Four face-painted men stand around a bonfire, one of them banging on a South American tribal drum called a kultrung. No, this isn’t the scene of some ancient ritual – it’s the opening sequence of the music video for Wingkawnoam, a single from up-and-coming Chilean groove metallers Mawiza.
Based in Santiago and representing the Mapuche Nation, this four-piece join the rising tide of Indigenous bands introducing their cultures to metalheads worldwide. As with their peers – including Māori trio Alien Weaponry and Native American black metal project Blackbraid – they use heavy music as a megaphone to scream about their pride in their customs and their hatred of colonialism.
