Numasbala

We’re always looking for cool vibes from around the world, digging to the farthest, dustiest corners of the internet. Sometimes the tunes just fall into our lap. That was the case with New York based 8-piece band Numasbala. Their infectious party vibes appeared in our inbox and we were instant fans!

Their debut album ‘A Ver’ is the result of years working on their unique sound, which they’ve dubbed ‘sacudón’, a high energy blend of reggae, funk, afrobeat, champeta, gypsy and ska. Borrowing from the book of Manu Chao and Calle 13 their music is both uplifting and humorous. Coming from Colombian and Guatemalan backgrounds, this band is sure to make some serious moves in the Latin music mundo!

The lead single from ‘A Ver’ is called ‘Quedate’ and they have a video – scroll down to watch the video and download the whole album for FREE here.
- Dos Mundos Radio

Any band that opens for Bomba Estéreo piques my interest, and that’s exactly why I went digging into more about Numasbala. The Berklee College of Music alums opened for Bomba in New York this past April.

The eight-piece New York City-based band describes their sound as sacudón and “reggae-funky-rapattackaton-afro-gypsy-ska.” They are: Fabio Montenegro, lead vocalist and bass player from Colombia; Felipe Piedrahita, backup vocals and guitarist also from Colombia; Javier Samayo, a Guatemalan who supports on vocals and plays keyboards; David Cornejo, a drummer from Peru; Michelle Walter, a vocalist from Guatemala; and three Americans: James Hall, trombone, Dos Allen at alto sax, and Michael Gennari at bari sax.

Check out the Q & A below, in which their responses are filled with good vibes!

Sounds and Colours: You all met at Berklee, a school which I imagine the school has so many talented people. How exactly did your musical tastes/preferences lead you to link?

Numasbala: Music and the school brought us together, curiosity and exploration made us start jamming and playing, and friendship and love for each other and for what we do has kept us together. Spanish language also helped us link. The bands and styles that we like are a strong connector, and we all shared in the mix new artists and styles that some of the other members didn’t know but got to listen and like. All this said, we must express that what connects us goes beyond what our senses can experience. For us what connects us is that we know that Numasbala is both a channel and a vessel through which we can forever grow and explore ourselves. It is this love, respect and gratefulness for both the ship and the river, which holds us together.

Explain “sacudón” and also your band name.

Sacudón is music that is designed to shake. Vibration generates all that there is and it is through movement that we create ourselves. Sacudón shakes so that we can see things from a different place, so that we can change, so that we can grow. It is this concept that is engraved in every note we play. Our style is obviously a reflection of our musical tastes and influences, but more importantly it is a reflection of what we are aiming to accomplish as artists. To move you, be it body, mind or spirit is all we look for.

Numasbala – No more bullets, no more hate, no more fear. No more of that which doesn’t let you be happy and peaceful. Numasbala – Beautiful power Numasbala – Love is all you are.

What musicians/artists are you most influenced by?

Fela Kuti, Femi Kuti, Calle 13, Manu Chao, Bob Marley, The English Beat, The Strokes, Upsessions, Fabulosos Cadillacs, Cultura Profetica, Grupo Niche, Juan Luis Guerra, Joe Arroyo, and many artists from Fania Records.

What’s next for the band this summer?

Play, record, smile. We have three gigs coming up in the NYC and Brooklyn area, and we’re excited about that. Also, we are going to start pre-production on our second album. Apart from that, we’ll be practicing, experimenting with new music and new sounds, reading, writing, living and smiling. The rest is confidential. A secret to discover.

Summertime is festival/concert time in NYC. What fellow indie bands are you excited to either see or play with this summer and why?

Excited to play again with our friends from EMEFE and Escarioka. As for bands to see… all of them! Its music! It’s all beautiful!

Listen to Numasbala on their Soundcloud, and find them on Facebook for show information and updates. - Sounds & Colours Magazine

Name: Numasbala

Where They’re From: New York City, via Guatemala and Colombia

When They Started?: 2010

Genre: “Sacudón”

For Fans Of: Cultura Profética, Antibalas, Los Amigos Invisibles

Sounds Like: The musical lovechild of Manu Chao and Fela Kuti, brought up listening to Los Fabulosos Cadillacs and sent off to jazz school.

There’s something of a tradition of great musicians from Latin America coming out of Berklee College of Music in Boston. Dominican legend Juan Luis Guerra was educated there, for one. In fact, this is so much of a “thing” that Berklee has a whole web page to brag about it’s countless Latin Grammy-winning alumni.

Basically this means you should watch out for Numasbala. The band is led a Guatemalan and two Colombians who met at Berklee, and they play a big messy mash-up of ska, funk, cumbia, R&B, and even gypsy sounds they refer to as “sacudón” (from the word sacurdir, “to shake”). Throughout, they infuse the sound with an unmistakable pop sensibility, following a long tradition of Latin American bands making funky-ass music that also very accessible to the non jazz-nerd (see: Cafe Tacvba, Los Amigos Invisibles, and so on).

This coming weekend in New York, Numasbala will be opening for the venerable Bomba Estereo. They have a album out for free download called A Ver, and a video for the single “Guapa.” My personal favorite track, however, is “Suéltame”, which has a indie-dance meets Latin disco thing going on. Check it out below.
- MTV Iggy

Berklee Greenway Sessions continues with a free concert by world beats/reggae/funk/ska band Numasbala on Friday, July 20, at 6:00 p.m. on Milk Street at Atlantic Avenue. Berklee Greenway Sessions artists join... (continued) - Yahoo

Founded in 2007 by Colombian singer and bass player Fabio Montenegro, Numasbala was taken to the next level while he was attending Berklee College of Music. There he met Brazilian producer/engineer Pablo Friedman, who both influenced and helped shape Numasbala's vision and music... (continued) - Kendall Square