Jessie Akin shows a day in the life of Folkhop, a band who busk for money on the trains through the suburbs of Buenos Aires. Folkhop is made up of two folk muscians – Francisco from Salta and Alejandro from Jujuy – and rapper Israel from Buenos Aires. Their music combines Argentine folk rhythms such as chacarera and samba with hip hop and the fusion of Buenos Aires’ street culture and folklore is also expressed through their lyrics. Both Francisco and Alejandro have been playing folk music for many years both in their native provinces and around Buenos Aires, and Israel has been rapping since he was 12 years old. The band, which can be heard every day on the Retiro-Tigre train, was formed two years ago, and they are currently recording a new album.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a few hours of shuffling around from boliche to bar to boliche without finding anywhere that satisfied our dancing moods, word on the colectivo was that “Hip Hop Culture club” was the place to be. Some teenage porteños passing around a litre of Quilmes wrote an address on the back of an old subway ticket and told us to get off the bus “now, boludos, it’s four blocks the other way!”

As I’ve come to expect from Buenos Aires nightlife, we soon found ourselves wading through cigarette smoke and gyrating bodies to get closer to the centre of a random club we knew nothing about. When the music stopped and there was a collective shove toward the stage, I knew someone important was about to start playing.

A screen was lowered and the head of some kind of robotic cat was projected. People whispered. A spotlight appeared. I braced myself for the next big thing in the Buenos Aires hip hop scene.

Full disclosure: I wasn’t entirely prepared for the anticipated act to be a petite, blonde, 24-year-old woman who goes by the name ‘Catnapp’.

Nor was I prepared for her to completely rock my socks off. Catnapp’s act is part drum and bass, part dub step, and a heavy dose of hard rap. Her performance was top, with plenty of dance breaks and crowd-pumping interjections.

The most attractive part of Catnapp’s music is the fusion of whimsy and hard beats—sweet vocals over heavy bass lines. Her songs are not saccharine by any means, and I imagine she could hold her own in a rap battle with any of the ‘big boys’ in the scene (Whether in English or in Spanish-she raps flawlessly in both). Still, amidst the hard bass and the dubstep flavor, her music tends toward upbeat and playful.

Her style fits well with her name, an homage to the leisurely lifestyle of her favorite animal. “I’m a cat fanatic. I like to watch them take naps in the sun, and I like how when you pet them after they’re all warm. I was inspired by that image and that sensation.”

Aside from her day job as a systems administrator (“Have to pay the rent,” she says), Catnapp considers herself first and foremost a songwriter. “A few years ago I was a DJ- for quite a while. I’ve always written songs and composed different styles of music. I started with electro; after I did minimal; I passed through tech-house, and now—drum and bass, breaks, dubstep, etc.”

Catnapp spoke fondly of the hip hop scene in Buenos Aires, saying she’s always received well and gets “good vibes.” She added, “These days in Buenos Aires there are various artists that are rocking the boat, like Marcianos Crew or Los Pibitos. I admire them a ton.” But she is no hip hop purist. “My playlists go from Kings of Leon to Die Antwoord, passing through Placeo and the Prodigy, Fever Ray, and Sublime, and tons of others,” she explained. “My musical influences are always changing and fluctuating. Right now I’m listening to The Knife and M.I.A. but it’s likely that tomorrow it’ll be other completely different groups.”

On Friday 29th April, there was only one party to be at and I don’t mean the Royal Wedding. Since Prince Charles had evidently forgotten to send a private jet to collect me from Buenos Aires, I contented myself with the next best thing: the much-anticipated inauguration party of Ploox!, a brand new club night, this week at Wanna in Palermo Hollywood.

Driving rain did not deter huge crowds of twenty somethings, both Argentine and foreign, who were lured by the promise of free cocktails and ubiquitous adverts foretelling an evening of Electro, House and Nu Disco, whatever that is.

Wanna’s 600-person capacity filled up steadily from midnight and partygoers collected on the dance floor, moving to the sounds of locally-renowned DJ Stuart, Rockin Vandal and Nico Hamuy. The club was described to me by organisers Miguel Salas and Will Aquino as “pretty nice”; this was, in fact, an understatement. Modelled on the Liv club in Miami, Wanna is a good size – spacious yet cosy. There is plenty of room to move but you won’t lose your friends unlike in some of the massive boliches. The VIP section and DJ booth have balconies overlooking the main dance floor, all covered by a dome ceiling studded with blue LED lights.

I may not have known what Nu Disco was but no matter…the music was great: electro beats with familiar vocals that were guaranteed to get everyone dancing. There were mash-ups (of the non-Glee variety). There was even a little bit of Queen for good measure. The evening had a more mature feel to it; this is certainly not the place for teenyboppers. A smart casual dress code also added a touch of class.

Ploox! is the lovechild of 23-year-old Mexican-born Miguel Salas and Will Aquino, 26, who met playing College football in Atlanta, Georgia. A mutual friend moved to Buenos Aires and founded the now infamous Pub Crawl; Salas and Aquino followed to help out in 2007. By July 2010 they’d been on “one too many pub crawls” by their own admission. Yet far from donning slippers and retiring into cosy armchairs, they started to throw one-off themed parties for occasions such as Halloween. Taking place in various clubs in Palermo and Puerto Madero, these nights featured a mix of indie rock, electro and hip-hop. The latter scene is growing in Argentina but “not there yet”, so they would often combine it with other styles.

“When Lil Wayne came out of jail, we put on a ‘welcome home’ party and played lots of his music. People loved it,” remembers Will. This inspired the duo to launch hip-hop Wednesdays at Sugar bar in Palermo, which draws a largely American crowd in desperate need of a hip-hop fix. Though but a few months old, word has spread and these nights are extremely popular. The boys believe Ploox! will be no different.

I’m curious to know where the name Ploox! came from and Will is keen to enlighten me. “It’s the sound of a piece of ice dropping into a coke,” he explains. Of course… “We used to say it for fun amongst friends so when it came to thinking of a name for our club night, it was a no-brainer.”

Each Friday from now on will feature a guest DJ, either local or international, with the emphasis being on variety. “This will be something different and fresh,”.says Miguel. “Electro music gets people dancing.”

I went with an open mind and I’m sure I’ll return. The night was classy, different and, above all, great fun. Buckingham Palace ain’t got nothin’ on this…