Mutilated Tyrant - Ho'dichiih Dóó' Sáji'

 

Artist: Mutilated Tyrant

Album: Ho'dichiih Dóó' Sáji'

Label: Self-Released

Year: 2020

Country: USA

Genre: Black Metal

Mutilated Tyrant are a black metal trio from Ganado, Arizona, which is on the Navajo Nation Reservation. This is their second release and first EP. While their first demo, Dark Sign of the Baphomet, was more death metal influenced and steeped in metal cliches of satanism and blasphemy, this EP sees the band honing in a more purely black metal sound, definitely inspired by the second wave Norwegian scene. As the EP's title would suggest, this release also focuses more on the band's Navjo/Diné roots. The title translates to "Birth to Old". 

The EP begins with the sound of crows cawing over a sinister synth loop and the beating of war drums, setting the attitude for the journey ahead. The band wastes no time after the intro, with "Under the Cold Dark Moon" starting immediately with an assault of tremolo picked chords and blasting drums. The music evokes the feeling of a nightside journey under the full moon on horseback through the vast deserts that the Navajo call home. The band does an excellent job of breathing new life into the cold and bleak sounds that the Norwegians innovated, without sounding like a lazy copy cat. There is a mystical nature to these songs, that would fit nicely as soundtrack to a nocturnal ceremony around a large fire. The band mentions that these four songs are going to be part of a full-length album due some time in the near future, and I look forward to when that day comes. 

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Meridion - Rise From The South

Artist: Meridion

Album: Rise From The South

Label: Self-Released

Year: 2018

Country: Chile

Genre: Death Metal

Meridion are a death metal band from Santiago, Chile. This is their debut effort. The band create otherworldy angular and swirling death metal that incorporates electronics in a way that is hypnotic and almost trance-inducing and unlike any other band I've heard. The band pays tribute to the Selk'nam tribes of Southern Chile, with the album cover depicting a man in traditional ceremonial body pain and mask that are centers of the Kloketen rite of passage that Selk'nam men underwent. 

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Zurg - Decolonizing Black Metal

 Artist: Zurg 

Album: Decolonizing Black Metal 

Label: Self-Released 

Year: 2020

 Country: USA 

Genre: Raw Black Metal

Zurg are a three piece black metal band from Arizona. This is their debut demo. Inspired by the members collective Apache, Pima, and Zapotec ancestry, they create raw black metal teeming with ancestral rage. The tape begins with the sounds of war as it would sound in the 1800s, with muskets blaring, horses galloping, and bugle fanfares before a the beat of a war drum begins and the first riff enters. With the tone set, the band delve into a old school black metal march. Following the first track we get more aggressive cuts like "Paleface" and "Ancestral Terror" which sound like the band are out for colonizer blood. This is a strong beginning for this band and I look forward to what their future holds

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Jeksolok - Jetaksor

 

Artist: Jeksolok 

Album: Jetaksor 

Label: Self-Released

Year: 2019 

Country: Chile 

Genre: Post-Black Metal

Jeksolok are a one-man post-black metal band from Punta Arenas in the southern tip of Chile. This is their debut EP. The EP starts with a melancholic guitar intro before soaring into the first track, "Saltaxar" a beautiful song that balances lush atmosphere and piercing catharsis of bands like Woods of Desolation and Cold Body Radiation. The following song "C'ek'eslak" has a much colder and more brooding atmosphere, capturing the feeling of the cold and rigid terrain of the band's southern homelands. A beautiful and dreamy instrumental track "Os Jeterhana" precedes the title track, an anthemic conclusion teeming with pride and glory. 

Thematically, the band takes inspiration from the mythology and cosmology of the Kawésqar indigenous people of the Chilean Patagonia.  It is believed that their history in the region extends over six-thousands years! Unfortunately like many indigenous cultures, the culture and language of the Kawésqar is being practiced by fewer people as time passes. Jeksolok's music is powerful not only by its own right but also because it is preserving part of an ancient culture. 

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Laftrache - Voces Ancestrales

Artist: Laftrache

Album: Voces Ancestrales

Label: Kuyen Prod

Year: 2015

Country: Chile

Genre: Black Metal

Laftrache are black metal band from Villa Alemana, Chile. This is their debut demo. First we have   the track "Contra El Que Porte El Cruz" an anti-christian anthem. The song start with the resonant chime of a singing bowl, then wastes no times getting into a succession of powerful, thick old school black metal riffing that would make Tom G Warrior proud. The band does not stay at a mid-tempo stomp though, introducing a series of riffs that are very inline with the frost-bitten sounds of Darkthrone. 

The second track "El Clamor Selknam" is where the indigenous roots of the band shine. Inspired by the indigenous people of the Patagonian region, the song starts with a malevolent chord progression and a short spoken word sample of a native Selknam speaking woman Ona, as well as the sound of the Trutruca, a trumpet like instrument invented by the Mapuche made from colihue wood and cattle horn, and a trompe mouth harp. The band uses these instruments to build up the atmosphere before exploding into a merciless black metal attack that slows retreats to the same chord progression the song started with. This is a short but powerful demo, solidifying Laftrache as name to keep on eye on for those interested in metal from Chile and metal bands that pay tribute to their indigenous ancestors

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Kūka'ilimoku - Ka Hui Hawai'i Aloha 'Āina

Artist: Kūka'ilimoku

Album:  Ka Hui Hawai'i Aloha 'Āina 

Label: Self-Released

Year: 2020

Country: USA

 Genre: Black Metal/Punk

Kūka'ilimoku is a one-man band based out of Hawai'i, playing a blistering take on the sound pioneered by Ildjarn. The band is named after the Hawai'ian god of war, which combined with the band's declaration of intent, "Kūka'ilimoku is boundless disgust and hatred of all who leech to sacred lands of Hawai’i",  gives the listener a good idea of why this music is so teeming with rage.  Though lyrics aren't available online, this release is clearly about the history of the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawai'i, with the album's title being an allusion to the sibling nationalist organizations formed by native Hawai'ians to defend their home from annexation. 

The demo opens with hissing feedback and a simple but sinister chord progression before forming into a quick barrage of black metal blasting, then quickly switching to a stomping punk riff, setting the tone for what to expect from Kūka'ilimoku's violent fusion of black metal and punk. The track's title translate to steadfast and is a reference to Queen Lili'okalani's motto "E’onipa’a i ka 'imi na’auao" which means "Be steadfast in the seeking of knowledge." 

Some tracks, like the bombastic "1893" and brooding "1898" allude to the years Hawai'i was overthrown and then later annexed. Other tracks describe the outcome of the event like the cultivation of "Hawai'an Sugarcane" on plantations which were created by people who easily fit the description of "European Rubbish". Overall this demo isn't just brutal assault of seriously kick ass riffs, but is also a great history lesson for any curious listener who wants to do a little research. I heavily recommend checking out this demo, as well the rest of the material they're released in the short time they've been active. 

"For children of Hawai'i both native and from sugarcane day who loved and fought for Hawai'i to be governed by those who had her best interests in mind. Death to all missionaries and rotten politicians."

Arani - Raoni... Armados na honra, guerreiros da terra!

Artist: Arani 

Album: Raoni... Armados na horna, guereiros da terra! 

Label: Barleycorn Produções

Year: 2016 

Country: Brazil 

Genre: Pagan Black Metal

Arani are a one-woman pagan black metal band from Natal, Rio De Grande de Norte, Brazil. This is their debut demo. Their name translates roughly to "furious time" in the Tupi-Guarani language. Based on the demo's subtitle, which translates to "Armed in honor, warriors of the land!", I'm guessing the main title Raoni is a reference to Raoni Metuktire, a famous environmentalist and chief of the Kayapo people, native to regions now know as Pará and Mato Grosso in Brazil.

The demo begins with the sound of birds chirping before a mystical synth melody is introduced, later joined by acoustic guitar plucking and chanted vocals, setting the atmosphere for this journey through the Amazon. Musically the band takes influence from the pagan strain of black metal, with mid-tempo melodic riffing of a valiant nature, chanted vocals, and heavy use of synthesizer being the stand-out characteristics of their sound. Arani goes the extra mile to immerse the listener into a heroic journey forests of the Amazon, from the hooting of owls sampled throughout the track "Reína", the panflute used on "Ataendy Aíba", and the galloping of horses sampled on "Antes Do Fim". Overall this is an excellent pagan black metal demo, and I hope we hear more material from Arani in the future.  

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Eltun - 1553

Artist: Eltun 

Album: 1553

 Label: Self-Released

Year: 2016 

Country: Chile 

Genre: Black Metal

Eltun are a pagan/black metal band from Santiago, Chile. The band take their name for the word "cemetery" in the Mapudungun, the indigenous language of the Mapuche people, native to the southern region of Chile. 1553 is their sophomore release. The EP is inspired by the first wave of the Arauco War, where the warriors Caupolicán and Lautaro led the Mapuche to victory against Spanish colonizer Pedro de Valdivia. Sonically, the band takes inspiration from Scandinavian bands, adapting the classic cold sounds of the north to the frigid winters of the Andes Mountains. Songs like "Bajan Con Antorchas" also incorporates the trompe, a traditional Mapuche jaw harp. This is music that is battle ready and aims for glory, with the band incapsulating the valiant spirit of their Mapuche ancestors and delivering power pagan black metal marching towards victory.

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Tezcatlipoca - Tlayohualtlapelani

Artist: Tezcatlipoca

Album: Tlayohualtlapelani

Label: Iron Bonehead 

Year: 2018

Country: Mexico

Genre: Black Metal

Tezcatlipoca are a Mexican black metal band from León, Guanajuato. This is their sophomore record. The band craft very dark and brooding black metal that sound like its coming from the deepest recesses of Mictlan. Additionally the band incorporate an array of pre-hispanic instruments into their music, from bird like flutes to the deep resonance of the conch shell. The band take their name from the Aztec god of the nigh sky, and all of their songs and lyrics are written in Nahuatl. Overall this is an impressive slab of black metal that embodies the war like spirit of the Mexica war tribes.

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Dispossessed - Warpath Never Ended

Artist: Dispossessed 

Album: Warpath Never Ended

Label: Self-Released

Year: 2019

Country: Australia 

Genre: War Metal

Dispossessed are a black metal band from Sydney, Australia. This is their sophomore album. The band features members that are from Dharug aboriginal nations, and are unapologetically black and indigenous and at war with so called "Australia" and colonizers worldwide. This new record serves as a war cry, and is absolutely blood thirsty. The listener is bombarded with furious and violent barrages of grinding black metal that is seething with contempt for colonization and the havoc it wreaks to this very day. In a genre rife with meatheads and mediocrity, Dispossesed carve for themselves war metal with a fiery passion and intent that is stronger declaration of power and hate than any goat worshipping losers could ever muster. FIRE TO THE COLONY!

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Tunjum - Deidades Del Inframundo

Artist: Tunjum

Album: Deidades Del Inframundo

Label: Dunkelheit Produktionen

Year: 2018

Country: Peru

Genre: Death Metal

Tunjum are a death metal band from Lima, Peru. The band's debut album is an impressive slab of putrid death fucking metal. The riffing is morose and monolithic, taking notes from the barbarism and brutality of old school death metal acts like Autopsy and Massacre. Each track is a bludgeoning of pounding ferocity and some top notch caveman blasting. Thematically, the band takes inspiration from mythology of the ancient Moche culture, which reign over east Peru from 100 CE - 800 CE. The band name is a combination of the verb for killing and dying int he Moche language.

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Illapa - Deshonestos Y Hechiceros

Artist: Illapa

Album: Deshonestos Y Hechiceros 

Label: From The Andes Prod.

Year: 1996

Country: Peru

Genre: Black Metal

Illapa are a black metal band from based out of Lima, Peru. They formed in 1993, and briefly went under the name Funeral Mist before changing their name. This is their debut album. The album features violent and evil black metal with a lot of interesting keyboard work. Though most of the album is standard blasphemic black metal fanfare, the first two songs lyrically focus on mythology of their Inca ancestors. The album cover also features two hechiceros, the name of brujos from the Andes region. 

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Resistant Culture - Welcome To Reality

Artist: Resistant Culture

Album: Welcome To Reality

Label: Seventh Generation Records

Year: 2006

Country: USA

Genre: Grindcore

Resistant Culture are a grindcore band. Originally from LA but now situated in Seattle, the band formed in 2003, raising from the ashes of Resistant Militia. The band's founding members are indigenous descended, and they incorporate native flutes, drums, and chants into their ripping grindcrust, and preach a message of Native American rights, environmentalism, anarchism, and anti-colonialism. This debut album is a bombardment of grinding crust metal, fitting 16 furious tracks in a mere 31 minutes. Metalheads and punks alike will finding something to love about this record.

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Biipiigwan - Nibaak

Artist: Biipiigwan

Album: Nibaak

Label: Sel-Released

Year: 2012

Country: Canada

Genre: Sludge Metal

Biipiigwan are a sludge metal band from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. This is their debut EP. The band is fronted by Musqwaunquot "Musky" Rice, a Ojibwe Anishinaabe First Nations man, and the band takes their name from the Anishinaabemowin word for "war whistle". The title of this EP translates loosely to "wake up!". The lyrics revolve around traditional teachings and the oppressive systems of colonial governments. Musically, the band's brand of sludge is an all out colossal onslaught, teeming with heavy and powerful riffs that come down on your skull like a mammoth stampede. The band flavors these monolithic dirges with dissonant leads that are more devastating than anything any band from the American south has ever conjured. Across the three songs on this EP Biipiigwan solidify their place in the modern sludge scene, and in my opinion could easily claim throne.

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Xolotl - Xolotl

Artist: Xolotl 

Album: Xoltol 

Label: American Line Productions

Year: 2009 

Country: USA 

Genre: Black Metal

Xolotl were a pre-hispanic black metal band based out of Salt Lake City, Utah. They share members with Yaotl Mictlan, and released this one self-titled album. The band takes their name of the sinister Aztec god of lightning and death, and lyrically draw from stories in both Aztec and Mayan mythology. Musically, Xolotl obvious carries some similarities to their sister band, but opt for shorter, more violent tracks than the long-form atmospheric black metal of Yaotl Mictlan. In addition the band incorporates many traditional indigenous flutes, whistles, and percussion into their music that adds a layer of mystique and transports you to the temples of Tenochtitlan. 

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Sangre Y Tierra - Cuando Los Blancos Vienen

Artist: Sangre Y Tierra

Album: Cuando Los Blancos Vienen

Label: Self-Released

Year: 2009

Country: USA

Genre: Black Metal

Sangre Y Tierra was a one man raw depressive black metal act from Holyoke, Massachusetts. This is their debut EP. In addition to themes of self-hatred and depression, Sangre Y Tierra write songs about Puerto Rican and Taino history and ancestral pride. On their debut offering, Sangre Y Tierra create a short but power statement of hatred and loathing. The record starts with a mid-pace dirge seething with venom and a pain that is palpable in the vocal performance. Right after "Pegado A Mierda" unleashes a belligerent torrent of contempt, only with things to slowly crash and fade into oblivion on the final track. A formidable initial offering from this Taino DSBM act. 

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Kalkumakuñ - Profundidad Abismal

Band: Kalkumakuñ

Album: Profundidad Abismal

Label: Self-Released

Year: 2016

Country: Chile

Genre: Black Thrash Metal

Kalkumakuñ are a black thrash metal band from Nueva Imperial, Chile. The is a recorded version of the band's debut demo, which was initially released in 2013. Along with the routine themes of evil and misanthropy that is to be expected with black metal, the band also write songs about the mythology of their Mapuche ancestors, who are a peoples indigenous to Chile, Peru, and Argentina. Across six tracks Kalkumakuñ lay putrid waste, conjuring malevolent spirits such as the Trekle-Wekufe with their fierce and wicked black thrash.

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Ahpuch Oztoc - Nemiliztli In Coatl

Arist: Ahpuch Oztoc

Album - Nemiliztli In Coatl

Label: Eternal Producciones XOCOC

Year: 2006

Country: Mexico

Genre: Black Metal

Ahpuch Oztoc are black metal band from Culiacán, Sinaloa. Their name roughly translate to "In the cave of Ah Puch", Ah Puch being one of the Mayan death gods found in Xibalba. The album title translates roughly to "The Way Of The Serpent" in Nahuatl and all the band's lyrics are also written in Nahuatl. In addition to pre-hispanic themes and a veneration for their ancestors, the band also fits under the banner of RABM, with lyrics in support for the Zapatista Army of National Liberation. Musically, this is old school black metal filled with ice cold, hateful riffing that will make you want to behead capitalists with a macuahuitl. 

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Kaanek - Tucur

Artist: Kaanek
Album: Tucur
Label: Self-Released
Year: 2017
Country: Guatemala
Genre: Black Metal

Kaanek are a raw black metal band from Sololá, Guatemala. The band makes raw black metal inspired by the traditions and oral history of their Kiche Mayan ancestors. Tucur is the Kiche translation for owls, which are symbols of death and the night. Kaanek display their power with two triumphant tracks, with melodic mid-tempo riffing reminiscent of early Greek black metal. In addition to the indigenous themes, the band links to a handbook on how to fight fascism on their bandcamp page. We need more openly indigenous and anti-fascist black metal worldwide!

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Tiyug - Hymns To Anhangá

Artist: Tiyug

Album: Hymns To Anhangá

Label: Self-Released

Year: 2017

Country: Brazil

Genre: Black Metal

Tiyug is a one man atmospheric black metal from Vitoria De Conquista, Brazil. The band's name is "rotten liquid" in Tupi Guarani. This is the band's second record, with lyrical themes centered around Anhangá, a spirit in Tupi mythology that is a protector of animals. Tiyug's brand of black metal sounds really celestial and gorgeous, despite the obvious DSBM influence in the guitar leads. Each song sounds like a journey floating through a spirit forest. 

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