In this Remezcla exclusive, Dominican trio Mula offers up a new cut for your darks dembow playlist via “Retumba.”
You may have caught Mula’s debut last year with “Playa,” marking a new, post-Las Acevedo direction for Anabel and Cristabel. With the addition of Rachel Rojas to the crew, “Playa” introduced us to slowed down, new wave/industrial feels over a dembow rhythm.
The group continues to take their signature synths and drum machine-fueled beats to the darks side, with “Retumba” building off the classic dancehall Bam Bam riddim (as previously reincarnated on Chaka Demus & Pliers’ “Murder She Wrote“). The pitched-down riddim appears mostly in the background for the track, providing a baseline sway to the hypnotic vocals, before breaking out into jungle, dub’s frenetic double-time cousin. The skittering track is just the first taste of Mula’s forthcoming record, which will drop later this year.
The trio is set to appear at Santo Domingo’s Isle of Light Festival on March 5 alongside Neon Indian, Álvaro Díaz, Los Walters, and fellow locals Gran Poder De Diosa, Playa O Radio, and Selektor 7.