Cemican means "All the Life" in Náhuatl. Their third album, “In Ohtli Teoyohtica In Miquiztli,” which translates to “The Mystical Path Of The Dead,” is overlaid with a bunch of trappings and the band’s image, but at its beating heart, is a living, pumping, fresh take on Thrash Metal, hearkening strongly to 90s and 21st-century Sepultura.

With the makeup and costumes, the folk instrumentation, and the Náhuatl (Aztec) lyrics, some will view their schtick as a gimmick. Maybe. . . but Cemican’s dedication and earnestness indicate something deeper; From my perspective, their mission is a genuine, reverent, heavy, informed ode to Aztec Mexican history culture. I’m perhaps not the most qualified to judge anyone’s Mexican historical authenticity, but this seems fully legit to me.
They clearly love their Thrash Metal too, though. The drums, the riffs, the shouted backing vox. . . Guitarist Tecuhtli fills his solos with bits directly from the Kerry King (Slayer) bag of noises and tricks. The drums blend Thrash intensity with tribal flairs, which a big part of the Sepultura correlation. There’s also a bit of Testament, Biohazard, Dethklok, and Manowar.
We do need to talk about the flute(s). Note - - we’re not talking about Aqualung flute; we’re talking about a centuries-old folk instrument, a length of wood with holes bored into it. There are some quiet interludes sans-guitars and bass where the woodwind parts absolutely shine - - but it often mixes with the full band Thrashier stuff as an equal lead. This adds an eerie, unorthodox contrast when it works, but more often than that, it sounds out-of-place, as if the flautist just recorded a bunch of loose james, and they overdubbed everything in post-production.
Even if you don’t believe me, and you think this is all just some attention-getting gimmick, Cemican come through where it counts. Many Thrash bands of yesteryear and today are content to just draw the same pictures with the same 8 crayons as their peers. Cemican have the 64-color box, and they create high-quality stuff that you’ll want to stick to your fridge. And let’s face it: Aztec culture and history have been dismissed by the Western world for centuries - - sometimes to catastrophic results. Cemican get all kinds of kudos for highlighting their history and traditions. Celebrate all the life.