South American music and culture magazine

Because we live in such a digital age, most things are divided between that which is technological and new, or that which is organic and conventional. And music is no exception – in it’s most basic forms, it is either completely electronic or completely traditional. Yet over the past twenty years or so, artists have begun to mix these two genres, and a hybridized style has emerged, notably through acts like Portishead and Thievery Corporation. Since then, musicians have experimented with this combination of sounds to the extreme, simultaneously exploring older classic sounds along with new, avant-garde ones. And in today’s music scene, the Argentine-based ZZK Records is perhaps the most exemplary representation of this hybridity through their experimentation with the sounds of digital cumbia. Continue Reading

From Cartagena we drove an hour to one of our last and most expected destinations, the mystical heart of Africa in Colombia: San Basilio de Palenque. Both a forgotten and revered town, it is considered the first village to become independent from the Spanish Crown in colonial times, founded by brave cimarrones (runaway slaves). Continue Reading

La Mojarra Electrica are an extraordinary 12-piece band from Colombia, taking in the traditions of that countries coastal regions, musics such as bullerengue, chalupa, chirimia, currulao and aguabajo. These roots are mixed with moments of hip-hop and reggae as well as modern production techniques to produce a spell-binding combination. They have released two great records; 2003′s Calle 19 and 2006′s Raza and regularly tour all over the world. They are definitely one to watch. Continue Reading

System Solar are one of the heaviest groups coming out of Colombia at the moment. They call themselves a ‘collective’ and this couldn’t fit them better. Each member is involved in all kind of enterprises but bring their expertise to the table for Systema Solar. What results is an modern audio-visual treat with it’s feet firmly stuck in the tradition of Colombia’s sound systems. These systems, which began to appear on Colombia’s Caribbean coast in the 50s, are known as picó’s, a word derived from pick-up though no-one really knows exactly why it was chosen. Some say it was because of the pick-up truck that people would arrive to parties in, others said it was due to the action of picking-up the needle before playing the next song, and others still say it was a name of a particular portable record player.
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