By Zachary Swickey
Despite their jet lag and still donning their Mariachi outfits from their set at Austin City Limits, Ray Suen and Jorma Vik sat down with MTV News to discuss Mariachi El Bronx, the Spanish-flavored side project of LA’s finest punk rock bands, The Bronx. Their ACL appearance was a one-off break from their much-coveted opening slot on the Foo Fighters fall tour. El Bronx’s new, niche sound is winning the hearts of many, and the guys were kind enough to shed some light on the project for us.
First off, your name and all of the instruments that you played on the album?
Jorma: I’m Jorma and I play the drums and handle percussion for Mariachi El Bronx.
Ray: I’m Ray and I play violin … and some other stuff. (Editor’s note: I’ll throw Ray a bone here: He plays violin, guitar, harp, requinto jarocho, vihuela, jarana as well providing backing vocals.)
What is the technical term for the Mariachi outfits?
Jorma: They’re called Charro suits. C-H-A-R-R-O.
Ray: We had ours made out in East LA by a guy named Alyas. How did you find Alyas [asking Jorma]?
Jorma: There’s a really f**king cool part of LA and it’s like maybe a half mile square and it’s all these taco shops, mariachi shops and all these places that make the suits or instruments. There’s this one little corner called “Mariachi Plaza” where a bunch of Mariachi dues will be all dressed up and they stand there waiting for people to pick them up to play parties or whatever.
Why no Mariachi hats?
Jorma: We thought it was a little campy. You know people would think, like, the "Three Amigos" or whatever.
Ray: Well, we’re already combating some kind of prejudice and we don’t want to make a mockery of anything, so yeah, it’s exactly that. When people think of Mariachi, especially in the UK, people will say, “Oh like 'Three Amigos'?” It’s like, “Nooo, not so much like 'Three Amigos.'” Read More...
