Yaotl Mictlan

Tunjum – Deidades del Inframundo Review

Tunjum – Deidades del Inframundo Review

“My interest piqued when I read that Tunjum, a Peruvian band releasing their first full length LP, plays “ancestral metal from the land of the Incas!” I checked out their Metal Archives page, and found that they write about “ancient Muchik culture.” I took to Wikipedia to investigate “ancient Muchik culture,” and discovered that researchers believe that human sacrifices and ritual cannibalism were common religious practices of the Moche, which seemed like a pretty ample source of inspiration. I admit, I didn’t know anything about the band, but I reasoned like this: good source material? Check. Good artwork? Well, I like it. Illegible logo? Very much. So, I gave it a chance.” Ancient cultures deserve double reviews.

Yaotl Mictlan – Dentro del Manto Gris de Chaac Review

Yaotl Mictlan – Dentro del Manto Gris de Chaac Review

One little-known, but easily knowable, fact about Angry Metal Guy is that he (I, I guess we’re going in third person today) is a big history buff. In other reviews I (OK, back to first person now) have frequently referred to the history of whatever it is that said band is writing about and I truly enjoy it when bands look backwards to their own cultural history for influence. Why form a band and copy the Norwegians and Swedes who did the same? Look at your own world, look at your own culture and build up from there! The band Yaotl Mictlan has probably not read this blog to get this idea, but they have the same idea that I do. Drawing on hundreds of years of history and hundreds more of oppression, Yaotl Mictlan is writing black metal with folk undertones that is strongly influenced by the history of the Mayans, the pre-Hispanic-conquest people of Mexico, who have never really disappeared, even if their ancient empire collapsed.