Colombia’s Colectro Release New Album ‘Coletera’

By 22 September, 2016

Bogotá-based Colectro, known for their style of folkloric-tinged rock, which they coined coletera, have released a new album.

Coletera, which dropped the 25th of August, is 12-tracks of high energy Caribbean-infused music with elements of bullerengue, son de negro, jalao and chalupa; mixed with electrónica and soukous. It’s anything but cumbia, says Gonzalo Prieto, the band’s lead singer.

“We wanted to give prominence to the many other genres that come from Colombia,” he says.

The record contains guest collaborations with artists such as as “Tostao” of Chocquibtown, Pedro “Ramaya” Beltran, arranger Juventino Ojito Palma, Jhon Primera of Systema Solar, Monosóniko Champetuo, and more.

Learn more about the sextet, who hail from Barranquilla and formed in 2005 in Bogotá, here. And, as for the album’s name, Prieto tells us coletera has its origins in the friars of the Order of the Augustinian Recollects, who smoked weed in an effort to understand the bible.

“It’s a blend of music from the Caribbean coast and an ensemble of many tastes all emanating from the music and folklore from our land—the Caribbean. That’s the common thread among our band members—we go through life immersed in this music, using it as a language.”

Watch the band perform “Coleto Enamorao,” one of the tracks from the new album, below.

Grab the album on Amazon, or stream it on Spotify.


Follow Sounds and Colours: Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Mixcloud / Soundcloud / Bandcamp

Subscribe to the Sounds and Colours Newsletter for regular updates, news and competitions bringing the best of Latin American culture direct to your Inbox.

Share: