Photos by Shevynsky. Art by Stephany Torres for Remezcla.
In Colombia’s underground, a new emo scene is emerging, filled with energy and a desire to smash paradigms. When you’re in a mosh pit, you usually don’t think about caring for others. You’re more likely to feel rage. Especially when you’re in your 20s, living in Bogotá, and the world is on fire. Hate speech, discrimination, and humiliation seem to shape the global political agenda. But at the Bogotá venue Acto Latino, it is common to see crowds of youth throw punches to the sound of distortion, part of an underground ritual in the city for the past 30 years. The scene emerged to release the good and bad feelings pent up inside us, but it also serves as a space of unity, respect, affection, and, above all, care.
In the early 2000s, the idea that heavy music events were places for people to be tolerant, inclusive, and care for others was unthinkable. The early aughts ushered in some of the darkest moments in the Colombian conflict, with the violence rippling throughout society. At the time, expressing anything outside of anger was seen as a weakness in the underground scene. And many of the first Colombian emos ended up harassed or persecuted because of their appearance or the bands they listened to.
Today, things in Colombia are different. While the decades-long conflict may be far from over, a peace deal signed in 2016 between the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels and the government ushered in a new mindset, particularly among the younger generations who desired to live in a less violent world, where people could live freely regardless of their appearance, gender, or the genre of music they listen to.
“To dare to feel means not being afraid of expressing what I feel in our music in a somewhat raw way, to release all the pain I have felt and that I feel at the moment. This has helped me to not have to deal with pain on my own, to talk about how I feel with less fear, and to release it in a constructive manner,” says Felipe “Pipe” Oviedo Ramírez, the guitarist and vocalist of the Colombian emo band, Ríos de Ceniza.
Like many of his contemporaries, Oviedo was inspired by local bands like Ratón Pérez and D-formes, pioneers of Colombian emo in the late 2000s. However, the first emo wave passed quickly, disappearing for years — until now. After the pandemic, a new generation revived emo culture, along with its sound, aesthetics, and political stances. Today, emo concerts in Bogotá often ban alcohol so that underage audiences are allowed in, and abuse, sexism, discrimination, or violence are not tolerated.
Leading this emo resurgence are these eight Colombian bands. While many of them are emerging, each one will get you to shout and sing with all your heart.
Kidchen
The sound of Kidchen is like a sweet dream that moves between introspective notes filled with candor that feels like caresses while blending with maul-like intense screams. This young quintet is characterized by the virtuosity of its musicians and the passion it awakens in its audience. Their debut album, 2023’s Quejas Crudas, has placed them at the forefront of emo revival thanks to songs exploring the lightness and darkness of being. In just two years, this band has gone from the underground scene to the stages of festivals such as Hermoso Ruido and Estéreo Picnic. Their music easily moves from the most classic screamo sounds to post-rock, passing through pop, rock, and jazz, making Kidchen an unpredictable band.
Vientre
The most beautiful side of melancholy is hidden in the chords of this trio formed by Iván Zapata, Carlos Escobar, and Ken Avila. Since 2016, they’ve developed heavy and powerful music from Cali, a city renowned as a mecca for salsa music. Estado de Imago (2021), Semillas (2018), and Huellas que Dejamos (2017) make up their discography, which is strongly influenced by post-rock but retains the intensity of more classic bands like Saetia. Vientre is a band that simultaneously creates painful and comforting sounds, and their voices go from calm to chaos in seconds. This trio has taken its proposal to places such as Ecuador, Mexico, and the south of the U.S., making it one of the most influential bands of Colombian emo.
Ríos de Ceniza
Blending sounds of screamo, post-black metal, crust, shoegaze, and jazz, this young band is one of the most promising in the Colombian underground scene. Born in 2022, Ríos de Ceniza is not afraid to take risks, experiment, and look for new ways to understand, feel, and explore music and what it does within us. Seven people make up this project, including keyboards and a saxophone. During live performances, they can go from free jazz improvisations to rhythms so extreme that they feel almost like listening to black metal. Although Ríos de Ceniza is still working on its first studio album, the band has gathered a loyal following around its sound that explores the deepest human feelings while having strong political messaging advocating for unity, mutual support, and dismantling gender stereotypes.
Corriendo
For a few years now, Medellín has been known for being one of the cities that fueled Colombian reggaeton. However, the city’s streets have a strong relationship with the extreme sounds of the underground. All kinds of heavy sounds have been born in this city, nurturing several bands and filling them with passion and creativity. This is the case of Corriendo, a band created in 2016. Though their music is closer to math rock than screamo, their beautiful and dreamy songs take us through colorful landscapes inspired by nature and the sweet complexities of life. Simplicity is the creative engine of this group. And though it preserves a lot of the classic emo style, especially that of ‘90s screamo, their songs often shift meters and become eclectic and strange. Corriendo is also characterized by its lo-fi style and for not using distortion pedals for the guitars, but its compositions can be very complex and somewhat playful, all framed in a raw style that seeks to be honest with the music and the feelings it produces.
Basura Astillada
Perhaps one of the most powerful elements of this new wave of emo is that it challenges notions of gender and creates safe spaces of inclusion inspired by coexistence and the power to share all the lights and the shadows that make us. The best example of this is Basuraastillada from Bogotá, which describes itself as “screamo marica,” which can be translated as queer screamo. In 2020, they released their debut EP called Pecho de Algodón de Dulce, and in 2023, they presented Muchas Formas de Decir Casa, their first LP. The band’s sound merges comforting melodies with heartbreaking screams from the depths of the soul. However, it also plays with the structure of their music, going from calm to chaos in seconds and always showing a lot of passion and rawness in its lyrics, which are sometimes hopeful and sometimes heartbreaking.
Ortiga
The loneliness of the city, the alienation of those who live in it, and a sense of nostalgia for happier days are some of the feelings evoked by the sound of this young band from Bogotá. Ortiga is an example of how new emo combines different musical subgenres. Elements of shoegaze, indie rock, and intense screams come together in their songs, which in 2024 released Veintiséis Calles en Venus, their debut album, with which they have gradually made their way into the underground music scene of the Colombian capital. One of the most interesting features of Ortiga is the way they combine different singing styles, shifting between a thick main voice and screaming arrangements while incorporating several dissonant intonations to create a storm of vocals that contrast with melodious and soft guitars.
Incendiariat
Even though many of the pioneers of Colombian emo have broken up, a few continued betting on this sound. Such is the case of Incendiariat, a band from Bogotá that has been around for more than a decade. Although they rarely play, they are still active and continue to be an inspiration for the new generations. Their style honors the classic screamo that takes us back to bands like Orchid, but there is also a hint of the uneasiness of living in a city like Bogotá. Their sound is also heavily influenced by post-hardcore, experimental, and ambient rock, which makes their music even more intense and emotional.
Vorágine
Although this Bogotá band is often pigeonholed as post-black metal, its lyrical, musical, and aesthetic essence has strong roots in screamo. More than being a genre, emo is a way of approaching art and life. The struggle to feel and express emotions imbues all sorts of sounds and influences. This is the case of Vorágine, which has two albums, 2018’s Aquelarre and 2022’s Splin, where they show a very dark and torn sound. It is like a tornado of shadows that touches every fiber of the soul and manages to move and enchant us with its approach. Several members of Vorágine are also part of the PLAGA label, which unites independent bands from all over the country.
