Brooklyn's Chicha Libre have been at the forefront of a global movement to revalorize Chicha - psychedelic cumbia from Peru. Chicha was first popularized outside of Peru by The Roots of Chicha compilation released by Chicha Libre's own Olivier Conan via Barbes Records. Chicha Libre started out as a tribute to Peruvian pioneers but have evolved into one of the world's preeminent tropical psychedelic bands. While they remain true to its Chicha roots, their music has taken a more psychedelic turn, drawing from its members' alternative background. Like its mentors, Chicha Libre uses surf guitar, organ sounds and Latin percussion to play a mixture of borrowed and homegrown sounds, but its music is a freeform reinvention, not an exercise in nostalgia. Synth sounds, treated guitars, French songs, classical music and pop debris from three continents contribute to Chicha Libre's freeform approach to the tropical genre. The cumbia beats that form the basis of the music are both as inherent and as foreign to them as they are to many generations of South American musicians who embraced a style they rarely grew up with.
A1 | Chicha Libre, Son Rompe Pera - Tequila! |
A2 | Chicha Libre, La Sonora Mazuren - Caminito De Mi Tierra |
B1 | Chicha Libre, Son Rompe Pera - Tequila! (Rebajada Remix) |
B2 | Chicha Libre, La Sonora Mazuren - Caminito De Mi Tierra (Rústico Remix) |