An ecstatic melting pot of a dance party for all the citizens of the planet to call their own, where BALKAN BEAT BOX’s transcendent pan-Mediterranean bacchanal collides with the Chilean ska-punk-new cumbia of “world-class party band” (NY Times) CHICO TRUJILLO and the “creative and flawless” (CMJ) fusion of Brazilian maracatu drumming and New Orleans second line rhythms of Brooklyn’s own NATION BEAT.
Balkan Beat Box was formed by NYC-based Israelis Tamir Muskat and Ori Kaplan, who had done time in the bands Firewater and Gogol Bordello respectively. The collective grew out of an electro/Gypsy/punk project the two created in the early 2000s that fused ancient musical traditions with hip-hop, Jamaican dub, and other beat-driven styles to make world music for the club and the dancehall.
They have always kept a political edge on their party music, and their latest album Give (2012) is inspired by people’s protest movements across the globe—from the Arab Spring, to Occupy Wall St., to Israel’s own massive social protests; it captures the cautious hope and re-energized spirit of our time. Chico Trujillo is Chile's most prominent Cumbia band—the soundtrack to every party from Santiago to Valparaiso.
At home their mixture of classic cumbia, rock and ska fills stadiums; they’re poised to break out on the international stage. Nation Beat, led by the percussionist Scott Kettner and the powerhouse singer Liliana Araujo, rounds out this extended triple bill. They're the first American group to record in Brazil with the legendary Mestre Walter and Maracatu Nação Estrela Brilhante—and the first Brazilian band to perform with Willie Nelson.
