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BOMBA ESTÉREO
by Manny Meland on April 25, 2010
BOMBA ESTÉREO
Cumbia / Rap
Are you ready for an explosion? That’s what we got at the Eighth Annual Heineken TransAtlantic Festival on April 9 at the North Beach Bandshell in Miami Beach (Collins at 73rd St.). The music of Bomba Estéreo (literally Sterio Bomb) exploded on stage. Vocalist Liliana (Li) Saumet burst forth with the energy of a speeding metro-rail train. Backed by band leader and bassist Simon Mejida, drummer Kike Egurrola and guitarist Julian Salazar, the infectious beat of “Feelin,” from their successful C.D. “Blow Up.” blew us up.
Who is Bomba Estéreo? The band was founded in 2001 in Bogota, Colombia. They call their music Electro Tropical. It starts with Colombian folkloric Cumbia, a style of music originated by African slaves. The Amerindians’ millo flutes, guiros and claves and the European guitar brought over by the Spanish combined with the African drums to give Cumbia its distinctive sound. Simon waxed poetic when he described his music as “a mixture of the Caribbean Ocean and the Andes Mountains with a bit of Bogata traffic and smog.” Until recently, Cumbia was more popular than Salsa in most of Colombia.
Simon searched for a different sound, something more in step with what young people were listening and dancing to. Even though he thought Cumbia was old fashioned, its basic 4/4 rhythm structure fused well with electronica’s beat. In 2006 in South America, Bomba Estéreo released its first mostly instrumental album called “Vol.1.” Simon then began to work with vocalist, Liliana Saumet who became the charismatic force of the group. Together, they developed a lively sound geared more to the party atmosphere. They recorded “Estella” in 2008 followed by their first U.S. release “Blow Up” in 2009. “Blow Up” has become a mainstay in the iTunes Top 100 Latin American Chart.
Bomba Estéreo, led by Simon Mejia and the lively Li’ Saumet, have made a name for themselves on the tour circuit doing energetic shows in both the United States and Latin America. Bomba had their in New York stage debut at the Latin Alternative Music Conference in 2008. On their way to this evening’s appearance at the TransAtlantic Festival, the group electrified a crowd in Mexico City’s huge central plaza. The band is scheduled to play next month at South By Southwest. (SXSW is a set of interactive music festivals and conferences that take place every spring in Austin, Texas).
P.S. The Rhythm Foundation’s Annual Heineken TransAtlantic festival booked two major acts. The first and opening show on Friday April 9th was Bomba Estéreo and the second and closing performance on Saturday April 24 featured Vieux Farka Toure, the son and heir of the late Ali Farka Toure, a revered blues star in the West African country of Mali. Vieux’s music is released in the U.S. on Six Degrees Records.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZXlgNMDK3E.
Photos by Manny Meland.
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