The members of Combo Chimbita have always been moved by a deep, instinctive urge to experiment, creating bold fusions that feel boundless and unrestrained. Their omnidirectional songs mix splashes of psychedelic rock, cumbia rhythms, Black Caribbean traditions, freeform jazz structures, electronic thunderbolts, and more. Amid so much eclecticism, there’s also a spectral quality to their sounds — a sense of spirituality and conscientious angst that often reflects the uncertainty lurking in the world.
When the band began making their latest album, IRÉ, in 2020, that uncertainty seemed more overpowering than ever. The pandemic was raging on, taking the lives and livelihoods of millions of people, and conversations about race, colonialism, and inequality burned throughout the globe. Yet in all that darkness, the band saw cracks of hope — the stirring possibility that things could…
