01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30

10 Dance Tracks for a New Environment

Selected by Qoqeqa
Listicle
Club
Dance music
Electronic music
Experimental
Latinx
Petri Dish

What does dance music sound like in a world where dancefloors remain shut? Daniel Valle-Riestra, a Lima-based producer operating under the moniker Qoqeqa, provided one possible answer with his debut album Axuxa. Released on Peruvian label Kebrada, the record is as melancholic as tripped-out, combining rhythms, field recordings, and synth melodies. The LP is in sync with releases from Qoqeqa’s peers – a growing scene of adventurous Latinx producers like fellow Peruvian Duo Dengue Dengue Dengue and US-based artists like Debit and DJ Python. This music is increasingly unconcerned with the dramaturgic confinements and requirements of a club night; instead they prefer explorating the realms of inner experience, drawing from the esoteric, the spiritual, and the emotional. To sketch out a possible landscape of such dance music, Qoqeqa sent us a selection of 10 tracks. All of them have been produced in 2020 and 2021 in the midst of a new environment beyond the places in which these songs would normally have been played.

Selection & words Daniel Valle-Riestra
Photo provided by the artist

Sputnik One – Warm Body

“A track that enhances brain activity – traditional dubstep mixed with jungle but with a very atmospheric approach.”

Loris – Rastros (EP)

“Such a great percussion language throughout the tracks, like a spinal cord in between all the synth ideas. Great drum patch selection.”

Siete Catorce – Desesperacion

“Broken rhythms, glitched textures, and squelching frequencies – Siete Catorce is doing his thing; you don’t know exactly where he is going to take you.”

Omaar – Ritmo

“The whole album is an interesting percussive trip with an emphasis on tribal elements.”

Sidirum – Future Nature 

“A wonderful ambient piece.”

After exploring “digital cumbia” nearly a decade ago, Daniel Valle-Riestra aka Qoqeqa started delving into more experimental territories in recent years. 

Dengue Dengue Dengue & Mikongo – La Peineta

“A flamenco-infused dark dream with pitched down voices and wooden elements – Dengue Dengue Dengue can really put you in the mood.“

Codigo Jondo – Tránsito

“As the aforementioned ‘La Peineta,’ this track is part of the compilation Codex Futura Vol.2: Very emotive voices and strings.”

Lila Tirando a Violeta – Flores & El Mar

“I love the vocal textures, wind instruments, and water. I would love to hear a longer version of this one, as it only lasts two minutes. I have it on repeat!”

Qoqeqa – Toroidal

“Spiced-up patterns in a 3/4 rhythm.”

RAQ – Qechua

“Nostalgic Andean pan flutes with raw percussion elements – brilliant!”

Listicle
Club
Dance music
Electronic music
Experimental
Latinx
Petri Dish
Close