interview with marco of el vaquero muerto

One day I was searching Google images for “freedom or death” when I happened upon an ***-kicking babe wearing wicked tooled leather stuff, including chaps that had “FREEDOM OR DEATH” emblazoned upon them. After a little research, I found the two partners who made and sold the leather clothing and, as I often do, asked if they wanted to you know what. So here it is, a nifty interview with Marco of El Vaquero Muerto Leather Art:

bM: Your website states that your partnership “started in The Office while at bad boy camp in 2002.” What are “The Office” and “bad boy camp?”

EVM: Sal and I have never been men to run with the herd. We blazed our own trails, making our own mistakes while also forging our own destiny and being responsible for our own success. So when we both wound up doing time together in the Federal Penn, we took matters into our own hands and began to hone our artistic skills and work together to forge a new path. Try as they might to take our time from us, we held onto it and used it to form the basis of El Vaquero Muerto Leather Art.

bM: Yeah. You’re talking to the guy who almost lost his right forearm because a fly ****** him off. I’m well aware of the “mistakes” part. Please finish this sentence:   “I am going to start a new religion, but I have to…”

EVM: F**k a new religion! El Vaquero Muerto is all about being an individual and living your life free and fierce. My motto is “Sin Boldly” which, to me means you have the ***** to make your mistakes, have your triumphs and forge your own destiny with determination, will and attitude. To create a new religion would be to give the masses just another way to **** off the responsibility for lives half lived and El Vaquero Muerto does not do life half lived. You wanna thank a daddy every time something goes your way and cry to him every time it doesn’t, then go back to Sunday school. You wanna take life head on and get up swingin’ every time you’re knocked off your feet then come hang out with me and we’ll drink whiskey like real men.

bM: Ummmmm! Jesus is so gonna leave a bad review of El Vaquero Muerto on Yelp. Also accepted would have been, “…kill everybody first.” Yeah. I found your work when I Googled “freedom or death.” What was the origin of those pieces (the motorcycle mask and chaps) and what does that slogan mean to you?

EVM: The “Freedom or Death” chaps were conceived and created in Los Angeles, in 2008. Getting the business started was hard and as funding fell through, bills piled up and whiskey began to get scarce I knew I had to grit my teeth and push on. The “Freedom or Death” chaps were that teeth gritting. I wanted a showpiece that showed my determination and skill and I didn’t want it to cover the beautiful *** I knew it would one day show off.

The “Freedom or Death” motorcycle riding mask was created in Phoenix in 2009 for my good friend Evil Dave. Angered by the audacity of Big Brother to put cameras on the freeways, Evil Dave came to me for a mask that would protect his freedom of privacy while making a statement that said, “These trespasses will not be tolerated.” Fitted to rest slightly off his face to allow easy breathing and talking, the mask is a distressed brown fading to black with the words “Freedom or Death” along the jaw line in dingy white old west lettering. He was kind enough to lend it to the photoshoot with Megaen Machine which also featured the “Freedom or Death” chaps.

Like I said previously, El Vaquero Muerto is all about the freedom to live your life the way you choose. Thus, along with my logo “Sin Boldly”, “Freedom or Death” is a motto I state often to remind myself and those around me that I would rather die than spend my days in bondage or servitude no matter how much safety, security or wealth Big Brother promises. You can bet your *** I won’t die quietly, either.

bM: Excellent. What is the best thing about being a leather artist?

EVM: The freedom, man. As a leather artist I create kick-*** gear and artwork and I do it because it is what I love and the path I have chosen. Every setback is my responsibility to overcome and, on the other side of it, every triumph is the product of my hard work, will and creativity. I am my own man and work for my success, not someone else’s. Oh, and the women, whiskey and rock n’ roll are other killer benefits too.

bM: What is the worst?

EVM: The freedom, of course. It’s all my responsibility. When a job deadline looms and the piece isn’t finished, it’s me that has to throw back a couple of shots and a few Monsters and pull the all-nighter to make it happen. There is no clocking out, no shuffing it off on someone else. But it’s the love/hate that keeps it interesting and makes it all worthwhile. Oh, and sometimes the women, whiskey and rock n’ roll can exact their vengeance, too. But again, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

bM: I know the feeling, dude. How much for one of your killer motorcycle masks?

EVM: $250 is the most common price, though I have designs that are less expensive and ones that are more. In the end, it really depends on what the client wants and how long that will take me to accomplish and since my custom pieces are always about showing off the style of the client, this can vary a bit.

bM: In your experience, what is the difference between a woman who likes to wear your stuff and one who does not? Besides the **** *** part.

EVM: I’m a big fan of women in general, but nothing gets my gears rockin’ like a badass chick with style. Luckily, those are the kind of women who contact me about leather art. A set of bracers, a purse, a riding mask, or a carved underbust; they love it all in leather and all custom. And that’s not even getting into the kinky leather requests I get. Those women are crazy and I love every moment of it. Sometimes I see a girl out in public somewhere showing off her new Prada bag to her friends and I just love to send one of my girls walking past, oozing *** and rock n’ roll and slingin’ a custom purse from their shoulder. With all eyes on my girl and her bag, it’s clear that “expensive taste” doesn’t equal “b**chin’ style.”

bM: The female douchebag. I mock them freely as well. Why the Dia de los Muertos motif? We want more Hello Kitty! Seriously though, please tell us why this more than just cool stuff to freak out your friends (note: arrogant artist statement with nonsensical terms will be fine).

EVM: In my artwork I draw heavily from Dio de los Muertos, the Southwest (I was born and raised in the deserts of Arizona), tattoo aesthetic, and rockabilly culture. The result is a monstrous mix of all the things I think are b**chin’ rolled into one. Take my skeleton girls, for example. People are always asking me, “Why do your skeletons have ****?” Why someone would question a good thing in the first place is always beyond me, but I try to humor them. So I answer, “I like skeletons; I like ****. It just seems like the right thing to do.” I’ve got artsy-fartsy answers for it to, something about life-giving elements juxtaposed with elements representing death to provoke thoughts on the cyclical nature of existence, but the truth of the matter is I like me some b**chin’ stuff so I draw me some b**chin’ stuff.

bM: F**k yeah, man. Your stuff is surely b**chin’. Beer is a big thing here our little web place. Would you share a beer-soaked story with our readers?

EVM: Some drunk guy at a bar once told me that every good story starts with a woman. Poor ******* wasn’t dreaming big enough. This story begins with 15 girls. Add a strip club, a psychobilly band, zombie makeup and professional film equipment and you have the shoot for Creepsville 666’s “My Baby’s a Psycho” music video, filmed one Sunday afternoon in Phoenix.

After the shoot everyone was trashed. One of the makeup artists was wearing my bondage face mask which has a hole on the mouth perfect for, I’m finding out, taking shots. It was a debaucherous and drunken mass. By this time it is getting dark and the club’s regular clientele start to wander in, along with a few people from the burger joint across the street who followed two hot zombie babes back. The girls decided to throw an impromptu zombie stripper show and the party continued into the night…

bM: Zombie strippers. Ever seen that movie? Jenna Jameson, Robert Englund, and a bunch of **** stars in a so-bad-it’s-funny flick. Some of the dialog is actually hysterical.

Okay guys, now you see what happens when you Google “freedom or death.” Visit Marco at El Vaquero Muerto Leather Art and get some killer leather stuff to wear. Freak out the squares. Nobody on this NBA show I’m watching has any hair. I could go on, like you care…

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