Los Hermanos Alacranes, “the Scorpion Brothers,” are veteran Richmond players who hit the scene with a distinctive, fully realized sound of cinematic rock with a Spanish soul. Debuting last year at the 2023 Church Hill Irish Festival, they have played the Richmond Folk Festival and opened for national acts like the Sadies and rock-en-Espanol icons Los Straightjackets and Los Lobos. All of this before the release of their first album.
Paulo Franco, or to give his full Colombian name, Paulo Emilio Franco Londono, is the lead vocalist and the center of attention. But he sees the Alacranes as more of a collaboration than his last band, Paulo Franco and the Freightliners. He gives full credit for the group’s formation to drummer Rob Lytle, a longtime member of the Cashmere Jungle Lords.
“I literally was thinking to myself, you know that guy Rob’s been bugging the shit out of me to call him,” Franco says. “And the minute that thought went through my head, he sent me a message on Facebook.” The two decided to put together a band centered on Spanish language songs, which were a feature but not the focus of the Freightliner’s Americana music. “Rob said we could debut the music at the Irish Festival. I had been trying to get into that thing for years and never got any response … He said I will call you right back. Two minutes later we were on the bill. I said we do not even have a band yet. He said, ‘Don’t worry about that.”
The band quickly coalesced, with Franco on guitar and vocals, Lytle on drums, longtime Richmonder Paul Pearce (Vexine) on lead guitar and vocals, and former Jungle Lord Brian Martin on bass. (The busy Martin later dropped out, replaced by Turtle Zwadlo, who played with Franco in his first original music band, the Rateros.)
Experience and existing musical relationships helped. So did the backing of Shockoe Records, who were part of the mix from the beginning. “They saw us open for Los Lobos,” Lytle says. “The energy is there, and they have really helped us out a ton.” This includes both polishing and releasing their upcoming album and featuring them on a February edition of their weekly streamer “Shockoe Sessions Live.” The label’s energy and enthusiasm added momentum. “They saw we were different,” Lytle says. “We have come a long way. I was not going to be in another Americana or cover band. This is something I am really proud of.”
“It’s not like we are the first band playing rock-and-roll in Spanish,” Franco says. “But I think we are definitely the first band in Richmond doing that. People ask if we play Spanish music. Not necessarily. We are really first and foremost a rock band. Paul [Pearce] is such a phenomenal guitar player, and he really enjoys just letting the throttle go and, you know.”
He notes that they have “this cool little stripped-down acoustic set, but we are at our best when we are all amplified.” His songwriting is more geared towards Spanish stuff, he says, but the new record is actually eight songs in Spanish and three in English. Whatever the language, the vibe is fresh and consistent, with a Latin, cumbia-infused rhythm and more than a hint of romance and danger.
The band got its name from the song “Alacane y Pistolero” from Austin, Texas band Chingon. Featured in director Roberto Rodriguez’s Mexican spaghetti western “Desperado” trilogy, the song tells of the random death of a gunfighter, stung by a scorpion in the desert night when stopped to gaze at the stars.
For a bilingual songwriter, subtle differences are challenging. Nouns are gendered, which inflects their meaning in context. The vocabulary is different. In English there is only one word for “scorpion.” In Spanish there are two: the larger, less aggressive “Escorpion” and the smaller, more poisonous “Alacrane.”
While they have day jobs – Franco is an attorney, Lytle a contractor- they are deadly serious about the band. “Nothing pisses me off more than being called a hobby band,” Lytle says. “We are having such a great time opening for bigger bands.”
He notes that they probably have to tone down the breweries: “We are not a brewery band. We are not a cover band. You do not want to get overexposed. We know we have to support the record, but we are not forcing ourselves to go out and play. We are older, selective dudes.”
Their next, select appearance is at the thriving Révéler Experiences in Carytown, with a release party for their first single- “Burn Me”- from the upcoming album on Shockoe Records. Charlottesville-based honkytonk band Ramona and the Holy Smokes opens.
Los Hermanos Alacranes with Ramona and the Holy Smokes plays Révéler Experiences Friday, April 26 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15.
