Attack of the Menacing Mariachis

Sure, when you joined that Mariachi band it all looked so good. You had visions of silver studded charro outfits, big sequined hats and long nights serenading couples as they sipped their frozen margaritas. And chicks dig Mariachis, just ask Linda Ronstadt. You were going to make bank singing Spanish folk music cheesier than the enchiladas, but then something went horribly wrong. Your band mates turned out to be a pair of tequila swilling reprobates who were more interested in cruising the restaurant parking lot for unlocked cars than perfecting their renditions of Mariachi standards like the Mexican Hat Dance. So what do you do? You quit, of course.

Or so thought Ervey Ruiz, 52, of Denver. Turns out those Mariachi bands have more than a little in common with the Mafia. When Ervey Ruiz announced his intention to join a different Mariachi group he found himself in a situation straight out of a Robert Rodriguez movie. Alvaro Alvarado-Amarias, 31, leader of the Torros de la Sierra, is now serving three years probation after holding Mr. Ruiz at gunpoint for five hours threatening to kill him. All because he wanted to go to a different Mariachi group- one that carried musical instruments in those guitar cases rather than guns. Watch out for those Mariachis: ellos son pocos, pero locos.

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