Many of us listen to music in order to enhance our mood or as therapy after a long, trying day. So it's not far-fetched to consider a radio station broadcasting from a mental hospital. That’s exactly what the patients at Buenos Aires-based La Colifata Psychiatric hospital decided to do in order to express themselves and speak to the world.
La Colifata was created in 1991 as a unique establishment that uses media as therapeutic treatment. Five years ago, Manu Chao started working with La Colifata and he’s just produced and released an album recorded by members of the hospital’s radio station.
The La Colifata Benefit Project features 20 songs about life, death, mothers, loneliness, love and other universal themes as well as more personal ones: the Pope, the sun, crazy grandmas and the end of the world.
La Colifata is available for download at VivaLaColifata.org, a website launched by Manu Chao and La Colifata. The price is a “pay what you want” donation with the proceeds going to help the station and hospital with their therapeutic approach.
You may well visit the site out of curiosity but if you opt to download the album, remember that your donation will allow La Colifata to keep making and broadcasting music, so dig deep.
* Cover courtesy Nacional Records
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