Watch Doc on Famed Mexican Extreme-Metal Act Disgorge’s First-Ever U.S. Show

One of the biggest highlights from this year's Red Bull Music Academy Festival Los Angeles was 'Todo Es Metal,' a one-night-only celebration of Latin-American metal at the Los Angeles Theatre, uniting thrash, death, black, grind and heavy metal bands from both sides of the border. The October 21st event, which marked the first stateside performance from the famed Mexican extreme-metal outfit Disgorge in their 20-year career, is the focus of Angela Boatwright's new, cinematic short of the same name, out today, December 15th.

Clocking in at just under 7 minutes, 'Todo Es Metal' finds Boatwright (Thrasher, Vice, Los Punks: We Are All We Have) shedding light on this historic merger of Mexican and Californian scenes by way of interviews with musicians and fans alike. To witness Disgorge's pioneering role in the scene firsthand, she attends one of their hometown rehearsals, in Querétaro, Mexico. "When they [Disgorge] came out in the scene, we were super ostracized," longtime promoter Sergio says with a smile, "and all the noise heard from outside would cause all the cops to show up."

Later, Boatwright meets up with L.A. black-metal outfit Mictlantecuhtli to highlight metal's importance as a cultural outlet for Latinx communities grappling with tenuous immigration laws and rampant gentrification. "In our neighborhood, all the mom and pop shops are losing a lot of business. We're just trying to state the message of the warrior spirit – of fighting on," explains the band's bassist Tlaloc, who derives his stage name from the Aztec god of rain. "It applies to people protesting police brutality, and immigrants that are affected by DACA."

Check out 'Todo Es Metal' now.