Montreal’s El Balcón Blend an Array of Musical Styles on New Single “Enredada”

Since long before its conception, traditional music has been at the center of the priorities of the musicians who formed the group El Balcón in the summer of 2018. Josh (requinto and oud), Valeria (vocals and foot percussion), Charles (vocals and jarana), Alex (double bass) and Nicolas (cajón and other percussion) initially made up the ensemble. Shortly after, Nominoë joined on violin and vocals. Drawing on learnings from travels across several continents, El Balcón experiments by arranging songs from the Son Jarocho repertoire, a folk music from Veracruz, Mexico, with rhythmic, harmonic, and melodic concepts borrowed from Eastern European countries.

With the strength of their first two real productions of traditional covers and compositions released in 2020 and 2021, La Bruja and Contracorriente, the group is now preparing to present its first album consisting entirely of original compositions titled El Errante, which will be launched in the spring of 2025. 

New single, “Enredada,” is about being from different places at the same time and getting to know yourself through culture. In Spanish, “Enredada” means tangled up. The song is a very special blend of many styles of music that the group love: son jarocho, rumba flamenca, samba, balkan music, gnawa. It was written in Xalapa, Veracruz and recorded at Wild Studios in Lanaudière, Québec.