MCC Presents: EMPANADAS ILEGALES

Formed in 2017 through late-night jam sessions and rogue rooftop gigs, Empanadas Ilegales is a psychedelic tropical music collective made up of musicians with roots in Colombia, Ecuador, Argentina, and Canada. Their music is both homage and invention: cumbia meets surf rock, salsa runs through Persian melodies, and folklore collides with free jazz.

On Sancocho Trifásico their latest album they push that hybridity further, serving up their most layered, soulful, and genre-defying project to date.

Their debut release, Papayón, was recorded live on location at Vancouver’s Fortune Sound Club, and showcases their stage presence through a vibrant blend of six tracks. Creepy Mambo followed in 2022, as a bold nod to cumbia classics. In 2024, the group continued to document their incomparable live set by taking things higher: recording Creepy Mambo from the rooftop of the Warrington Art Collective in Vancouver. With performances at major events including Sled Island, Montreal Jazz Festival, Calgary Folk Fest, SunFest, Mixto Fest and JUNOFest, the band continues to expand their reach bridging cultures, sounds, and generations through rhythm-forward, dance-driven musical storytelling. Their music is a call and response connecting hemispheres, igniting dance floors across cultures.

Note: All ticket sales are final. The Midland Cultural Centre has a no refund policy.