conversation with the following point to other rising bands in the area, “think beyond traditional gigs or at least be thoughtful about the shows you book.” 

Overall, it was a privilege to document the history and experience of Espera, one of central Texas’ premier bands. Their talent and knowledge speak on and off their albums, so be on the lookout for new songs and EPs from Espera, and you certainly won’t have to wait.