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Guadalajara-based Ancestral folk metal group CEMICAN – hailed by Revolver as “an ancient Mexican answer to The Hu or Heilung” – are proud to bring you their latest opus, ‘U_k’u’uk’ankil_Mayakaaj.’ Much anticipated this album comes out Oct. 31st. And today we launch the pre-order for it http://lnk.to/cemican
Available on digital, as well as jewelcase CD with 20-page booklet and limited-edition colored 2LP gatefold vinyl featuring two variants – the N. American variant on K’Awiil (300 blue orange haze) representing the celestial fire/lightning and abundance or the European variant Itzamna (200 purple) for he who embodies the cosmos – the god of the heavens who taught the Mayan people language. We’ve even added the two singles released mid-cycle (one created for Adult Swim programming) as bonus tracks.
“Cemican's new album, ’U k 'u' uk'ankil Mayakaaj’ (translated as the Mayan Resistance) is based on Mayan ideology, worldview, mysticism, and the universe. It contains various legends and stories of ancestral gods, the duality of life and death, as well as stories based on the band members, transformed with that touch that identifies us,” explains drummer Tlipoca.
“The concept was taken as a way to revive what our warriors and their Mayan people were, honoring this great Mayan culture and representing the worldview and mysticism of this great ancestral empire.
The album contains a dark and aggressive atmosphere, as well as some songs with tranquil melodies.
A sound that embodies that language of music with ancestral instruments that Cemican has achieved as its own unique and hallucinatory sound, fused with lyrics that blend Spanish with Yucatan Mayan. This new album is a tribute to our ancestral peoples, their stories and their customs, giving a valuable message of their language and their ancestral glory.”
Today we also reveal the cover art to ‘U k 'u' uk'ankil Mayakaaj’ created and designed by Tlipoca
“It depicts the great creation of the Mayan universe and the elements of life (water, fire, wind, and earth) by the great supreme Itzamnaaj… raising the great Temple of Kukulkan for the worship of the Mayan people. Among the immensity of the ocean, the first sacred man emerges, creating the inter-dimensional chaos between trails and nebula. In the right hand of the great Itzamnaaj, a black hole is born, representing the great infinite darkness. In his left hand, a whirlwind of fire represents the beginning of light or the dawn of life and the beginning of it. At the top, between an avalanche of meteors and stellar earth, two faces are drawn: that of a woman or mother, who gives life or the birth of humans; and on the other side, the face of death, representing the cycle of earthly man in his passage through this life.”
The album has been preceded by two single/music video releases—the thundering “Taan ti le Xibalba” https://youtu.be/H9uYIX9611U?si=EG3b9eSqmMiY8w-p and “KUKULKÁN WAKAH CHAN” with its corresponding epic music video https://youtu.be/D5akxscDVVY?si=1HWvvDBk-5FVlPK4
The music of CEMICAN – whose name means “the duality of life and death” in the Aztecan language of Nahuatl (spoken by 2 million people in Central Mexico) – incorporates elements of the legends, mysticism and ideologies of ancient Mexican culture. Compared by Revolver to “Slipknot scoring Mel Gibson's 'Apocalypto,’” while praised by Brooklyn Vegan for “combining indigenous instrumentation with Headbanger's Ball-worthy riffage” the group combine the modern instrumentation of a metal band with traditional pre-Hispanic instruments.
Since releasing their third album, ‘In Ohtli Teoyohtica In Miquiztli,’ in 2019, and M-Theory Audio debut, CEMICAN have performed alongside some of metal's top names (Amon Amarth, Korpiklaani, Ensiferum, Eluveitie, etc.) in their native Mexico. In addition, the six-piece group became a regular fixture of European festivals like France’s Hellfest and the Paris edition of Download Festival, Germany's Wacken Open Air, Spain’s Resurrection Fest and Leyendas Del Rock, as well multiple festival performances in their homeland – Hell & Heaven Fest, Force Fest, Mexico Metal Fest, Dragon Rojo Fest, Tattoo Fest, Knotfest and countless more – as well as appearances in Central and South America. CEMICAN have received regular airplay on Sirius XM Liquid Metal, and composed an original song, “Yóok 'ol kaab Maya,” for the Adult Swim network. 2026 will mark more opportunities and breakthroughs are in store for the extremely original, creative and epic act.
Upcoming CEMICAN live performances:
9/20 – Dolores Hidalgo Guanajuato, Mexico
10/31 – Queretaro, Mexico
11/1 – Mexico City, Mexico
11/2 – Guadalajara, Mexico
CEMICAN is:
Tlipoca – Drums
Tecuhtli – Guitar/vocals
Ocelotl – Bass/backing vocals
Itzcoatl - Choirs & Performance
Yei Tochtli – Pre-Hispanic Instruments
Mazatecpatl – Pre-Hispanic Instruments
Xaman-Ek – Rituals/Dance/Pre-Hispanic Instruments
For more information:
www.m-theoryaudio.com
www.facebook.com/CemicanMex
www.instagram.com/cemican_mex
www.twitter.com/CemicanBand
www.youtube.com/@CemicanMexOfficial
www.cemican.netlify.app |
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