Mamarron Vol 1

Mamarron Vol 1 aims to present a modern day representation of the Colombian tropical music scene, playfully dubbed ‘millennial cumbia’. Cumbia, for those unfamiliar, stems from the connections made between African, Indigenous and European musical elements in Colombia, and for almost two decades has been hot on European dance floors just as in Latin America. Los Cotopla Boyz, hailing from Bogotá and fresh off a Mexican tour, are tipped as the next big thing in an already thriving scene.

The album cover reflects the outer-space mood, immediately present in opener ‘Plankton (Abanico Sanyo)’ which boasts dub-like production and a slow groove that builds towards cowbell-driven excitement by the end of the five minutes. I particularly liked ‘Dame Tu Wasap’ (Give Me Your Whatsapp), which boasts a purposefully flat, humorous vocal and a woman speaking from a telephone, over that stomping groove that becomes familiar after just a few songs. Another standout was ‘Tren de Cotopla’, with a manic start (there are even air-horns) settling into a synth and electric guitar backbeat journey with various interferences from extra-terrestrial signals on the way. An exceedingly fun listen and well suited for any cumbia fan looking to explore the sounds coming from the next generation.