Terror/Cactus is the digital folklore and psychedelic electro-cumbia project of Martín Selasco. Born in Buenos Aires and raised in Miami, the Seattle-based producer draws from a wide variety of Latin-American influences in his productions including Argentine folk, Peruvian chicha, and Colombian cumbia. These influences are woven into hypnotic electronic beats featuring psychedelic guitars, dub lasers, and field recordings. Terror/Cactus has released music on Shika Shika Collective, Nacional Records, Names You Can Trust, and Earthly Measures, and has toured in US, Mexico, and Argentina, with festival appearances including THING, South Sound Block Party, and Offbeat.

In his newest album, Forastero, Terror/Cactus explores themes of identity, memory, perception, and mysticism. Featuring collaborations with artists such as Pahua, Rumbo Tumba, Barrio Lindo, and Corina Lawrence, Forastero encompasses a musical landscape filled with electronic folk, dark cumbia, and psychedelic beats. 

Buenos Aires-born, Seattle-based musician Martín Selasco has been making records under the name Terror/Cactus since 2017. Blending downtempo, digital folk, and cumbia, the Terror/Cactus discography is a place where South American rhythms mingle with electronic music, full of intriguing sonic landscapes that, for those seeking a reference point, could be described as a cross between Chancha Via Circuito and Nicolás Jaar. In Forastero, refined beats glide along Andean-inspired instrumentation, conveying (in the artist’s words) “themes of mysticism,” and a sense of being immersed in supernatural realms. Lush, accessible, and trance-inducing, Forastero is a crowd-pleaser.

- Maria Barrios, The Best Latin Music on Bandcamp, September 2024

“Seattle-based Argentine producer Terror/Cactus creates immersive sonic realms melding cumbia, electronica, and the eerie magic of the Pacific Northwest’s verdant forests and foggy bays. On his new album Forastero (or Foreigner), out Sept. 20, he ponders migration, isolation, and freedom, melding cascading percussion with gauzy vocals from all-star guests. The lead single “Donde Estás Tú” enlists Mexican pop mystic Pahua, who sings of journeys across dimensions and transformative revelations, stepping stones through life that lead us exactly where we need to go.”

- Richard Villegas, Remezcla, 8/9/24

Upcoming shows

Live Performance Photo Gallery

 In-Studio Performances

 Podcasts and Interviews

Immigrant Songs is a series presented and produced by KEXP, with support from The Vilcek Foundation. Through in-studio performances, interviews with local and national artists, and other written content, KEXP DJ curators will explore the immigrant experience.

 Recent Releases

"Forastero" (2024), Shika Shika Collective

"Cumbia del Sachayoj" (2022), Self-Released

"Amuleto" (2022), Nacional Records

"Churro Vs Crow" (2020), Names You Can Trust