Today is Cinco de Mayo, the annual holiday that commemorates Mexico’s victory over French colonisers in the Battle of Puebla in 1862.
Not to be confused with Mexico’s Independence Day, which is honoured later in the year, Cinco de Mayo is more commonly taken as an opportunity to highlight and celebrate Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in the US.
That’s where you can find Mexico-born, Houston-based artist Panch Briones, who’s better known under his solo moniker of Santa Muerte. A recent signee of cherished UK label Hyperdub, Briones’ slick February EP, Eslabón, was inspired by the “mythology and religion of Mexican culture” as well as the storied hip-hop scene in the state he calls home.
For our specialist mix series, Briones draws from a similar pool of influences as he interprets Cinco de Mayo through a distinctly underground club lens. “I wanted it to be dark and loud, kind of how [the] Mexican border with the US is currently,” he says of his set, which pulls at a thread of regional music, deconstructed edits, guttural melodies and “sample audio” from ongoing events, including “the war on drugs in Mexico”. No tracklist, just heavy and hypnotic storytelling.
Cinco de Mayo: Mixed by Santa Muerte
Cinco de Mayo: Mixed by Santa Muerte
Today is Cinco de Mayo, the annual holiday that commemorates Mexico’s victory over French colonisers in the Battle of Puebla in 1862.
Not to be confused with Mexico’s Independence Day, which is honoured later in the year, Cinco de Mayo is more commonly taken as an opportunity to highlight and celebrate Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in the US.
That’s where you can find Mexico-born, Houston-based artist Panch Briones, who’s better known under his solo moniker of Santa Muerte. A recent signee of cherished UK label Hyperdub, Briones’ slick February EP, Eslabón, was inspired by the “mythology and religion of Mexican culture” as well as the storied hip-hop scene in the state he calls home.
For our specialist mix series, Briones draws from a similar pool of influences as he interprets Cinco de Mayo through a distinctly underground club lens. “I wanted it to be dark and loud, kind of how [the] Mexican border with the US is currently,” he says of his set, which pulls at a thread of regional music, deconstructed edits, guttural melodies and “sample audio” from ongoing events, including “the war on drugs in Mexico”. No tracklist, just heavy and hypnotic storytelling.
