“Si J’Étais” by SOA BOMBA carries the Montpellier group’s acoustic-reggae sound into a more reflective register. Extracted from their latest album Donde Vas, the track pairs light rhythmic guitar with percussion, bass and brass, placing the vocal at the centre of an arrangement that stays close to the live feel of their performances.

Formed in Montpellier, and active since the early 2000s, SOA BOMBA describe their sound as rock cuivré latino: a form built from cumbia patterns, ska backbeat and mariachi brass. Their music carries the direct lineage of French mestizo acts such as La Mano Negra, Les Négresses Vertes, Louise Attaque, Sergent Garcia and Noir Désir, but shaped by a Mediterranean setting and the open-air stages of southern France.

“Si J’Étais” runs on acoustic reggae rhythm. The vocal sits central, the lyric imagining a freer world “aux couleurs du monde” – in the colours of the world. Percussion and brass mark the rhythm with short accents. The recording keeps the direct, collective sound the band work with live, guitar and voice holding the centre without added arrangement.

You can follow the band HERE