The Pistoleros: Death, Drugs, and Rock and Roll Documentary Delivers the Goods

Fans of the late Lawrence Zubia are going to love Pistoleros: Death, Drugs, and Rock and Roll. It won’t be the easiest thing to watch, but it will satisfy an ache that has been haunting fans, friends, and family since the singer’s death on December 19, 2020, of pancreatitis after contracting pneumonia. It will also shed light on several of the most interesting stories in Arizona music history in a way that’s both thought-provoking and entertaining.

The movie has a sold-out premiere tonight in Tempe, but you can rent it on Vimeo now. More screenings will follow before the film gets a wider release this fall.

Production on the documentary, which was spearheaded by David Hilker and Jeff Freundlich of Fervor Records, who served as producers on the film, and director Steven B. Esparza, began before Zubia’s death and includes some amazing footage of the Chimeras/Pistoleros/Live Nudes front man in action. Alongside his brother Mark Zubia left an indelible mark on Arizona music and the essence of his talent has been well captured here. The music included in the film is lush and wonderful, as well, paying fond tribute to these unforgettable artists.

After working with the Zubia brothers for years, the Fervor team of Hilker and Freundlich posed the idea of helping tell their story. Lawrence had a long history of self-destructive behavior, for example, and his relationship, as well as musical partnership, with Mark was often strained. Until Lawrence’s untimely death, there was always hope that more music would come from them, but now, the fans will have the film to appreciate.

Hilker remembers how the documentary came to be.

“[Lawrence Zubia] was [at Fervor] a lot. I knew his story and I said to him, ‘Hey man, you know, it’s kind of inspirational. We need to tell this story.’ He agreed to it and he thought it should be told, too. We didn’t know where it was going to go, but then we met with [former Arizona Attorney General] Grant Woods because he was a good friend of Lawrence, and we got some money behind the film and we were off to the races. That was four years ago,” says Hilker.

Prior to Woods’ death in 2021, he was active in spearheading litigation against Big Pharma related to opioids.

[Woods] had a real passion for getting these pharmaceutical companies in a position where they could see their comeuppance because they have caused so much damage in our country. In a lot of ways, Lawrence’s story was a microcosm for what has happened all across America,” says Freundlich.

The destructive nature of opioid addiction plays a key role in Pistoleros. Lawrence Zubia speaks candidly on screen about his addiction, as well as his difficult but inspiring road to recovery in the final years of his life. Zubia’s brother Mark, his bandmates,and Cris Kirkwood of the Meat Puppets, add to this cautionary, yet revealing, tale over the 63-minute runtime of the film.

While many viewers will undoubtedly identify with Lawrence Zubia’s struggles, there will be those who identify with Mark Zubia’s sadness, frustration, and anger as well. The film does an excellent job of showing both sides as it truly is a story of dynamic siblings and how the impact of addiction is not just felt by the addict themselves.

One particularly heart-wrenching section of the film details Lawrence Zubia’s friendship with his former bandmate in the Chimeras, the late Doug Hopkins (also of the Gin Blossoms). As both Zubia brothers and their bandmates recount the circumstances of Hopkins’ last days and eventual death, director Esparza and film editor Victor G. Parra expertly weave the story together to reveal the impact it had on Lawrence Zubia’s life.
For Hilker and Freundlich, the experience of producing the documentary (along with Jimmy Gadd) has been both transformative and cathartic.

“The purpose of a documentary is to act as a springboard for dialogue and understanding; to understand a point of view that is different than your own. Because we have a representative of an addict and somebody that’s maybe more on the Al-anon side of the story, so to speak. Hopefully, we are building some understanding and a springboard for dialogue. Everyone who sees this movie or reads this article is affected by addiction somehow,” says Freundlich.

“To me, Lawrence’s story was inspiring, and it is a story of redemption. He had to go so far. You have to be ready to get sober and to take responsibility for your actions and make a change. I think Lawrence illustrates what that was and hopefully, people don’t have to land where he was to realize that,” Hilker says.

“I hope that when people leave the theater or when they watch this on pay-per-view that there’s a feeling of hope,” adds Freundlich.