Salsa Celtica is the culinary equivalent of pairing habichuelas and haggis. It may seem like an odd combo at first but it totally works. I stumbled upon this 11-piece band while visiting Edinburgh, Scotland in June and I was instantly intrigued when I heard the collision of banjos, pipes, fiddles and whistles with congas, timbales, and Afro-Cuban rhythms.

Turns out Scots (including the burly actor Gerard Butler) love salsa. And apparently, I’m the last one to find out. The booming sounds of Salsa Celtica have been around since 1995, and have been heard from the Isle of Skye all the way to Havana. The world music outfit actually cut their teeth performing in religious “bembe” gatherings in Cuba, where it is said they exchanged bottles of whiskey for dark rum as a sign of goodwill.

If you’re unfamiliar with members, who hail from Venezuela, Ireland and all over, they’re kicking off a U.S. tour today, and working on a fifth studio album scheduled for release in 2010. Here’s a performance of a song called “Pa’l Rumberos” from this year’s Celtic Connections festival that should get your feet and hips moving: