Coming from a band that has persevered for a decade and a half, that sounds outlandish. Moreover, they've led dual lives for the past eight years, maintaining an alter ego as Mariachi El Bronx that as is as true to that form of music as their hardcore is to the punk ethos. Prove themselves? Yes, that’s the way the Los Angeles-based quintet thinks and works.
“The Bronx V” is out now. The band — Ford, Caughthran, guitarist Ken Horne, bassist Brad Magers and drummer David Hidalgo Jr. (replacing Jorma Vik, who departed the band in 2016) — recorded the album over five weeks with renowned producer Rob Schnapf, whose wide array of gear allowed them to add considerable nuance to their blistering guitar volleys.
Lacking none of the band’s typically pugilistic fervor, “The Bronx V” lands punches exactly where they’re aimed.