There are people who want to build walls and others who aim to tear them down, both metaphorical and physical.

Maybe it wasn’t meant to evoke any parallelism, but it’s inevitable to find a connection between what is going to be built on the US/Mexican border and the final moments of the Bostich + Fussible show at Rich Mix.

Contrary to what’s happening almost five thousand miles away, where someone is trying hard to separate people, the London East-End venue witnessed a much more celebratory and joyous social gathering. The Bostich + Fussible gig, organised by ¡Como No! Was a party to all intents and purposes, ending with a general “stage invasion” of uplifting widespread hugging.

The Mexican Nortec-electro duo, supported by their trusty musicians breathed extra life into an already mind-blowing show. Their Norteño traditional sound, blended with techno bass and electronic attitude created explosive beats exciting the audience throughout the set.

As a matter of fact, the “Tijuana Sound Machine” is an established and impetuous musical blast. Its formula is well-defined and needs little time to transform a venue. Starting off with the electronic wizardry of Rámon Amezcua (AKA Bostich) and Pepe Mogt (Fussible), the former Nortec Collective artists effortlessly fired up their sound, boosting it with a tryptic of live instruments (accordion, trumpet and tuba), which gives a more popular and all-embracing character to the tunes.

Then, there’s the ‘frontera’ (border) vision to do the rest of the work. Bostich and Fussible’s home town (Tijuana) and State (Baja California) become mythical and mystical places, where all the Mexican representations, but also clichés and stereotypes come to life: Cal-Mex as both a state of mind and foundry for incredible pop imagery. Behind the DJs’ deck, colourful images of vaqueros (cowboys) with thick moustaches, ‘Bienvenido a Tijuana’ and ‘Border Control’ signs, sombreros, shiny pimped cars and wide-open panoramas with sands and cacti repeatedly displayed, one after the other. It’s the “Nortec” way to desecrate prejudices and transform them into pop icons.

That’s also the Nortec way to win over the audience; the repetition of bass, beats and imagery creates an entrancing effect for the crowd, who couldn’t avoid dancing till the show was over.

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