Whether people are willing to accept it or not, underground dembow –and its later incarnation reggaeton- has made a lasting connection with North American and South American audiences and musicians. It has also made an unprecedented (and unexpected) comeback from disparate sources; from Argentina to Mexico, you can hear –even if it’s a layered, hidden beat- the influence of dembow. So, it’s no surprise Texas-based, Mexican producer Ese Cabrón recently released a dembow heavy mixtape titled Las Rolas, for the record label Más Fresco.
Kudos to Ese Cabrón, not only for making it acceptable to call him that in print, but for making a tight mixtape that’s as much street and dirty South, as it is dancefloor ready. Along with loads of dembow, he included some cumbia percussion, dancehall and trap samples that make for an interesting prelude to a bachata tinged ending. Not one of the tracks feel out of place, as the tempos perfectly blend, going from dembow to reggaeton to dancehall to 3ball guarachera seamlessly. It’s like an urban top 40 on steroids, better curated and minus all the cheese. The mixtape features refixes and mashups from the likes of Villa Diamante, Calle 13, Dengue Dengue Dengue, Corcovado, Chimbala and Cabo Blanco.
Grab the party starter for free from Más Fresco’s Soundcloud page.