Introducing the alternative rock band from Argentina with a sound characterised by an original blend of rumba, cumbia, reggae, tango and folk rock.
The Onda Vaga story began on the beaches of Cabo Polonio, Uruguay in 2007 when a group of four musicians (Nacho Rodríguez, Marcelo Blanco, Marcus Orellana and Tomás Justo) met up to play a series of gigs together during the January holiday period.
Initially a simple make-up of acoustic guitar, cuatro (4-stringed guitar similar to a ukulele), trumpet and cajon, they were soon joined by Germán Cohen who added his vocals and smooth trombone playing. Thanks to the vigorous nature of their performances and mobility of their instruments they were able to kickstart their career at pace and were soon receiving regular bookings at venues and social events across Buenos Aires.
Their first album, Fuerte y Caliente, dropped in summer 2008 after a series of sold out gigs. That year they were awarded ‘New Band of the Year’ by Rolling Stone magazine, with their debut album named as one of the most important records of 2008. They were soon to play alongside R.E.M and Mars Volta at one of Argentina’s most prestigious music festivals and support Manu Chao in front of a crowd of 7000 people at the famous Luna Park stadium in Buenos Aires. With the support for the ‘vagos’ growing in Latin America, in 2009 they toured Europe, spending two months in twenty cities playing at bars and venues here and there but mostly doing street performances and selling copies of their album.
Their next album, Espíritu Salvaje, was released in September 2010 and lead to a number of nominations for local media awards and triggered a tour of Brazil and again across the Atlantic, this time even playing three gigs in Morocco but mostly cementing their fanbase in Madrid and Barcelona. By this point, the vagos had expanded and had a backing band of four musicians to complete their live sound. Several years on they have dropped another album Magma Elemental and completed tours of Mexico, Colombia, Chile and Peru.
With deep, existential yet simple lyrics combined with beautifully structured choral and harmonic arrangements, this mix of rumba-cumbia-reggae-folk-rock draws many new fans to each show. The hypnotic effect of their group singing can leave you lulled into a state of soothing tranquility. You might have as much satisfaction listening to Onda Vaga in the bath as in a lively concert hall. All five musicians come from Buenos Aires rock culture but they maintain loose attachments to wires and distortions, instead offering themselves to the audience in the way they know the best: bringing high-spirited live performances with their own eclectic sound.