Negu Gorriak (Basque for "Red Winters" or "Severe/Harsh Winters") were an underground Spanish group from the Basque Autonomous Community. Their musical style combines various styles of rock music such as hardcore punk, hip-hop, ska, and reggae, although it is impossible to separate the band from its political ideology and its identification with the Basque Country and its language (Euskara). History Negu Gorriak was formed in 1990 by the brothers Fermin and Iñigo Muguruza with Kaki Arkarazo (former members of the band Kortatu). Later in 1990, Mikel Anestesia joined them and in 1991, Mikel Bap. This was the complete membership of the group until its dissolution in 1996. They were completely committed to the political movement, starting with their choice to sing only in Euskera and continuing through their way of work and the message in their songs. They decided to manage themselves and created the record label Esan Ozenki. They performed their first concert in front of Herrera de la Mancha maximum security prison, leading to problems with the government. They were renounced by the Guardia Civil general, Enrique Rodríguez Galindo for the lyrics of the song «Ustelkeria», which accuses the general and the Guardia Civil of being involved in drug trafficking. This was the first time since the end of Francoist Spain that the government denounced a form of expression. These charges were dropped in 2001, five years after the group stopped performing together. In honour of their legal victory, the group performed three celebratory concerts to more than 30,000 people. Basque nationalism and other influences Negu Gorriak was formed at the end of the Basque Radical Rock movement of the 1980s, a genre most similar to punk. Their sound can be identified as a mixture of Basque Radical Rock and American hip-hop. The Basque nationalist movement greatly affected the music and actions of all the members of the group. All of their songs are in Euskera, and two of the group's members went to adult language school (Euskaltegi) in order to be able to communicate in their language. This was a strong message to the Basque Nationalist movement, demonstrating the importance of language with regard to identity. Negu Gorriak also incorporated traditional Basque instruments into their music, such as the trikitixa (button accordion). Negu Gorriak was also heavily influenced by American hip-hop and the African-American community. They considered Public Enemy one of their biggest influences because of their