Olifante is an archaic Spanish word for an "oliphant," a legendary horn made from an elephant's tusk, famously featured in epic poems and tales of chivalry like The Song of Roland.
In this song, Manolo García uses this rare and powerful word to create a mythical atmosphere. The line "Olifante que llama, convocando a coronar cumbres" (Oliphant that calls, summoning to crown summits) serves as a poetic call to action, inspiring a feeling of embarking on a legendary quest to overcome great challenges.
Manolo García's "Recuerdo Vertical" is a powerful and poetic song about dealing with the memory of a lost love. The title itself, which translates to "Vertical Memory," suggests a memory that is sharp, tall, and stands alone, much like a skyscraper in an empty landscape. The singer feels haunted by this memory, especially during sleepless nights, describing himself as being "tan nostálgico y solo como un viajero espacial" (as nostalgic and lonely as a space traveler). This memory is of an "essence that will not return," and even though it's fading, it's not a gentle process. It disappears painfully, like "humo de napalm" (napalm smoke).
Faced with this overwhelming sadness, the singer decides to fight back rather than surrender to it. He chooses to rebuild his life from the ruins of his past, even if it means lying to himself to survive. He sings, "me miento y creo / Que mintiéndome enciendo el firmamento" (I lie to myself and believe / that by lying to myself I light up the sky). It's a song about radical self-preservation. He uses incredible images to describe this fight: he decides to "quemar las naves" (burn the ships), a phrase that means committing to a new path with no possibility of turning back. He becomes a warrior defending an empty fortress, fighting for a future even when the shared horizon with his loved one has vanished.