Montreal’s Kon-Fusion Release “Arriba de su muro” This Friday with a Full Carnival at Belmont
Kon-Fusion, the Montreal cumbia-punk band formed in 2012 by three Chilean immigrants in pre-gentrification Verdun, release their new album Arriba de su muro on June 5, alongside a launch party at Belmont the same evening.
The band’s founding members came together through shared roots in resistance and celebration: Pablo, a punk rocker from Santiago; Luciano, a multi-instrumentalist from Talcahuano with a background in Indigenous resistance music from southern Chile; and Nataly Leon, a former member. From that start, they built a sound that puts DIY punk values alongside dancefloor brass, heavy beats, and a self-described anarchic humor.
Arriba de su muro is a 10-track record released on MTL Sauce Piquante, an independent Montreal label focused on alternative global music. The album addresses the resilience of migrants, the workers’ struggle, encounters with Indigenous peoples, and social criticism, threaded through with the cumbia-punk energy the band has been refining for over a decade across Quebec, Ontario, and Mexico. Guest appearances come from Innu reggae artist Shauit, tropical punk band Sonido Pesao, folk-punk singer Santosh Lalonde, and Brazilian musician Diogo Ramos.
Kon-Fusion has won Alternative Group of the Year at the Canadian Latin Awards and the Bronze Syli, and their music appeared on national Chilean radio during the 2021 uprising.
The Belmont launch show on June 5 is a full evening. Doors open at 8 PM, with sets from Mapuche electro-Andean singer Carmen Lienqueo (8:30 PM), pirate rock band Bad Uncle (9:15 PM), and Kon-Fusion headlining at 10:30 PM. Sonido Pesao follows at midnight, with Oonga closing at 1 AM. Free hot dogs, a pinata, merch tables, and booths from community organizations are also part of the evening.
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