Rionegro - Rionegro - Electronica - Vinyl

In January 2013, Sebastian Sano Hoyos, Gregorio Gladkazuka Gomez, Natalia Valencia, and Matias Aguayo gathered at Rionegro, a town on the outskirts of Medellin, Colombia. Others, like Byron Idarraga, Natalia Lara, Luis Miguel Cuchara Jaramillo, and more, would soon join the sessions. The project followed a musical spirit that Sano initially invoked by playing Salsa, Descarga, Boogaloo, Meringue rhythms on contemporary machines. Each participant was conscious of the aim to create something to which one could dance with the same steps as those used with the great salsa classics, and an authentic representation of the group's love for music, rather than a mere a fusion of styles. Based in a house by the mountains, they recorded during extended late-night jams in and around the house (which is why barking dogs and other background noises are sometimes audible). Gladkazuka worked drum machines and sequencers, recorded, and played his distinct minimalist electric guitar riffs of dark Latin Psychedelia, recalling moments when beat and Rock 'n' Roll embraced Cumbia. Sano worked to reinvent the dirty, distorted Salsa cowbells, the Conga cascades of the energetic descargas, and the aggressive trombones from old vinyl, with production help from Gregorio Gomez and Aguayo. Aguayo programmed drum machines, played rhythms and guitar, and wrote lyrics. Valencia, a composer, was also present for the whole project, and appears on several tracks playing the keyboards, which add another level of ghostly, magical notes and colors to the production. Jaramillo, a young percussionist from Medellin, comes from a family deeply rooted in salsa; he brought his playfulness and groove to most of the songs. Idarraga is something of a musical mentor to all, not only as a living encyclopedia of salsa, house music, and new wave, but also a great rhythm programmer, especially on the 707. After the recordings, the Rionegro crew set out to play in Medellin and Bogota, testing out their tracks on sound systems and dancefloors. The young house-and-techno-loving audience that grew up with salsa embraced the tracks immediately. The track Descarga, for instance, with it's technoid sound and salsa rhythm, quickly incited salsa dancing in the crowd. People also joined in with the repetitive chants, while Jaramillo delivered his tropical rhythms on electronic drum pads. Rionegro is another installment in Comeme's quest to create music for the dancers, wherever they may be. Includes covers of tropical classics by Los Mirlos, Willie Colon, and Afrosound.

• RIONEGRO
• Electronica
• Comeme