If the sound of La Mecánica Popular’s “La Paz del Freak” didn’t send waves of joy down your spine and soul, then you need to rethink your outlook on life. The cross-genre, cross-national collective recently released their self-titled debut LP, boasting nine tracks that reflect the group’s “psychedelic-salsa-meets-‘70s-barrio sound” we love and need so much.
The album opens with “La Paz del Freak,” whose video we premiered two months ago, and quickly proves itself to be an ambitious undertaking, moving from more conventional salsa jams like the excellent (and sexy) “Ella le decía” to the blissed-out “Guajiro” and “Arbol.”
La Mecánica Popular are a look toward the future, an impressive take on the contemporary salsa identity that’s been relegated to the nostalgia category for too long. What they do is not just throwback, it’s throw-forward, throw-beyond. Stream the album in its entirety below.