Journalists in Spain dubbed it 'Afromeño'[1] (rough translation: African and Extremeño, being Extremadura the region where he comes from), but the sound owes as much to North and South America, the Caribbean and Europe, as it does to Africa.

Gecko Turner (born Fernando Gabriel Echave Peláez) was raised in Badajoz, Spain, a mid-sized town about halfway between Lisbon and Madrid.

As a teenager he fell in love with The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan, as well as soaking up the international and Spanish music he heard on the radio.

Hearing the Stones sent him on a quest for the music that inspired Jagger and company, and he discovered Elmore James, Lead Belly, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, Big Joe Turner, and other blues artists.

He taught himself guitar in his teens and formed a band to cover American and British pop from The Kinks to David Bowie, Talking Heads to James Brown.

When Perroflauta broke up, Turner made demos of the new tunes he had been writing that combined the Brazilian reggae he'd been playing with the blues and rock he'd always loved.

won Spain's Premio Extremadura a la Creación in 2005,[2] given each year to writers and musicians who have created work that furthers the recognition of the Spanish language as a creative medium.

This album was also published by Quango Records in the United States,[3] and this led to a promo tour and several concerts in radio and television in Los Angeles, New York City and Texas, playing prestigious venues like Knitting Factory, in Hollywood, or the vibrant SOB's, in Greenwich Village.

His follow-up album, Chandalismo Illustrado (Sweatsuits Illustrated), is heavy on the funk, with highlife, various Cuban rhythms, and a Tom Waits tribute adding to his already eclectic blend.

During the last years, Gecko Turner's songs have been required by over 70 compilations released all over the world, and they have been used in several TV commercials and a few films, like Isabel Coixet Elegy, Montxo Armendáriz Obaba, No tengas miedo and Mexican director Jorge Colon's Cansada de besar sapos.