By Jess Arcand
Cartel Madras | Photo by Asim Overstands
Calgary sisters Eboshi and Contra have been bringing a vibrant energy to their local music scene, performing as Cartel Madras.
With the recent announcement of their signing to Sub Pop Records — joining other Calgary artists Chad Van Gaalen and Chixdiggit — Cartel Madras continue to add to the sonic evolution of their coined genre “Goonda Rap” – a tasteful mix of trap, punk, and house.
With their newest high-energy single and music video, “Lil Pump Type Beat,” Cartel Madras have moved on to Toronto to fuel their rise to the top, but at the heart of their venture is their love for Calgary and sharing the vibe of getting the “whole party on hype” no matter where they are.
“We’ve always had a good reception to that song when we did it live. When we were thinking about the video we wanted to keep it really simple and pay homage to what we do live, making it feel more at home for us,” says Eboshi. “It’s a nice, colourful, tongue-in-cheek video that has all of these elements of what we are like when we throw a party.”
The video for “Lil Pump Type Beat” captures the hyper, invigorating feelings you experience with your squad after seeing Cartel Madras at your favourite local venue. If you’ve never had the opportunity to catch them live, their newest music video will bring the atmosphere to you, which includes Calgary’s Hifi Club serving as the backdrop for all of Cartel Madras’ antics.
“Hifi and Commonwealth in Calgary have always been a home for us, even before we started performing because that’s where we saw the majority of the hip-hop shows we’d attend,” says Eboshi. “Shooting the video at Hifi was a wave to home because even though we aren’t in Calgary anymore, we’re definitely going to come back. Calgary is still a huge part of why we make music and we want to bring attention back to the music scene.”
Cartel Madras’ Age of The Goonda EP is set to be released November 1 on Sub Pop in the USA and Royal Mountain Records in Canada.
