San Antonio Tex-Mex garage-rockers
the Krayolas, who sharpened their political claws on the Little Steven-endorsed "Corrido (Twelve Heads In a Bag)," have set their sights on Arizona's controversial anti-immigration law on the band's new single "1070 (I'm Your Dirty Mexican)."
The Krayolas recorded the glowering, mid-tempo "Mexican," the first song featuring the band's original lineup of Hector Saldana (vocals/bass/organ), his brother David (drums/vocals) and Van Baines (guitar) since debut 45 "All I Do Is Try," last Sunday at San Antonio's Blue Cat Studio. It was getting radio play on Alamo City stations KEDA and KSYM within 12 hours, says Hector Saldana, and is also available on iTunes and streaming on the Krayolas' Web site.
Listen to it here.
"I think this is an important issue and felt I couldn't be on the fence," Hector told Rocks Off via email.
Saldana says his mom helped him with translating the lyrics into Spanish, with a nudge from Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven." "1070" is the number of the Arizona senate bill that granted the state's law-enforcement agencies sweeping - and, opponents claim, unconstitutional - new powers to enforce immigration laws, touched off a wave of protests and boycotts (including at Minute Maid Park when the Arizona Diamondbacks played the Astros earlier this week) and caused the Mexican government to issue a travel advisory about the Grand Canyon State.
The "dirty Mexican" refrain, meanwhile, is a tweak at the Twitter update
former Dallas sports-talk radio host Mike Bacsik tweeted after a Dallas Mavericks-San Antonio Spurs NBA playoff game last month: "Congrats to all you dirty Mexicans in San Antonio." Bacsik was fired by Dallas station KTCK the next day.
Saldana said he's already written an album's worth of new songs, some of which the Krayolas played at their Continental Club show with the Freddy Steady 5 last month. The band, whose latest album
Americano was released in January, may be back in Houston for an in-store next month, he added.
LYRICS (ESPANOL):
El silencio de la noche
Es silencio nada mas
Y la noche de silencio
Pasajera nada mas
Y no voy a ser tu cabeza de turco
La gente de la tierra
Es mi gente nada mas
Y la gente en las calles
No se callan nunca mas
Y no voy a ser tu cabeza de turco
1070 (no way!)
1070 (no way!)
1070 (no way!)
No me voy patras, dejanos en paz (I ain't no dirty Mexican)
No me voy patras, dejanos nomas (I'm your dirty Mexican)
El camino nunca cambia
Nunca cambia nada mas
Y la sangre se derrama
Ay vecinos cuidense vale mas
Y no voy ser tu cabeza de turco
1070 (no way!)
1070 (no way!)
1070 (no way!)
No me voy atras, dejanos en paz (I ain't no dirty Mexican)
No me voy atras, dejanos nomas (I'm your dirty Mexican)
LYRICS (ENGLISH)
The silence
Of the night
Is silence
Nothing more
And this night
Of silence
Is fleeting
Nothing more
And I'm not going to be your scapegoat
The people
Of the land
Are my people
Nothing more
And the people
In the streets
They will not be silenced
Never more
And I'm not going to be your scapegoat
1070 (No way!)
1070 (No way!)
1070 (No way!)
I'm not going back
Leave us in peace (I ain't your dirty Mexican)
I'm not going back
Let us be (I'm your dirty Mexican)
I'm not going back
Leave us in peace (I ain't your dirty Mexican)
I'm not going back
Let us be (I'm your dirty Mexican)
The road
Never changes
Never changes
Never more
Blood
It spills
Oh, neighbors
You'd better take care
And I'm going to be your scapegoat
Repeat chorus
Words and music by Hector Saldana. Copyright 2010.
In other 1070-related entertainment news, Wednesday San Antonio-born director Robert Rodriguez released a re-edited version of the trailer for his new film,
Machete, featuring star Danny Trejo introducing footage from the film with the message "This is Machete, with a special Cinco de Mayo message... to Arizona!"
Machete, scheduled for release in September, co-stars Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Alba and Robert de Niro.
Watch the trailer here.
