Introducing: Coast2C

Who: Sofia Acosta.

Sounds like: If the duty-free shop was a small, bangin' club and also was corporate-, violence- and prejudice-free.

For fans of: Mexican music of all stripes, plus international genre-benders like Selena, M.I.A., Uproot Andy, Chicha Libre and the ZZK Sound compilations.

Like many professional sports careers, Sofia Acosta's life in music started on the bench. More specifically, it started as a late-game substitution for a missing DJ while working for Mexico City promotions company Sicario in 2008. 

"I said, 'OK, fine, I have music,'" Acosta says. After that show, she was hooked. "People were like, 'You are a really bad DJ, but you play awesome music.'"

That first part is, happily, no longer true. Wait for Acosta's needle to drop and you'll be greeted with an awesome sound—maybe an obscure sample from a fictional Pancho Villa, maybe a cumbia beat retouched with Drake vocals, maybe a driving disco bassline. Since those styles and beats normally don't mesh well, she's learned to fold in all manner of psychedelic effects in her transitions. The result is a Mexican-focused, multigenre explosion beaming with Acosta's ambassadorial pride. 

After moving to Portland with her husband in 2012, though, setting up her embassy was hard. “Portland is not as obvious [about] where the good music is,” she says. Acosta eventually found a musical partner, Michael Bruce, and two candidates in Old Town. “I like the Rose Bar and Valentines. I like the vibe of these dark corners, where no light can go. It’s just a place to dance.” 

She and Bruce eventually established the roaming, Latin-themed dance night Gran Ritmos, which is about to celebrate its first anniversary. Through that monthly party, Acosta’s self-diagnosed “identity crisis”—between local and global, city and country—has long since resolved itself. But she’s still looking to do more. 

“I want to play for eight hours,” she says. “Really! I want to showcase not only cumbia but influences from all over, and that takes time. Here, you have one hour. I bring my Latin American friends and they’re like, ‘This is techno, I don’t like it.’ And vice versa.’” 

SEE IT: Gran Ritmos One Year Anniversary, with Coast2C, Chancha Via Circuito, Verano Peligroso, Sameros and DJ Michael Bruce, is at Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison St., on Friday, Aug. 7. 9 pm. $8. 21+.

WWeek 2015