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Guadalajara-based Ancestral folk metal group CEMICAN bring us another sampling of their anticipated new album today by releasing “Viaje Astral Del Quetzal De Fuego” to all streaming/download platforms. The 8+ minute track showcases another element to the Mexican band’s sound.
“’Viaje Astral Del Quetzal De Fuego’ is a tribute to our loved ones who have departed this earthly plane when they begin their eternal flight on the great astral journey. The quetzal represents our loved ones, who return in the form of a mystical bird. In Mayan mythology, the quetzal represents the divine, freedom, the connection between heaven and earth, life and death, the gateway to the astral,” explains drummer Tlipoca.
Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ERapMdtHwQ
“This song represents a journey, featuring atmospheric sounds and flutes that transport you to the mystical universe, making you soar and letting your spirit free in the wind. The sounds of death connect you to the underworld, touching the depths of darkness. The chants and flutes make you feel sacred, the trance that comes from listening to the tranquility of the atmosphere. We represent how we feel when we lose a loved one. We express ourselves as we feel stunned, senseless, and without reason, due to the great pain of knowing that we will never see or have them with us again. The absence of their presence will forever be the essence of their past, a reminder and a reminder of their aromas, knowing that they have taken flight to the great cosmos, that they will be with us for all eternity, in light and darkness.
The fire that surrounds the Quetzal represents the living flame that prevails in our hearts, remembering them, and that no one will extinguish until we ourselves extinguish it by dying, and we too embark on the eternal flight to the firmament, and our spirit rises on the wind, toward the universe on our great, infinite journey of astral travel.
I wrote this song for the pain I felt at the loss of my father and sister. And for all the warriors who have felt this pain of losing a loved one, and for being able to overcome and accept the loss of a loved one.”
“Viaje Astral Del Quetzal De Fuego” joins “Taan ti le Xibalba” https://youtu.be/H9uYIX9611U?si=EG3b9eSqmMiY8w-p and “KUKULKÁN WAKAH CHAN” https://youtu.be/D5akxscDVVY?si=1HWvvDBk-5FVlPK4 as early indicators of the strength and quality of the new CEMICAN album.
‘U_k’u’uk’ankil_Mayakaaj’ comes out Oct. 31 and is available for pre-order at http://lnk.to/cemican
The album will be on digital platforms, as well as a jewelcase CD with 20-page booklet and limited-edition colored 2LP gatefold with 4-panel insert vinyl featuring two variants – the N. American variant on K’Awiil (300 blue orange haze) representing the celestial fire/lightning 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. Advance orders will ship domestically before month’s end from Mexico, US and Europe based on where you live. Or ask your local retailer to bring in copies.
‘U_k’u’uk’ankil_Mayakaaj’ track listing includes:
Kukulkán Wakah Chan
Táan Tí Le Xibalbá
El Niño Que Contempla Las Estrellas (featuring Adrian Zerimar)
Viaje Astral Del Quetzal De Fuego
Horizonte De Almas
El Castigo De Los Dioses
Tak Ti’ Ulaák’ ‘Lin
Los Guardianes De La Tierra
Hun-Came
¿En Donde Estas? (featuring Arianna Dheva)
Bonus tracks:
Yook’ Ol Kaáb Maya
Bólom Octé
“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.”
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.”
Hailed by Revolver as “an ancient Mexican answer to The Hu or Heilung” 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:
10/31 – The Bunker Rockhouse – Queretaro, Mexico
11/1 – Baja Circuito – Mexico City, Mexico
11/2 – C3 Rooftop – 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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