BRUJERIA – pocho aztlan – CD

Pocho Aztlan is Brujeria's first new album in 16 years. The title translates to « Wasted Promised Land, » a combination of Aztlan, the fabled ancestral home of the Aztecs, and the term pocho, which native Mexicans use to refer-not always kindly-to their counterparts born in the States. Brujo himself is pocho, a man caught between two worlds. Many pochos are not exactly accepted with open arms in Mexico. Meanwhile, they're too often regarded as second-class citizens in their adopted US home. Brujo has transcended both scenarios through the power of Brujeria's uncompromising grindcore and death metal. His all-Spanish lyrics are as vivid as they are effective: Bona fide tales from the frontlines of the drug war, the racial divide, and the battle for the border. « A lot of Brujeria songs are true stories, » Brujo says. « And if they haven't happened yet, they will happen. » On Pocho Aztlan, Brujo and his backing band of extreme-metal superstars saw off tributes to Pablo Escobar (« Plata O Plomo »), recount exotic narco-tales of drug drops gone wrong (« Isla De La Fantacia ») and even carve out a customized cover of the Dead Kennedys classic « California Uber Alles » (« California Uber Aztlan »). Elsewhere, Brujo brings his trademark levity to bear on « Culpan La Mujer » (« Blame The Woman »), a send-up of old-school Mexican machismo.