perpetual

In Spain we like a good story of rise, fall and recovery, but all very passionate and Mediterranean: backstabbing, toxic abysses and a discography that marked a generation. Van Gogh’s Ear once again has Amaia Montero in frontleaving Leire (and some other unexpected martyrs) along the way. We review this roller coaster of successes and failures, detailing all the lore of this story that now opens a new chapter. First successes. Amaia Montero was the original vocalist of La Oreja de Van Gogh from its beginnings in 1996 until 2007. During that period, the group achieved massive success with best-selling albums (Copperpot’s Journey, 2003, sold two and a half million albums in Spain and Latin America, where the group had a significant presence) and awards as important as a Latin Grammy and several Ondas Awards. Amaia’s characteristic voice marked a before and after in Spanish pop with songs prior to the steamroller of Latin sounds that was about to reach our music: ‘El 28’, ‘Cuéntame alhear’, ‘Cuídate’. ‘The beach’, ‘Pop’, ‘You can count on me’, ‘January 20’, ‘Roses’, ‘Rag doll’, ‘Sweet madness’… Amaia comes out. On November 19, 2007, Amaia Montero announced her departure from the band to pursue a solo career, a decision motivated by her desire to grow personally and professionally. That was the official version. Apparently, there were no conflicts or fights, but simply the desire to explore new musical horizons. La Oreja de Van Gogh continued with a new vocalist, Leire Martínez, while the relationship between Amaia and her former colleagues deteriorated: there were statements that reflected a cordial relationship but with some unresolved difficulties. Amaia free. Amaia Montero He started his solo career very soon.in 2008 (perhaps that was what disturbed the calm in the band?) with a self-titled album that reached number one in sales, and with a single, ‘ Quiero ser ‘, of considerable impact. But at this stage Amaia experienced complicated moments, with criticism of her appearance and concert recordings where he did not show his best physical condition. In 2020 he moved away from public life to “cure himself” and in 2022 he entered a clinic for a strong stress and anxiety. In 2023 things did not seem to improve: she was admitted to the ICU of a Madrid hospital for a cut on her hand. Now she seems to have recovered from these setbacks ahead of her new stage at LODVG. Leire lives, the fight continues. Van Gogh’s Ear has operated for sixteen years with Leire as the front, which is said to be early. His albums with the band, no less than five, performed well in sales (although without going overboard: in the best cases, around 500,000 copies, although we already talked about the era of streaming) and continued filling large venues. The group evolved, thanks to the quality of its singer, towards a more intimate and less strident pop, but they stopped appearing on the front line, as was the case with Amaia. Leire’s departure from the band, officially on October 14, 2024was peaceful although it was not lacking in bitterness: Leire has always stated that her former colleagues did not discuss her departure with her. And he sold his memorabilia on Wallapop, in a promotion with very bad grapes. Rumors begin. Above Amaia’s health problems and her lyrical drifts, the soap opera begins here thanks to the connotations of the replacement, not as oxygenated as the group wants to make it out. To begin with, the replacement was on the table before Leire left, which would undoubtedly strain the relationship between the new singer and her colleagues. Different signs were multiplying the rumors, such as Amaia’s appearance at a Karol G. concert to perform ‘Rosas’, certifying de facto that she was ready to front her old band again. Amaists against Leirists. The announcement of Amaia’s return occurred on October 14, 2025, just one year after Leire left the band. Classy. And on social networks, the group’s bio has changed to “Only together makes sense”, a phrase with more substance than it seems: the group used it when They decided to continue without Amaia). The deletion of Leire’s farewell from social networks and the replacement by a blank post has unleashed a war of comments between fans of both vocalists, something unexpected for a band with a style as pop and melodic as that of La Oreja de Van Gogh. Such dedicated fans would love Insane Clown Posse. Fans on fire. “I was never a fan of Van Gogh’s Ear, but I was always a fan of Leire Martinez”, “Van Gogh’s Ear is not coming back, Judas’s Kiss is coming back”, “The Queen of Pop is finally back!” or “Getting back with your ex is the worst thing you can do” are some of the niceties that are being read to accompany the first post of the second era with Amaia at the helm. A stark war which we will continue talking about in the coming weeks, without a doubt: to begin with, Pablo Benegas, one of the founders of the group, has decided to abandon training without giving further explanations. This return is going to bring a queue and more than one soaked face. In Xataka | The 51 musical gems to listen to if you don’t want to miss the best of the 21st century