Like smoke from a shaman's pipe, Mawiza have risen as a guiding force for indigenous metal. Integrating tribal rhythms and ancient instruments into groove metal has won these modern day Mapuche warriors respect from the Chilean Grammys and scene elders like Mercyful Fate, Mastodon, Slipknot and Gojira. Now, with their third album and first for Season of Mist, the band are summoning a towering defense of their ancestral land.
"Sung entirely in Mapudungun, it's as thematically enlightening as it is musically distinct", Metal Hammer UK writes about ÜL in an 8/10 review. "...these up-and-comers feel close to fully formed and vital to listen to".
"In a genre that too often forgets its own roots, Mawiza are digging deep into language, into legacy, into land and returning with something eternal", writes Metal Lair. "Not just a great Latin American metal record. One of the year's most important".
ÜL comes out tomorrow, Friday, July 18, but you can hear all nine defiant anthems today by listening to the full album stream below.
Pre-order & Pre-save
https://orcd.co/mawizaul
"ÜL is the voice of the land, the origin of feeling, the first call to connect with emotions", Mawiza says. "Our new album is the materialization of a part of the spirit that, for a few seconds, becomes one with the wind - a force we can hear, feel resonating, communicate with, and return to. It is our indigenous chant, and like smoke, it rises as a message to the skies".
Hear Mawiza perform ÜL during their ongoing European tour with fellow Chilean metalheads Ater.
Mawiza are a force of nature on ÜL. With sky-scraping riffs and earthshaking grooves, these nine chants call for the protection of Mapuche territory. Opening ceremony "Wingkawnoam" stomps to an industrial groove, but the song's bounding rhythm mirrors the way a deer dances while eluding its predators. "History is normally written by the colonizers", the band says. "We have to show the indigenous vision".
Mawiza have seen the Mapuche Nation endure tremendous hardships. With its storming leads and blood-pumping chants, "Ngulutu" echoes the ancient battles between the Spanish and Mapuche by channeling the strength of the Mapocho and Maipo rivers. Half of the video for “Mamüll Reke” was filmed on Mapuche territory in southern Chile, outside the city of Valdivia, that is now controlled by two timbre companies.
But the band are steeled by the resistance of not only their Mapuche ancestors but also their land. Soaring above the clouds with brightly piercing flute, "Mamüll Reke" draws its harmonious energy from a mournful Afafan war cry. "Mamüll reke / Lhalu witxan / Afafalen / Lhayaiñ ka (Just like the tree / that dies standing / chanting the war cry / we will die too)".
"The Mapuche are still standing", Mawiza's vocalist and guitarist Awka says. "You can cut us down, but if one falls, ten shall rise".
Lineup
Awka - Lead vocals & rhythm guitar
Karü - Lead guitar & backing vocals
Zewü - Bass & backing vocals
Txalkan - Drums & percussion
Guest musicians
Fabiola Hidalgo (Liquen) contributes vocals to "Wingkawnoam", "Pinhza Ñi pewma", "Ngulutu" and "Mamüll reke"
Joe Duplantier (Gojira) contributes vocals to "Ti Inan Paw-Pawkan"
Recording Studio
Estudio del Sur in Chile
Producer
Pancho Arenas
Sound & Mixing Engineer
Pancho Arenas
Mastering Studio
West West Side Music
Mastering Engineer
Alan Douches
Cover Art
Kata Ulloa
Booking information
Europe: juan@thatmusicagency.com
Rest of the World: unai@cowboymusic.agency
Pre-order & Pre-save
https://orcd.co/mawizaul
Follow Mawiza
Bandcamp: https://mawizakvlt.bandcamp.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mawizakvlt
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mawizakvlt
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mawizakvlt
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4oJP24bXA2fbdVmNGNmCtt
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mawizakvlt
Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/mawiza/1653435953
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