Los Ángeles Azules

Los Ángeles Azules have been steadily perfecting and globalizing the cumbia sonidera sound for decades. The sibling ensemble formed from humble beginnings in Iztapalapa, a Mexico City municipality, when Elías, Jorge, Alfredo, Cristina, José Hilario, and Guadalupe Mejía Avante began performing at block parties, weddings, and quinceañeras in the late ‘70s as a way to contribute to their household income. Armed with soaring, heart-piercing harmonies and hypnotic accordion riffage, the troupe took their initial musical cues from Colombian-style cumbia. But as onda grupera—a Latin music subgenre with a rock and electronic spin—was rapidly gaining speed in Mexico, the young band (formerly known as Playa Azul) looked to leaders of the new sound like Rigo Tovar and Los Yonic’s for inspiration. With a newfound ambition, the group expanded their lineup to include former rock drummer Raul Díaz and changed their name to Los Ángeles Azules. Throughout the ‘90s, the Mexican cumbieros would drop gems like the amorous, party-starting “Mi Niña Mujer” (1996), “Cómo Te Voy a Olvidar” (1996), and “El Listón de Tu Pelo” (1999). The band broadened their scope with 2015’s genre-hopping Cómo Te Voy A Olvidar ¡Edición De Súper Lujo! when the members partnered with major rock stars (Saúl Hernández and Vicentico) and Latin-pop darlings (Natalia Lafourcade and Ximena Sariñana) for remakes of the group’s greatest cumbia hits. In 2018, the sonideros made history when they became the first traditional Mexican music act to perform at Coachella. From quinceañeras to major festival stages, these working-class heroes continue to prove that their cumbia takeover is unstoppable.