Very Be Careful tap into a traditional form of Colombian folk music called vallenato. Vallenato, which can literally be translated as “born in the valley,” has roots that are similar to cumbia, Colombia’s popular dance music, and appeals to those who dig the free-wheeling moments of outlandish funk outfits such as Alfredo Gutierrez and Funkadelic.

The five-piece L.A. band’s afternoon set at Cafe de Paris on Friday started sedately enough, with a crowd content to lounge around in deckchairs and slowly knock back mojitos. One member of the audience even seemed more concerned with the amount of mint in her cocktail than the foreboding accordion being played menacingly only a few meters away from her.

“You guys want another one?” yelled accordion player Ricardo “Ricky G.” Guzman at the end of Very Be Careful’s opening number. “How many of you are going to stand up?”

And within seconds, the entire audience was on its feet and crowding the stage. It would be an exaggeration to say that a mosh pit had been created, but one could be forgiven for thinking the music wasn’t infectious enough to produce one.

The next few songs were a subtle mix of energetic Latin bruisers and swirling, hypnotic melodies, and by the time the band launched into its fourth song, “Busted,” Guzman had the crowd in the palm of his hands. And once he had them there, he didn’t stop until he’d wrung every last drop of energy out of them, leading the L.A. outfit through song after song of non-stop rock-infused Latin grooves.

Cafe de Paris suited the band perfectly as a venue, and I fear it may struggle to replicate the same intimacy at the much larger Orange Court on Saturday. In a small venue, though, it’s hard to think of another vallenato outfit who would be able to top them.