Viva Ayala! Though Ram was very giving, he was not a particularly polite man
In this week's print issue, we assembled an oral history of Taco Land, the spot that the unsavory and endearing Ram Ayala ran from 1965 to 2005. 10 years ago to the day, Ayala was shot and killed at his venue by a pair of thieves sticking up the bar (shooter Joseph Gamboa is on death row, while assailant Jose Najera is serving a 50-year sentence).
In its rock 'n' roll heyday, from the early '90s up until June of 2005, Taco Land was defined by the wrecking crew of barflys and musicians that kept the place in operation. Though Ram is gone and the building is in a new non-punk life, the spirit of the place lives on in the memory of the assembled homies tonight at the 10 year memorial.
Tonight, starting at 6 p.m. Studio One Zero Three hosts a memorial for Taco Land. Roland "Nightrocker" Fuentes, a booking co-conspirator at the bar, assembled Ram art for the occasion. Erik Sanden, singer of Buttercup and prized pupil of the Taco Land school of debauchery, will give his Pecha Kucha talk at 8 p.m.
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