Popular Mexican Tracks to Add to Your Playlist for 2018

One of Mexico’s most versatile and original bands, Café Tacvba has been producing hits for almost three decades. With a diverse set of influences stretching from punk to rap to electronica, the band’s latest album Jei Beibi features a range of impressive and unique tracks. The single “Futuro,” was a particularly innovative offering, and arrived with a notably eccentric video.

The Grammy and Latin Grammy award winning singer Lila Downs simply refuses to rest on her laurels. Her ninth studio album Salón, Lágrimas y Deseo (Dance Halls, Tears and Desire) was released in May 2017. The album boasts a range of songs concerned with female defiance and empowerment. The daughter of a British-American art professor and an indigenous Mixtec cabaret singer, Downs has a broad knowledge of Mexican folk music and an impressive vocal range. The opening track “Urge” juxtaposes lyrics about rejection and isolation with a catchy, upbeat beat.

The Mexico City-based singer Natalia Lafourcade is part of a new wave of singer-songwriters who are determined to reconnect with Mexico’s roots and create traditional, back-to-basics folk music. A Grammy and Latin Grammy award-winner, Lafourcade’s elegant, soprano voice is instantly recognizable. Her seventh studio album contains the single “Tú Sí Sabes Quererme” a stylish waltz that has been nominated for Song of the Year at this year’s Latin Grammys.

Another Mexican singer-songwriter with a highly distinctive voice, Carla Morrison has crafted numerous beautiful and intimate songs, including “Disfruto” and “Eres Tú.” A double Latin Grammy winner, she returned in 2017 with “Te Regalo,” a romantic ballad designed for proposals, first dances at weddings and anniversary celebrations.

This indie band from Guadalajara offers an exciting blend of electronic and acoustic sounds. With a host of eccentric music videos to accompany their sound, the band has established a reputation as one of Mexico’s best alternative bands. Two years on from the release of their critically acclaimed album Moctezuma, Porter has unveiled their new single “Cuxillo.”

Another Guadalajara-based indie band, Taco Bambú fuses a wide range of influences, from folk to reggae to bossa nova. The group released Semilla, their debut LP, in 2016 and followed this up with a new 2017 single called “Meloco.” The jaunty tune highlights the band’s innovative and difficult to classify sound, while perfectly demonstrating why the band is one to watch.

The DJ and producer David Oranday, or Teen Flirt, has brought his unique sound from the suburbs of Monterrey in northern Mexico to a national audience. A regular at festivals across the country, his music contains elements of R&B, synth-pop and ambient house. His latest offering “Skin” features the Chilean singer and producer Andrés Nusser.