Chilean Mapuche groove metal band Mawiza have announced their first acoustic EP, IÑ MONGELETEW (Those Who Give Us Life), out November 6 on digital platforms via Season of Mist. The first single is the new original song “Wüzapiwken” (Divided Heart), out now with a music video.
Pre-save IÑ MONGELETEW here.
The EP includes three reimagined songs from the band’s Pulsar-nominated 2025 album ÜL plus two new originals. “Wüzapiwken” speaks to the heart of Indigenous life, divided between the city and the ancestral land, with scraping rhythms and piercing chants. The other new song, “MÜR,” features Mira Ceti of Heilung, Anne Olsen of Danefae and Mapuche activist Fabi Liqen, with pifilka flutes and kultrún drums.
Inspired by Sepultura
The EP was inspired by a special night. In October, Mawiza joined Sepultura for the legendary Brazilians’ final show in Santiago, Chile, where the two bands performed “Kaiowas” together. That acoustic, tribal piece from 1993’s Chaos A.D. is the spiritual model for this release.
“We’re talking about the same things as Sepultura, but in different languages. Sharing newen (energy) while performing ‘Kaiowas’ together was an unforgettable and very relevant moment, yet it also felt close and intimate, like a torch was being passed to a new generation.”
Txalkan, drums
“We can create our music without distorted guitars and big percussion, but not without our language and our identity. That is why IÑ MONGELETEW exists: these are songs given to the primordial.”
Awka, vocals and guitar
The reworked songs are not simply stripped down. Acoustic instruments and tribal percussion strengthen the band’s call for decolonization and a renewed connection with nature, and a slow, smoky version of “Mamüll Reke,” performed beside a fire, lifts up the memory of fallen warriors.
- Mür (5:27)
- Wüzapiwken (3:45)
- Wingkawnoam (3:38)
- Mamüll Reke (4:24)
- Ti Inan Paw-Pawkan (4:42)
Indigenous Groove Metal
Mawiza sing in Mapudungun and describe their music as Indigenous groove metal, with Sepultura, Gojira, Soulfly and The Hu among their reference points. The Chilean Grammy winners toured Europe in 2025 with Ater and have played major festivals. The EP was produced by Vincent Zbinden and Awka Mondaca, and Mawiza will take it on an acoustic tour of Chile in November.
Our Take
Unplugging is usually where metal bands go soft. Mawiza do the opposite: stripped of distortion, their songs sound darker and more confrontational, deliberately avoiding “postcard folklore.” It is a powerful statement about identity, and a fitting way to carry the torch Sepultura handed them.
Mawiza are: Awka (vocals, rhythm guitar), Karü (lead guitar), Zewü (bass), Txalkan (drums, percussion).
