Rio Mira is a project named for the river that separates Ecuador and Colombia, the group brings together the marimba masters Esteban Copete and Larry Preciado with Ecuadorian singer Karla Kanora and an incredible ensemble of Afro Latino folkloric musicians from the cities of Cali and Esmeraldas.
As an ensemble, Rio Mira’s cultural identity is rooted in the Pacific Coast of Ecuador and Colombia, a musical habitat of East African diaspora traditions with the marimba playing a unifying role, both in the local culture and the ensemble’s unique sound. The marimba music of Colombia and Ecuador was declared Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in 2015 and this group aims to preserve this cultural treasure.
After making their debut in May of 2013, Dos Santos has been steadily making the rounds at Chicago’s premiere live music venues and festivals—from the prestigious Millennium Park Summer Music Series to the exclusive Chicago World Music Festival. In March of 2015, they released their critically-acclaimed self-titled debut cd Dos Santos and subsequently toured the United States, making appearances at SXSW, the Pachanga Latino Music Festival, and the Ruido Fest Latin Alternative Music Festival along the way. In 2016, the band released their follow-up EP entitled “Fonografic” on Electric Cowbell Records produced by Beto Martínez of Grammy Award-winning Grupo Fantasma. Recently, they teamed up with Money Chicha to release a 7″ vinyl split entitled “Summit Sessions” on Sonorama Discos. Their highly-anticipated debut LP on International Anthem is now available worldwide. Read more about it here.
The group’s five members (Peter Vale, Alex Chavez, Daniel Villarreal-Carrillo, Jaime Garza, Nathan Karagianis) have their own storied careers in a range of styles—including jazz, R&B/soul, traditional Mexican folk, punk, cumbia, salsa, and electronica—in addition to a history of critical involvement in arts education and social justice organizing.
As we close out another year Pandemic would like to thank all the performers who joined us this year and everyone who came out to support our events. It was an amazing year of dance parties, live shows and much more.
We are back at Brillobox for the final Pandemic of 2018. 4 hours of non-stop global dancehall featuring Pandemic Pete and DJ SMI (of Afroheat/Beleza). Don’t miss out.
Pandemic is rounding out its 12th year and entering 13 with a bang-up lineup. On Aug 3 we welcome Radio Jarocho playing traditional son jarocho music from Veracruz, Mexico with special guest dj Mateo Mattos.
Radio Jarocho plays the rowdy, upbeat, and at times melancholic music of the countryside of Veracruz, Mexico, and has been mixing it with the sounds of New York’s urban life for over ten years. Having recently joined forces with son jarocho legend Zenen Zeferino, they deliver performances that are passionate, energetic, and true to the roots of the genre. Radio Jarocho & Zenen Zeferino have played concerts at festivals and venues in the east coast, including Kennedy Center, Brooklyn Bowl, Joe’s Pub, La Casita at Lincoln Center, Le Poisson Rouge, Celebrate Mexico Now! and Celebrate Brooklyn. They are gearing up to release “Rios de Norte y Sur”, their first studio production together. With this album, Radio Jarocho & Zenen Zeferino celebrate the music that unites Veracruz and New York, Mexico and the United States through original songs and new arrangements for old jarocho tunes, offering a modern take on a traditional genre by fusing it with sounds that have become part of New York City’s musical fabric — flamenco, cumbia, rock, baroque, and jazz. “Rios de Norte y Sur” will be available in May 2018.
In September we are back with an Afrobeat Special featuring Keleta and Super Yamba Band at Brillobox. Afroheat’s DJ SMI and resident Pandemic Pete playing tunes all night long.
Kaleta & Super Yamba Band Afropop Worldwide said “their ace-up-the-sleeve: the singer Kaleta, whose James Brown grunts have got to be some of the best in the business.” Brooklyn Afro-Funksters Kaleta & Super Yamba Band are fronted by legendary Afrobeat veteran Leon Ligan-Majek a.k.a. Kaleta.
King Coya, danceable alter ego of Gaby Kerpel (De La Guarda, Fuerza Bruta) a pioneer of folklore fused with electronic music, brings a powerful live performance together with the dance troupe “Queen Cholas”. Showcasing diverse elements of Latin American folklore (chacareras, carnavalitos and cumbia) in a unique interactive celebration for the global dance floor.
Dat Garcia (Argentina)
Mixing trip hop with folklore, drum and bass with cumbia, Dat Garcia is ZZK Records 1st female beatmaker. Captivating audiences with her powerful stage presence, innovative songwriting and eclectic demeanor, she proves the Buenos Aires digital folk scene isn’t just a men’s club anymore.
EL G
Mastermind behind the Buenos Aires label ZZK Records and ZZK Films.
plus Pandemic Pete & More
JUNE 8th LOWDOWN BRASS BAND
June 8 join us at Brillobox for the return of Lowdown Brass band playing all the brass band hip hop you can handle. Plus Drum Lines Hard Rhymes, Selecta, and more.
We are excited to announce the 6th season of Weather Permitting at the Shadyside Nursery. This is a kid friendly evening event. Big things coming for Weather Permitting this summer.
We are excited to announce 4 big shows coming up in the next month. We have a lot of great music from around the world coming through Pittsburgh. This is just the first round of shows. Stay tuned.
June 8 join us at Brillobox for the return of Lowdown Brass band playing all the brass band hip hop you can handle. Plus Drum Lines Hard Rhymes, Selecta, and more.
King Coya, danceable alter ego of Gaby Kerpel (De La Guarda, Fuerza Bruta) a pioneer of folklore fused with electronic music, brings a powerful live performance together with the dance troupe “Queen Cholas”. Showcasing diverse elements of Latin American folklore (chacareras, carnavalitos and cumbia) in a unique interactive celebration for the global dance floor.
Dat Garcia (Argentina)
Mixing trip hop with folklore, drum and bass with cumbia, Dat Garcia is ZZK Records 1st female beatmaker. Captivating audiences with her powerful stage presence, innovative songwriting and eclectic demeanor, she proves the Buenos Aires digital folk scene isn’t just a men’s club anymore.
EL G
Mastermind behind the Buenos Aires label ZZK Records and ZZK Films.
plus Pandemic Pete & More
We are excited to announce the 6th season of Weather Permitting at the Shadyside Nursery. This is a kid friendly evening event. Big things coming for Weather Permitting this summer.
And of course the monthly dance party at the Brillobox.
5 extremely hot programs about to hit Pittsburgh as the February snow continues to fall. Pandemic and Pittonkatonk are about to drop a global heat wave on our city unlike any other. #globalwarming – DJ SMI (pandemic, afroheat, beleza, etc).
We are excited to be producing events independently as well as collaboratively with the Consortium and Andy Warhol Museum, Whats up?
Boogát is a Canadian-Mexican musician from Montreal, blending hip-hop with Latin Music styles such as Cumbia, Salsa and Reggaeton. His album ”Neo-Reconquista” won the Juno and Félix award for ”World Music Album of the Year” at the 2016 Juno Awards and the ADISQ gala, , respectively.
The son of immigrant parents from Paraguay and Mexico, he was born in the city of Québec and raised in the Beauport borough of the city. In 2001, he moved to Montréal where his career started.
Singing first in French, Boogát moved to Spanish after playing with the electronic music producer Poirier and the Latin music group Roberto Lopez Project; discovering a new world of possibilities that opened the way to collaborate with artists such as La Yegros, Uproot Andy, El Hijo De La Cumbia, El Dusty, Lido Pimienta, G-Flux, Super San, Mati Zundel, Kid Koala, Poirier, Pierre Kwenders, Radio Radio and El Remolon, amongst others.
The Consortium and Pandemic present the return of the amazing
band from Niamey, Niger TAL NATIONAL http://talnational.com/
Fri Mar 16 8 pm doors $16 adv/$20 door 21+ event
Spirit Hall, 242 51st St, Lawrenceville (nice parking! big dancefloor!)
tickets on sale starting Feb 5 at Juke Records (Bloomfield), Dave’s Music Mine (South Side), Caliban Books (Oakland) and Acoustic Music Works (Squirrel Hill) and online at https://talnationalpittsburgh.brownpapertickets.com/
with special guests Bombici and DJ Pandemic
You loved them in 2015 at the Thunderbird, and now they’re back, celebrating the release of Tantabara, their 3rd album on Fat Cat Records out Feb 9, 2018. https://talnational.bandcamp.com/
Tal National are a self-described “rock band,” though their vision of rock may push well past what the West fences in around that term, and guitarist Almeida finds as much inspiration in trance as he does in rock’s embrace. The grooves are the backbone of the album, and the intent is to create a trance-state that overwhelms conscious thought and lets the listener be surrounded by the energy and emotion of Tal National. Brimming with the band’s complex, intense spirit, the album is a continuation of the balance of tradition and innovation that have driven their previous albums. It’s a joyous celebration and euphoric epiphany all in one complex package. We’d expect nothing less at this point from Tal National.
WEST PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA @ Salem’s Event Center (LINK)
Pittonkatonk fundraiser in partnership with the University Of Pittsburgh Carpathian Ensemble.
PITTONKATONK & Pitt Carpathian Ensemble Present
WEST PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA
(2016 Pittonkatonk featured act)
Carpathian Ensemble
(UPITT Balkan ensemble)
PROCEEDS BENEFIT PITTONKATONK MAY DAY BRASS BBQ.
Food, Drink, Dancing
(Come early and munch on some eastern european cuisine)
All Ages Event TICKET LINK
Free entry for Pitt Students
$5-15 donations
7pm doors (music at 8pm)
About WPO
With a line-up of Philadelphia musicians whose influences range from Sun Ra to Bulgarian brass bands, West Philadelphia Orchestra is a unique live ensemble in today’s auto-tuned musical world. They began playing Romanian ballads, Macedonian folk-dance songs, Bulgarian wedding music, and Klezmer in late 2006, and have continued expanding their repertoire of Eastern European music. The band also plays original tunes which blend other sounds, like jazz and classical, together with traditional Balkan sounds. As much a community as a band, WPO’s performances are celebratory events. With blistering beats and walls of brass, they inspire audiences to hold hands, gyrate, howl, and otherwise slip the yoke of the homogenized culture industry.
We welcome singer/songwriter, Fatoumata Diawara (aka Fatou), who is originally from Mali and currently residing in France. Her much anticipated spring 2018 record will follow-up on her critically acclaimed debut album “Fatou” (2011) on World Circuit/Nonesuch Records, which was the No.1 album on the world music charts for six months in 2011. Fatou has collaborated with a wide array of musicians including Damon Albarn, Toumani Diabaté, Herbie Hancock and John Paul Jones, and she was featured in the recent documentary film, Mali Blues.
This event is co-presented with Carnegie Nexus as part of its 2018 event series, “Becoming Migrant… what moves you?” and PANDEMIC.
Wanna volunteer? Email us at pittonkatonk(at)gmail dot com subject line :Volunteer
About Pittonkatonk
Pittonkatonk is a grassroots, volunteer-run social and environmental justice organization that promotes creativity and critical thought by way of music making and participatory events in and around the Pittsburgh Area. Pittonkatonk established itself as a free community event in 2014 by inviting local and national community brass bands, street performers, and activists to convene in a May Day celebration. The annual Brass BBQ held the first saturday of May encourages participants to engage in making the event happen through bringing shared food dishes (POTLUCK), volunteering to run the event, hosting traveling musicians, promoting the event, and performance.
Performers (subject to change)
What Cheer Brigade (Providence)
– legendary 18 piece brass punks providing sounds from the balkans, Prov DIY noise scene, and general masters blasters.
Detroit Party Marching Band (Detroit)
– too punk for a bio
Keleta and Super Yamba Band (West Africa/NYC)
– high-energy, psychedelic afrofunk/afrobeat DANCE music powerhouse fronted by the legendary afrobeat veteran, Kaleta. Kaleta hails from the Benin Republic in West Africa and is a former touring band member with both Fela Kuti and King Sunny Ade.
Mdou Moctar (Niger)
– Mdou Moctar hails from Abalak, in the Azawagh desert of Niger. One of the few original singer/songwriters willing to experiment and push the boundaries of the genre.
Esso Afrojam (Chicago)
-global troubadours and subversive thinkers of an emerging counterculture in the 70s and 80s
Sto-Rox Marching Band
– Pittonkatonk Education Program Participants
and more TBA
This year we have the addition of a Community Resource Tent
more details TBA.
SUNDAY MAY 6