Review Summary: "Hail death, hail ancient nature gods of evil!"
Volahn and Blue Hummingbird On The Left are two Black Twilight Circle bands that most adhere to the collective's sense of pride in their Mayan roots. The former relishes in creating tales of the culture's numerous evil spirits and gods, while the latter's black/death metal style is the perfect accompaniment to the stories of their proud warrior heritage. In this way, their decision to join up for the split release Debajo Del Simbolo Del Solo was ideal, contributing a duo of tracks that gloriously celebrates their ancestry through ritualistic extreme metal battering.
The first song, Volahn's "Kamikal O Juluwem" is his most aggressive to date; forgoing the Spanish flourishes that until this point have defined his music, this track demonstrates a sense of brutality that has never been seen by him before. Simplifying his generally impressive instrumental work and letting his love for the South American bestial black metal scene shine, "Kamikal O Juluwem" juxtaposes monstrous grooves and undeterred speed to great effect. The music is straightforward, but also equipped with Volahn's unique sense of melody, emanating an aura of mysticism that keeps the track from falling into "one-note" territory.
Blue Hummingbird On The Left's contribution "Debajo Del Simbolo del Sol" is one of their strongest songs yet. On previous releases such as their EP Bloodflower, or "Storm" (their track from Black Twilight Circle compilation Tliltic Tlapoyauak), the music was Blasphemy-inspired black/death metal at its finest, but always diminished by lackluster vocals. Here, Tlacelel's howl is a far cry from the gasping, breathless delivery seen on previous efforts, and the song benefits greatly because of this. On paper, the combination of flute and war metal may seem sketchy, but Blue Hummingbird... execute it flawlessly, with the instrument not only acting as bridge to their roots, but perpetuating the overall chaos of the band's music. Track is wonderfully anthemic, and easily the most memorable thing the band has ever put to tape.
With only two tracks and clocking in at less than ten minutes, Debajo del Simbolo del Sol is meant to be a short, concise, punch in the face. There is no subtlety, no overarching concept, just two tracks of decimating war metal that are another excellent addition to the Black Twilight Circle canon.
