Bomba fusion / Puerto Rico / Since 2017
Fourteen musicians. Bomba at the center.
Barriles, cuá and maraca lead. Drums, bass, guitar, four horns and five voices bring in jazz, funk and reggae. A 90-minute live show.
Bomba fusion / Puerto Rico / Since 2017
Barriles, cuá and maraca lead. Drums, bass, guitar, four horns and five voices bring in jazz, funk and reggae. A 90-minute live show.
PlayedNPR Tiny Desk / Kennedy Center Millennium Stage / GlobalFEST at Lincoln Center / SXSW / Miami Beach Bandshell, MUNDO series / Millennium Park, Chicago / Richmond Folk Festival / Montana Folk Festival
The band
El Laberinto del Coco is a 14-piece band from Puerto Rico that builds its music on bomba, the Afro-Puerto Rican drum and dance tradition. Musical director Héctor "Coco" Bárez leads from the primo drum. Barriles, cuá and maraca hold the bomba rhythms while drums, bass, electric guitar, four horns and five singers bring in jazz, funk, reggae and other Latin styles.
Since forming in 2017, the band has released one album, El Laberinto del Coco (2017), the EP El Laberinto del Coco Virtual, and nine singles with guests including Ama Ríos, Chamir Bonano, Monika Nieves, Kianí Medina and RaiNao.
They recorded an NPR Tiny Desk concert and have played the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage, GlobalFEST at Lincoln Center, Drom NYC, SXSW, the Miami Beach Bandshell for the Rhythm Foundation MUNDO series, Rosslyn Jazz Fest and the 2026 Richmond Folk Festival in Virginia, the 2026 Montana Folk Festival in Butte, Millennium Park in Chicago and the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia. At home they play the San Sebastián Street Festivities and the Museum of Contemporary Art of Puerto Rico.
Press
"With their sprawling presentation and big, percussion driven sound […] they had the crowd in rapture."
Afropop Worldwide
"Laberinto De Coco make tradition both fun and important."
Felix Contreras, NPR Music's Alt.Latino
"The songs are part history lesson and part joyous modern deconstruction."
Don Harrison, Virginia Living, on the debut album
Watch and listen
More on Bandcamp: Dulce y Amargo / Todo Se Nubla / Si Tú Solo Has Hecho Bien / Todo va a estar bien / Oye Vida / La Complicidad / El Silencio / Las Condiciones / EP El Laberinto del Coco Virtual
Lineup
Héctor "Coco" Bárez, primo, musical director
Andrés "Kino" Cruz, buleador
Efraín Martínez, drums
Manuel "Kike" Rodríguez, bass
Jorge Andrés Ferreras "Patillazz", electric guitar
Glenn Díaz, trumpet
Víctor Vázquez, trombone
Luis Francisco Colón, tenor sax
Janice Maisonet, baritone sax
Jerry Medina, cantaor
Antoinette Rodríguez, cantaora
Soreimi Bezares Montalvo, cantaora
Génesis Ramírez Dávila, cantaora
Adryanna Muller, cantaora
Christian Tonos Vega, sound engineer
Subs: Kianí Medina, voice. Antonio Luis Orta and Roy McGrath, tenor sax. Jomar Santana, trombone. Jahaziel García Pérez, trumpet.
Technical rider
Set: 90 minutes
On stage: 14 performers, plus sound engineer Christian Tonos Vega
Stage size: 12 m x 8 m minimum (40 ft x 26 ft), drum riser 2.4 m x 2.4 m
Monitors: 8 wedge mixes: drums, bass and guitar, horns, bomba drums, percussion, 2 vocal mixes, director
Changeover: 30 minutes
Drums: Yamaha Tour Custom Maple 4-piece or similar: 20 in kick, 12 in tom, 14 in floor tom, 14 in snare. Zildjian K: 14 in hi-hat, 14 in crash, 22 in ride. 2 cymbal stands, hi-hat stand, pedal, 3 Gibraltar thrones
Guitar amp: Fender '65 Twin Reverb or Vox AC30
Bass amp: Gallien-Krueger, Ampeg or TC Electronic
Percussion: Meinl Woodcraft bongo WB400VBK-M, 11.75 in conga WCO1134VBK-M, 12.5 in tumba WCO1212VBK-M, or similar
Baritone sax: Yamaha YBS-62 or similar, shows outside Puerto Rico only
Input list, 28 channels
| Ch | Source | Mic | Stand |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kick | Shure Beta 52 | Short heavy-base stand |
| 2 | Snare top | Shure SM57 | Short, no clamp |
| 3 | Rack tom | Shure SM57 | Clamp |
| 4 | Floor tom | Shure SM57 | Clamp |
| 5 | Hi-hat | SM81 or ATM450 | Short |
| 6 | OH R | SM81 or ATM450 | Boom |
| 7 | OH L | SM81 or ATM450 | Boom |
| 8 | Bass | DI | - |
| 9 | Guitar amp | Shure SM57 | Short |
| 10 | Trumpet | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 11 | Trombone | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 12 | Tenor sax | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 13 | Flute | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 14 | Baritone sax | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 15 | Barril primo top | Shure SM57 | Short |
| 16 | Barril primo under | Shure Beta 91A | - |
| 17 | Barril buleador top | Shure SM57 | Short |
| 18 | Barril buleador under | Shure Beta 91A | - |
| 19 | Conga | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 20 | Bongo | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 21 | Tumbadora | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 22 | Voice 1 | Shure SM58 | Boom |
| 23 | Trumpet 2 | Shure SM57 | Boom |
| 24 | Voice 2 | Shure SM58 | Boom |
| 25 | Voice 3 | Shure SM58 | Boom |
| 26 | Voice 4 | Shure SM58 | Boom |
| 27 | Voice 5 | Shure SM58 | Boom |
| 28 | Voice 6 | Shure SM58 | Boom |
