We hear the beats of the psychedelic salsa group La Mecánica Popular and Maria Hinojosa and Soundcheck’s John Schaefer talk to the band’s leader, Efraín Rozas, about the group’s inspiration and their new take on Latin dance music.

Watch their performance here.

La Mecánica Popular puts a twist on a classic Latin sound: salsa. Led by Peruvian singer and pianist Efraín Rozas, the NYC-based band melds the heavy Afro-Caribbean grooves of salsa dura with the mind-warping textures of psychedelic rock. They replace the classic horn section with fuzzed out guitars and angular synthesizers, ultimately using the idea of “psychedelic salsa” as a meditation on the relationship between the body and the mind in representations of Latin culture. The group’s self-titled debut album is currently out on the Brooklyn-based label Names You Can Trust.

Photo by Michael Katzif