Sing the Drug Lord’s story in song and you’re bound to be living “Entre Dios y el Diablo” (“Between God and the Devil”). This is something norteño star Gerardo Ortiz became all too aware of in 2011 as his meteoric rise to the top coincided with the murder of his cousin and manager Ramiro Caro. No surprise, then, that the emotional song “Ramiro Caro” is one of this album’s furious highlights, but in keeping with the album’s theme, the narcocorrido “Leyenda Caro Quintero” is its balancing equal, stately telling the story of notorious Mexican drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero. Love songs are also split into dark and light with heartbreaking, angry breakups being contrasted with a wonderful version of Bob Marley’s open-hearted “Este Amor [Is This Love]”. Driving it all home is Ortiz’s energy and a norteño band that plays everything a touch faster than the competition.