A warm-ish midsummer night outside in downtown Chicago was the perfect environment for Thursday night’s Buscabulla show. Taking place at the Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, the hour-long set was a tribute to the emotional, spiritual and musical impact of Puerto Rican culture. Fresh off the plane from their native Puerto Rico, Buscabulla (the husband-wife duo of Luis Alfredo Del Valle and Raquel Berrios) delighted a robust audience of longtime fans and curious onlookers with their unique, danceable blend of psychedelic rock, synth pop and dance music.
There’s something positively enchanting about the group and its music. Clad in all white, the group performed a robust selection of music from early EPs as well as tracks from their critically acclaimed debut album “Regresa.”
Their set began with their latest single, “11:11.” Released officially last month, it was a staple of their brief series of performances last year. Catchy, vibrant and brimming with ear-worm melodies, it’s one of their best songs yet. Later they performed additional new songs, perhaps previews of an unannounced new album. These songs, at least sonically, felt like a slight departure from their earlier tracks, sounding more slow, haunting and methodical.
Popular tracks from “Regresa” flowed throughout their set, including fan favorites like “Vámono” and “Nydia.” Watching them perform live, I was reminded of another former New York City band, Brazilian Girls, who easily blended various genres and stylistic choices into their music. In Buscabulla’s case, that means everything from salsa and electronica. It’s cool, effusive-sounding music that clashes with lyrical content that has touched on topics of loneliness and freedom. Buscabulla makes it all work, creating a sound that is unique and their own.
The early vision of that sound can be heard on their first major release, “EP I.” Out in 2014, the EP is a spindly, groove-heavy body of work that hinted at the future depths the band would undertake. And during Thursday night’s show, the band performed a number of tracks.
By that time, the sun had almost completely set. The temperature went down significantly but the air was still humid, creating a sticky tropical chill. Lead singer Berrios finally took off her sunglasses and spoke about how things are in Puerto Rico before jumping into the song “Temporal.” The fan-favorite single is a majestic ditty that lingers long in the listener’s mind.
Later, they told the audience to dance to their next track, and the audience obliged. Many people on the lawn got up and began dancing with each other to “Caer” before gravitating toward the front of the lawn. Berrios switched from just singing to playing the synths. As audience members clapped and sang along to the music, the warm energy in the park became infectious.
That’s what makes Buscabulla’s music so interesting overall. They are able to invoke a feeling, a memory, a quick dance amongst their listeners. It demonstrates their intrinsic power and how it translates across languages and environments.
Before closing out the evening, the band performed what is perhaps their biggest song to date, “Andrea,” a collaboration with artist Bad Bunny.
“We always love singing songs about Puerto Rico,” said Berrios. “Especially women in Puerto Rico.”
As she briefly talked about how excited they were to collaborate on the song, the audience cheered. And once they began playing the track, the audience went wild and sang along. What began as a chill, downtempo sort of evening transitioned into a glorious dance party, one that is sure to be memorable for both the band and the audience alike.
Britt Julious is a freelance critic.
