While his name may imply a trap artist pumping huge bass and NYC flow, the root of this Medellin-based artist’s moniker, ‘killa’ means moon in Quechua; South American direct descendants of the Inca civilization. The music he and his trio - Hilder Brando Osorno (production, beats, vocals, effects) (Guadalupe Giraldo (tambora, gaita and vocals), and Julian Ramirez (percussion and vocals) - create is a sonic bridge between the ancestral and contemporary. Percussive, rhythm-based songs are steeped in his Indigenous and Colombian roots with a healthy dose of modern cultures. This mad mix of influences and sounds could become a messy musical stew, but Killabeatmaker makes it all work. Songs that seamlessly blend all of this welcomes the listener into an unique world of soaring vocals, melodic twists and an unmistakable and singular experience are his trademark. It is made to be experienced live, with the energy flowing from the stage through the audience and coming back to propel the trio’s performances to more than just lively, but an entrancing and transcendent, ritual-like journey. - Derek McEwen