REVIVED JAGUARES READY TO POUNCE ON LATIN ROCK SCENE.

Byline: Cary Darling Orange County Register

Bands often disintegrate in a firestorm of personal acrimony, and it's no prettier when it's not in English. Case in point: Jaguares. The Mexico City quartet, which headlines at the Greek Theatre in Hollywood tonight, is the latest incarnation of Caifanes, one of the leading bands of the burgeoning rock en Espanol scene.

Caifanes fell apart because the two main members - vocalist-guitarist Saul Hernandez and lead guitarist Alejandro Marcovich - were having too many personality conflicts. ``The differences between Saul and Alejandro have been there since the beginning,'' drummer Alfonso Andre observed. ``Saul couldn't work with Alejandro anymore. He told him he wasn't going to keep working with him, so the band disbanded. We don't want to force things. We prefer to call it quits.''

The name Caifanes was discarded for legal reasons. ``Instead of getting into this battle that could take years, we decided, `Let's move on. We want to make music.' ''

Guitarist Jose Manuel Aguilera was recruited to take Marcovich's place (the remaining member is bassist Federico Fong) and the band was reborn as Jaguares - Spanish for jaguars. Andre says the name bears historical resonance to Mexico.

``It goes back to the ancient culture,'' he said. ``(The jaguar) was a deity in ancient times.''

Certainly, this jaguar has landed on its feet. Jaguares' first album, ``El Equilibrio de los Jaguares (The Equilibrium of the Jaguars),'' is co-produced by Don Was and Ed Cherney (Bonnie Raitt, B-52's, Elton John, Rolling Stones) and features high-profile guests such as Flaco Jimenez, Mark Isham, Billy Preston and Paulinho da Costa.

``Saul made a demo with only acoustic guitar and voice. He sent it to Don and he really liked it,'' said Andre, who noted that it was Don who called in some of his big-name session friends.

As with so many Mexican rock bands these days, their country's economic crisis affected the music. ``Saul's lyrics always reflect what he's living and a certain period of time we're living in,'' Andre said. `` `Las Ratas No Tienen Alas' (Rats Don't Have Wings) talks about some crooked politicians of which there are so many.''

The resulting album is a moody mix of elements that compares sonically to the Cure and Smashing Pumpkins. Now, the band is starting to get noticed in non-Spanish-language circles. ``Peter Gabriel approached us about a ... festival in Latin America,'' Andre said. ``But it's still in the works.''

THE FACTS

Who: Jaguares.

Where: The Greek Theatre, 2700 N. Vermont Ave., Hollywood.

When: 7:30 tonight.

Tickets: $15.50, $18, $28.50, $45.

Information: [phone].

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Photo

Photo: The Mexico City quartet Jaguares headlines at the Gr eek Theatre in Hollywood tonight.