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1
Nada Temes
Ferraz
03:15
2
De Vez En Cuando
Marissa Mur
03:24
3
Lo que necesitas es amor
Little Jesus
05:03
4
Eco
Camilo Séptimo
03:16
5
Admirador
Odisseo
03:32
6
¿No Lo Ves?
Wet Baes
04:28
7
fuckhim (feat. Ximena Sariñana)
Girl Ultra, Ximena Sariñana
03:32
8
AYER
Vanessa Zamora
03:55
9
NECESITO
Noa Sainz
02:47
10
Nada
Nana Mendoza
03:41
11
Dcalle
Yoga Fire
03:54
12
Barriobajeros - BrunOG Remix
La Banda Baston, Yoga Fire, Aleman, BrunOG
04:09
13
Muack
AQUIHAYAQUIHAY
03:32
14
Lavenderia - Mexa Remix
Speak, ForyFive
02:54
15
Chicos de Barrio
ForyFive, Freddy O'kelly, Lao
02:55
16
Súbete
Jace Kimura, #Mexasinpartys, The Produsexxx
03:01
17
La Pulsar
Freddy O'kelly, ForyFive
03:11
18
Menéate pa' mí
Sotomayor
02:53
19
Oración a la Santa Muerte
Rosa Pistola, El Habano, Jorge Dj Productor
03:58
20
Conozco Tu Debilidad
Tayhana, Wasted Fates
03:14
21
Tu Mirada
Lao, Nick León, Santa María
04:27
22
Rainbow Road
Wasted Fates
05:41
23
Humedad
Lao
04:48
24
Ambivalencia
El Irreal Veintiuno
03:32
25
Cicatriz
Zutzut
03:31
26
Groove
Omaar
05:58
27
Maria
GAIKA, Omaar
03:40
28
Ahogada
Lyo XS
04:06
29
Dembow Gotiko
Paul Marmota
04:09
30
Ollin
Benfika
05:20

Mexico’s Alternative Scene

With its ears wide open to the world, Mexico City’s musical melting pot is like no other.

Forget about mariachis, folk guitar bands, and other dated clichés that cling to Mexican music. What’s currently happening in the Aztec country, especially in Mexico City, is light years away from all that. An energising wind has begun to rise above the sprawling city and its outskirts, bringing new artistic breath to its 22 million or so inhabitants. From the dreamy romanticism of capitaleña synth pop, to the silky RnB embodied by a fleet of young female artists such as the irresistible Girl Ultra and Noa Sainz; and not forgetting the label and collective NAAFI who are pushing the boundaries of club music, the soundtrack to CDMX – as the city is often referred to – is making great stylistic breakthroughs.

Start with “Nada Temes”, a feel-good track by the young multi-instrumentalist Ferraz, who opens this groovy playlist, then jump to the end of the selection and play the gritty and disturbing “Ollin” by the enigmatic Tijuana-born producer Benfika. They are world’s apart and yet they both embody the musical identity of Mexico. They are two ends of the same spectrum. On the one hand, a candid sweetness cradled by funk guitars, warm soul melodies, and vintage synths; on the other hand, a taste for ambient oddities and futuristic electro soundscapes, with a DIY aesthetic uniting the two. In the same way that the fascinating former capital of pre-Columbian civilization has colourful, historic  baroque buildings standing side by side with some of the most avant-garde architecture in the world, the rest of the playlist is a sonic voyage, highlighting the city’s vibrant mix of influences. Though CDMX might suffer from its sulphurous reputation as a chaotic city marked by crime, corruption and social inequality, its music scene is striving to show a different side.

The most striking example of this is the aforementioned iconoclastic label and collective of DJs and producers, NAAFI, created by Mexican Jihad a.k.a. Alberto Bustamante and Fausto Bahía a.k.a. Tomás Davo, exactly 10 years ago. The NAAFI gang challenges a widespread concept in Mexico, that of ‘Malinchismo’, a preference for foreign rather than homegrown culture. Paul Marmota, Lao, and Tayhana amongst others, are ambitiously proving that it is possible to create electronic club music inspired by the Berlin, Caribbean, or South African scenes, whilst developing one’s own unique identity. This feat makes the Mexico City crew one of the most exciting names to look out for on the global club circuit.  

Feeding off musical trends from all over the world without ever denying their own rich cultural heritage, the artists of the cosmopolitan Ciudad de México (though many of the artists on this playlist are from other Latin American countries) have created a melting pot that is at once both familiar and unparalleled.

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