The Animeros

With musical notes that span well beyond genres like bolero, psychedelic, and cumbia, The Animeros not only make their audience hit the dance floor, but they also invite their listeners and tastemakers alike to a glimpse of their rich cultural upbringing. The group who is made up of Nick Tozzo (drummer and percussionist), Nicolas Sanchez (bassist), and Mauro Lopez (guitarist) craft a genre-blending sound that drifts between the lush jungles of Colombia, the palm-lined streets of 1960s coastal Mexico, and the dusty cantinas of West Texas. Sanchez’s Colombian roots, growing up listening to his parents’ beloved salsa and cumbia; Lopez’s parents’ Mexican and American discography, which spanned from traditional Tejano to improvised jazz; and Tozzo’s love for jazz and salsa music, the latter stemming from his college years, leading him to study and live in Colombia to experience music greats first-handedly. All of this, paired with their undeniable chemistry and meshed with their now hometown Austin’s innovative creative sounds has led them to create the unique sonic movement that is The Animeros, a name inspired by Colombian shamans who would usher lost souls to their peace. Their journey took an unexpected turn when their music reached the ears of Dan Auerbach, the Grammy Award winning producer, songwriter, and frontman of The Black Keys. Auerbach first heard them by chance, music floating from an open hotel window that stopped him in his tracks. Captivated, he made a note to track them down, and within a year, that chance encounter led to something bigger. Now signed to Auerbach’s Easy Eye Sound label, The Animeros are preparing to release their debut album next year, produced exclusively by Auerbach himself. “I feel like it’s only a matter of time for these guys and for the music that they play. All they have to do is be themselves,” Auerbach said about the trio. “They’re playing the kind of music that they can play forever until they’re 100 years old because it’s rooted in history, but it’s very much in the present.” “When we first talked, one of the things was our love for the nuance in Latin music,” Lopez shared. “That’s what initially drew ourselves to each other… That’s like a language among musicians.” Tozzo also talked about their shared musical bond: “What makes our chemistry special is that even if one of us has just a glimpse of an idea, together we can take that and really create something out of it.” “That encyclopedia of [music] knowledge everyone brings…That’s what’s really appealing about this project. It’s not just surface level. Everybody’s going pretty deep on it,” Sanchez added. The Animeros are on the cusp of reaching new audiences all over the globe. More singles are coming with a new album on the way in 2026 via Easy Eye Sound.