Mexican Country

Put in the journalistic lingo known as cliche-o-rama, Thee El Rodeo Restaurant and Nightclub is the hottest Latin club around.

But before you rush out to your salsa lesson, be aware of one thing: This hottest Latin nightspot in the L.A. area has diddly-squat to do with salsa--and even less to do with Latin pop.

In fact, if Ricky “loca” Martin showed up at El Rodeo in his skinny Armani pants, he’d either have to learn to two-step in ostrich-skin boots or have his bon-bon escorted to the nearest Starbucks.

That’s because here in Los Angeles we don’t need that Miami-style Latin thing. We’ve got our own thing. Banda, norteno, corridos--everything El Rodeo’s owner, Santiago Acuna, refers to as “Mexican country.”

Acuna, who also owns a construction contracting business, bought the El Rodeo complex four years ago. And now, after some decent remodeling and publicity, he’s proud to say it is “the most famous Latin club in L.A.”

According to those plugged into the whole country/rodeo scene in town, the 850-capacity El Rodeo is among the most popular. Several other hot spots have popped up, including El Castillo in La Puente, and El Jaripeno Mexicano Rodeo in Compton.

Keep in mind that we’re not talking about some fringe movement here. The No. 1 and No. 2 radio slots in Los Angeles are usually filled by stations that play Mexican country. It is what blares from storefronts along Broadway. Mexican country groups like Los Rieleros del Norte and Los Tucanes de Tijuana sell millions of recordings in Southern California.

As for all those stereotypes about this music being dated and only popular with beer-bellied viejitos with enormous mustaches full of chicarron crumbs, pues, that’s a patent lie. Mexican country is hipster music now. There’s a whole new genre called techno-banda. The reason? It’s called Los Angeles.

You won’t have trouble finding El Rodeo. It’s the only building on Washington Street with palm trees out front draped in twinkling white lights. You’ll know you’re in the right place when you see groups of young, well-dressed people streaming toward the building.

Spanish Dominates but English Is OK

Parking attendants in black-and-white outfits take your $4 when you pull in. If you get there before 9 p.m., you only pay a $5 cover. After that, the cover is anywhere from $20 to $25, depending on who is performing.

You notice right away that the crowd is young, 18-plus, with plastic wristbands snapped onto those older than 21 who wish to drink. Plenty of kids even younger try to get in, but security is tight. On a recent night, a group of clean-cut, sweet-smelling high school boys were turned away at the door for being underage.

English is as common as Spanish for conversations, but Spanish is the official party language here. If you don’t speak Spanish but want to go hang out, here are a couple of slang phrases to try out: The music is excelente; the band is a toda madre.

Many of the “kids” say they used to favor rap, rock and hip-hop, but changed to Mexican country because Mexican music is cool.

The men here are urban cowboys. Most have never roped a calf, and never will. During the week, they work in suits and khakis. But on the weekend, they dress the part, with their ostrich-skin boots, and white cowboy hats.

The women, on the other hand, are not dressed like cowgirls. They dress like women at any nightclub, in tight skirts or other revealing outfits. We spied at least two pairs of clear plastic spiked heels with metal tips, and plenty of gold jewelry and lipstick.

The live bands that play at El Rodeo are impressive. The famed Banda el Recodo has been here, and so has Conjunto Primavera. Ramon Ayala will be here in July, as will Julio Preciado. The legendary Lorenzo de Montecarlo is scheduled to perform this summer too.

If it is still difficult to imagine young Angelenos flocking to hear small acoustic bands play polka-sounding dance music from Mexico, please recall last year’s Gap ads featuring young hipsters dancing to swing. It’s all good.

Well, almost all good. The air inside El Rodeo is not good. It is stuffy and stifling. Walking into the large main room feels like walking into someone’s beer mouth. But it’s all good, excelente, magnifico.

See you there. Orale.

BE THERE

Thee El Rodeo Restaurant & Nightclub, 8825 E. Washington St., Pico Rivera. Cover varies, $5-$25. (562) 942-0755.