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San Patricios  East L.A.’s Ollin have again ventured into fresh musical territory with a new genre crossing release. Known for fusing the traditional sounds of Mexico with the raw energy of L.A. punk, Ollin has now thrown the lilt of the Irish into the mix. With their latest release “San Patricios” , the 6 musical tracks stylistically range from pachuco-swing, to cumbia, to Irish gigue, to rock meets salsa – Now that’s a well packed tamale.
Conceptually, San Patricios is a tribute to a brigade of American soldiers (of mostly Irish decent) that fought during the Mexican-American war (1846-1848). These soldiers, many of whom were shanghaied into fighting for the U.S., did something that had never happened before; after witnessing the brutality of the U.S. army on a defenseless indigenous population (who were devout Catholics like themselves), they switched sides and fought valiantly for the Mexican army. These soldiers were known in Mexico as “Los San Patricios”. America eventually won the war (and the Southwest as we now know it with the signing of The Treaty of Hidalgo) and the beloved San Patricios were hung in Mexico by their former American compatriots.
Metaphorically, “San Patricios” is an output that parallels the war that surrendered the Southwest to the U.S. and the political currents of today. In the pachuco boogie track “Angels Flight” (an old cable car system that lies dormant in downtown LA); the intent of the song is to expose the seedy political underbelly that once ruled the city with an iron fist, and to reassure that those in power have found more discrete ways of conducting its business. The cumbia, “La Loma”, pays homage to a neighborhood that was bulldozed, by the City of Los Angeles to ultimately build Dodger Stadium. This tune was originally featured in the production of the Culture Clash play Chavez Ravine at The Mark Taper Forum in 2003 (brothers and Ollin band leaders Scott and Randy Rodarte were musicians/cast members in the production). The title track “San Patricios”, is an instrumental track that tells the story of the soldiers. Combing their heroism to stand up against what is morally right, and the inevitable price to pay for their defection, the San Patricios swing from the gallows. Yet the feeling of optimism and a Celtic-Mexican bond triumphs and lives to this very day. “When”, produced by Oingo Boingo producer and bassist, is a personal examination of life in the barrio – it expresses the yearnings of the life of an artist and the desire to be given the chance to be heard. “The Last Chicano” is a musical poem describing the dichotomy of being Chicano. By mixing the Latin rhythms with the hard edge of the power chord, it’s a musical analogy of being Chicano; unaccepted by America because of where they are from, and being unaccepted by Mexicans for the very same reason. “Diamond Dub is a remix of “La Loma”, again letting the voices of the Chavez Ravine residents tell their side of the story.
The cover art of “San Patricios” is a masterfully done drawing by the San Antonio visual artist and Ollin trumpeter, Vincent Valdez. It depicts all the members of Ollin as San Patricio soldiers being led to their historical fate.
“San Patricios” is a 20 minute EP, but it’s a mighty EP with the music and artistic vision to back it up.
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