The Rumba Madre

A Galician-Basque man dressed as a mariachi walks into a flamenco bar in Alabama and starts to dance salsa to a Sex Pistols’ song while smashing a bass drum repeatedly with his right foot. This could be the beginning of a joke but it’s also a quick snapshot of what you’d find in any of The Rumba Madre’s albums or live shows. Whether it is as a full band or with David Vila Diéguez as a one-man band on vocals, guitar, bagpipes, tambourine, seashells, and on his home-made foot drumkit he calls “the drumcycle,” the experience is one not to be missed. After releasing their debut album, Prisiones y Fugas, in early 2020 under the guidance of Iván Gutiérrez Carrasquillo (Calle 13, Cultura Profética, SOJA, etc.), the band now returns with a full new album, Apropiaciones Culturales V.2, in which they expand their musical experiments and continue to make us laugh with their always witty and sarcastic humor. This new album was produced by Juan de Dios Martín Antón (Gloria Trevi, Alejandra Guzmán, La Santa Cecilia, Camarón, Las Cafeteras, etc.) and includes the participation of top figures such as Kalani Trinidad (Cultura Profética) on flute, “Lilaina” Galician ensemble (Vetusta Morla, C Tangana, etc.) on backing vocals, Ezequiel Navas (Raphael, Amaral, La Orquesta Mondragón, etc.) on drums, or Pepe Ortega (Juanes, Alejandro Sanz, etc.) on some of the arrangements.