So technically, it’s Spring. So that would mean: daylight lingers, flowers in bloom, general thaw out, yada yada yada. But us New Yawkers feel no such temperate luck. Winter won’t fully die, despite our many prayers and premature shorts-centered ensembles. So why kid ourselves, and you, by creating a Spring-themed playlist with pictures of happy people and sounds of warmth and sun? No no. Instead, we bring you a collection stemming from the most literal meaning of the word: renewal. It’s time to renew the Latin music scene with some fresh faces and voices from all around. So this month, on the holy month of April, we’ve birthed another music tadpole to join February’s F*ck You, Amor. and March’s No Jodas con Texas: A SXSW Sampler. Meet April’s child: Retoño.
Retoño refers to sprouting, so we’ve featured bands and artists from Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru, and all walks of life, to showcase bands coming up in life. These eclectic spring chickens (pun!) are creating some of the most interesting noise in the scene and represent where music could go in the next couple of years. Not all of them are total newbies. Some have been around for a while, but have yet to release full albums (Neon Walrus); others have revamped themselves with new bands (Juan Son’s Aeiou); or debut solo work (Jóvenes y Sexy’s Algodón Egipcio, Rita Indiana y Los Misterios’ Eddy Núñez); while others find comfort in their side projects (The Great Wilderness and Zòpilot! are products of Las Robertas members). Mexico’s Pau y Amigos and Hypnomango and Peru’s Kanaku & El Tigre have all impressed with their debuts, and DR’s Es Cupido crept up on us with this eerie tune.
So embrace lo nuevo and get hip to the new, because maybe in a year or two, these guys will be leading the Latindie way. You don’t want to be that person to jump on the bandwagon too late and miss out on amazing bands sprouting their wings (more puns!).
DOWNLOAD Retoño HERE. LISTEN BELOW.
TRACKLIST
1. Algodón Egipcio – “El Día Previo” (La Lucha Constante)
2. Neon Walrus – “Esclavitud” (Épico)
3. Kanaku & El Tigre: “El Fuego, el tigre y la avestruz” (Caracoles)
4. The Great Wilderness – “Barcelona” (Tiny Monsters)
5. Eddy Núñez – “Vivimorimorivivi” (Ensueñanzas)
6. Pau y Amigos – “Fiesta Permanente” (El Bar de Peter Pan)
7. Zòpilot! – “Le Cheetah” (ZO)
8. Es Cupido – “Wasabi Heart”
9. Hypnomango – “No Puedo Salir al Mar” (Hypnomango EP)
10. Aeiou – “Vivimos in L.A.” (Space Hymn)