Dracula's Beach Party

About

Dracula's Beach Party plays cumbia that's gone feverish and a little unwell, built around a made up story: Dracula's centuries old son runs off from his father's cold empire to the tropics and throws parties that last until sunrise. The sound matches the myth. Dystopian cumbia grooves get dragged along by broken Soviet drum machines, reggaeton rhythms are slowed down and pushed toward trance, and out of tune Balkan surf guitars wrestle with Romanian synthesizers. There's plenty of spring reverb, slapback delay and overdriven kick drums in the mix, plus a gothic postpunk streak that sounds like a band who survived the apocalypse. It's hypnotic and made for dancing, and it's tagged as cumbia, gothic and electronic in the listings.