Ground Control Touring

With a long and successful career, FRENTE CUMBIERO has become one of the biggest representatives in the exploration of cumbia’s sonic identity in Latin America. Headed by Colombian songwriter and producer Mario Galeano Toro (also founding member of Ondatrópica and Los Pirañas), Frente Cumbiero is recognized as a spearhead of Colombia’s new cumbia movement.

Among Frente’s most remarkable live appearances they have played New York’s MoMA, Festival Estéreo Picnic, Roskilde Festival, Womad, Womadelaide, Womex, Sónar, and Fuji Rock. They have toured across Latin America, Africa, Europe, the U.S., Russia, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. They have released vinyl records in the UK, the U.S., Spain, Japan and Mexico.

Frente Cumbiero’s catalogue has had successful contributions with legendary musicians such as Mad Professor (UK 2011), the Kronos Quartet (U.S. 2017 and 2019), Orquesta La Delio Valdez (Argentina 2018), and Minyo Crusaders (Japan 2020, proving to expand the frontiers of cumbia and Latin folk music. As a live band, Frente Cumbiero performs in a quartet format, which focuses on delivering a powerhouse tropical sound to the dance floor by combining 2 wind instruments, live percussion and electronic sounds/dubbed sequences.

In 2020 they released the critically acclaimed EP “Minyo Cumbiero: From Tokyo To Bogota” with the Japanese band Minyo Crusaders, and their second album “Cera Perdida”. Both albums were released in Europe/UK, Latin America, and Japan.

Active for over a decade, and going way beyond the concept of cumbia as fashion, Frente Cumbiero are the true followers of the guacharaca calling.