Colombian duo Rizomagic have announced the release of their new full-length album, Cumbión Planetario. Rising out of Bogotá’s fertile experimental scene, Rizomagic are Edgar Marún and Diego Manrique, who first connected in 2020 while studying music. The pair combine cumbia, dub, downtempo electronics and psychedelic experimentation into something they describe as “Psychotropicolombian Futurism.” On the forthcoming Cumbión Planetario, Rizomagic draw inspiration from Cumbia Rebajada, but instead of slowing tracks down after recording, they compose directly at lower tempos. The record also pulls from a wide range of influences and traditions, including Indonesian gamelan, East African mbira music, Colombian Currula, Tanzanian Singeli and experimental electronic styles, all filtered through Bogotá’s contemporary underground scene. Edgar and Diego comment:

“In Rizomagic, cumbia and tropical Colombian rhythms are approached not as a fixed genre but as a living, evolving system — a sonic flow that branches, mutates, and connects with other musical languages. Through the lens of rhizomatic thinking, we weave Colombian tropical traditions with soundscape textures and electronic processes, creating a Pangean-futurist sound where diverse knowledge and cultures coexist without hierarchy.”

Much of the record took shape during a residency at La Becque in Switzerland, where the surrounding landscape became a major influence on the music. Diego explains:

“Nature, and especially birdsongs, guided us in finding melodies. On the album, you will find melodies that are birdsongs heard daily in La Becque, which was also a strong influence on composers such as Olivier Messiaen and of many cumbia composers as Andres Landero (Example: La Pava Congona).”

There’s also a fascination with tuning systems and resonance running through the album. Rizomagic developed parts of the music using planetary tuning concepts inspired by Swiss physicist Hans Cousto, based on cosmic vibrations. The group explains:

“We’ve found that this system induces really calm and trance-like peaceful states of mind, while still rooted in rhythm and dance, we’ve found that this tuning system helps us relate ancestral knowledge with a broader cosmic awareness.”

We’ll have to wait until June 26th for Cumbión Planetario to be out though Soundway Records, but we can already get an hypnotic introduction to it with lead single ‘Plutarco’ featuring Conjunto Media Luna on accordion. Take a listen below.