The success of the popular fusion echoes that of musicians in Brazil, who mix in keyboards, house beats and even rock with traditional rhythms from different parts of the country, to the delight of an Internet-savvy global fan base.
Playing clubs and festivals around the world, the Nortec Collective also owes much of its performance-based popularity to a line-up of artists who capture the border city's essence in flickering images and animations.
Using PCs and video mixers, the seven video jockeys and graphic artists project clips showing makeshift homes made out of scrap from the city's "maquiladora" export assembly plants, shots of the graffiti-daubed fence marking the border with the US combined with elements of the jaunty norteno dress code.
"We try and establish the popular culture of the border in a playful way," video jockey Jose Luis Martin said. "Everyone recognizes a cowboy hat as a symbol of the region, even if they don't listen to norteno music."
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