Author: Rok Klemše
Photos: Nina Grad
Location: Down Town / Kranj
Concert date: 05.07.2016
This time I’m borrowing the title of this report from the legendary chihuahua in the Taco Bell commercial, the one who kept eagerly repeating that he wants Taco Bell (Yo quiero Taco Bell)? Since you’re going to ask where this chihuahua and Taco Bell suddenly came from, let me explain. Chihuahuas, tortillas, burritos and chimichangas are Mexican stereotypes, and on Tuesday Kranj got them in a somewhat more sinister form, courtesy of the Mexican death/grind narco-satanist collective Brujeria. Drugs, sex, Satanism and racial intolerance toward white people are the stereotypes celebrated in the witchcraft rituals of a band that still performs masked and under made-up names today (because they’re allegedly narco kingpins and smugglers). The band was founded by members of bands like Fear Factory and Faith No More, and on this tour, under the name Make America Hate Again (an obvious nod to Donald Trump’s political slogan Make America Great Again), the lineup is Juan Brujo (vocals), El Cynico (Jeff Walker of Carcass on bass), Aa Kuernito (Chris Paccou on guitar, otherwise a sound engineer for Carcass and Napalm Death), El Sangron (vocals), Hongo Jr. (the legendary Nicholas Barker behind the drum kit, known from Lock Up, Testament, Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth, Borknagar, Possessed, Twilight of the Gods) and vocalist/concubine Pititis.
But before the Mexicans sneaked onto the stage, it was taken by local heroes GMB, who spent three quarters of an hour belting out a set of death metal laced with thrash and grind, so toxic and so greasy that even the burek in the kiosk next door could have hidden from the grease. The death metal looked chaotic and at times disjointed, but only on first listen, because GMB tie it all together successfully with Govekar’s brutal riffing, the fat groove of Nik’s lively bass lines and wildly earth-shaking drums, while David’s animalistic vocals, able to go from deep growls to higher-pitched screams, take it a step further. David also spices up the Kranj band’s set with inappropriate but all the funnier banter. GMB were a very fitting warm-up for the rest of the long-awaited evening.
Which was already under threat during GMB’s set, as ominous black clouds started gathering over Kranj, and it looked like some American agency like the ATF was playing out a conspiracy theory above our heads, trying to cause a storm with chemtrails and stop the gig. But only a few drops fell from the clouds, so that’s 1:0 for Brujeria. They hit the stage brutal and uncompromising with the hit Raza Odiada (Pito Wilson) – translated, Hated Race (Dick Wilson) – dedicated to the American Republican senator Pete Wilson, who had views on immigrants similar to Trump’s today. The band was in great form and great spirits from the first moment, and it whipped a nicely packed crowd into a wild satanic dance, a crowd that stayed loyal to its Mexican overlords until the very end. Juan Brujo and El Sangron spewed hateful lyrics out of their throats like a volcano, though they could have made a bit more effort to use some more English between songs. Instrumentally the band charged ahead like a rabid chihuahua, with Walker’s rattling bass and Barker’s drums firing like artillery. Paccou was solid too, and he earned bonus points just for the Voivod shirt. Before the song Pititis, te Invoco, the female vocalist Pititis joined the guys on stage, fitting the whole picture just as nicely, and then came an excellent string of crushers like Angel de la frontera, Marcha de odio, Brujerizmo and Anti-Castro. Even the new track Viva Presidente Trump! wasn’t missing, a taste of the new album Pocho Aztlan coming out in September (and it would have been even more symbolic if Brujeria had played in Sevnica, hehe). The end came too fast, when Juan Brujo pulled out a machete and announced the closer Matando Güeros. There was moshing, shouting and roaring along with the band, even stage divers made an appearance, and Brujeria had no trouble creating a great atmosphere at a great venue, signing off after an hour and a quarter with the obligatory Marijuana. So the answer to the question? Yes, we want Brujeria!
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