Tumulario — Vestigios Review
Tumulario, the Colombian purveyors of Raw Extreme Metal, emerged from the underground in 2014. On May 5th, 2025, they unleashed their third full-length ritual, “Vestigios,” a six-hymn invocation co-released through Vestigio Records, Satanath Records, and The End of Time Records.
The First Three Sins, The Summary
The Fourth Sin, Overall Discussion
The Opening Salvo — “¡Hail Gran Metal!”
From the very instant the play button is struck, the listener is assailed by the opening hymn, a brutal anthem known as Hail Gran Metal. This hymn doesn’t merely begin, it detonates with a ferocity that mirrors the unholy gates of the underworld being flung wide.
A relentless thrash rhythm, venomous riffing, and vocals that sound like they’re being spat from a burning altar.
The opening hymn doesn’t build—it erupts, like the gates of the underworld flung open. It’s both a salute and a summoning.
The Sonic Journey — Five remaining Hymns of Fury
As the sonic journey progresses through the album’s five remaining hymns, Tumulario reveals its true, multifaceted nature. This is raw, extreme metal that skilfully blends the chilling, desolate atmosphere of black metal with the crushing weight of occult doom metal. It delves into the guttural brutality of death metal, pays homage to the speed and aggression of classic heavy metal and speed metal, and returns to the thrash metal origins with unbridled fury.
The entire sonic tapestry was forged in the very crucible of the Colombian underground scene, a testament to its unvarnished authenticity.
The Name and the Lore — Tumulario as Barrow-Wight
The name Tumulario itself carries weight. It is the Spanish word that features in translations of Tolkien’s works, denoting the “Barrow-Wight,” a creature of ancient, malevolent power. This full-length album, comprising six unholy tracks, certainly echoes those obscure tones and ancient traditions. The majority of the lyrics on Vestigios are in Spanish, further solidifying the album’s regional identity, with the lone English track May the Metal Live Again, serving as a powerful, unifying declaration.
The Riffs and Reverence — A Chant Against the Mundane
Every single note within Vestigios feels like a deliberate sacrilege, an affront to the mundane. Each riff acts as a potent chant, reverberating through the darkened, echoing halls of time. The album carves a dense path through the most organic essence of metal. It is simultaneously savage and sublime, drenched in the rich, dark blood of old-school reverences. Bands like Root, Beherit, and Ancient Rites are clearly in its lineage, as are the blasphemous, indelible influences of South American titans such as Sarcófago, Chakal, and Mystifier.
The Tomb-Sound — Production as Invocation
The recording of Tumulario achieves a remarkable feat: it sounds as if it were captured within the confines of a tomb. The production is intentionally coarse and abrasive, deliberately evoking the untamed spirit of early South American black metal and thrash metal. This isn’t a case of lo-fi production adopted for mere nostalgia’s sake; it is a calculated and potent invocation of primal chaos. The album possesses a palpable live and immediate feel, a consequence of minimal overdubs. The mix is dense, creating a powerful sonic wall, yet it remarkably avoids becoming muddy.
Each instrument manages to snarl and cut through the pervasive haze with remarkable clarity.
Adding to this immersive experience, the band cultivates a distinct atmosphere. There’s a spectral, otherworldly quality to the album’s slower passages. The music feels less like it’s being played in a conventional studio and more as if it’s been summoned directly from a forgotten crypt.
The Possession — Vocals and Percussion
Tumulario delivers an unadulterated dose of devilish devilmanship. The band’s arrangements and instrumental compositions ensure everything remains raw and true to its underground roots. Morgul, the vocalist and drummer, provides a percussive foundation that as if it were hammered out in a vast stone chamber. The drums echo with primal force, unleashing rituals that are both raw and thunderous. Blast beats frequently dominate, yet there is ample room for engaging groove and dynamic shifts.
The drums gallop, stomp, and stalk through the music, never remaining static, always serving a ceremonial purpose. Morgul’s vocal delivery is akin to a demon snarling, a terrifying spectrum that ranges from guttural roars to piercing high-pitched screams. At times, the vocals feel less like a performance and more like genuine possession, the sounds of wild beasts clawing their way through the veil between worlds.
Other moments descend into what feel like ancient incantations, further enhancing the ritualistic atmosphere.
The Sorcery — Guitar and Bass
The guitar work of Tar-Minastir is nothing short of sorcerous. Tremolo-picked black metal riffs intertwine seamlessly with ferocious thrash metal gallops and heavy, doom-laced stomps. His fretwork exhibits a devil-dance cadence, often exuberant and unpredictable. The guitars whirl, stalk, and hammer their way through the sonic landscape. Some hymns even open with slithering, hypnotic harmonies that feel like potent spells being cast upon the listener. Abrahel’s bass guitar doesn’t merely occupy a supporting role; it lurks just beneath the surface, adding a grim, pervasive undercurrent. It expertly drives transitions between musical passages and reinforces the album’s ritualistic pulse, particularly in the slower, more atmospheric sections where its presence is most keenly felt.
The Invocation — Vestigios as Fruit of Art
Ultimately, Tumulario stands as a potent fruit of art. These six unholy hymns and the music that accompanies them offer far more than just raw metal. It is an unholy hymn of immense power, a passage that is heavy, epic, raw, and steeped in old-school traditions, guiding the listener toward their own glorious damnation.
Vestigios doesn’t simply play music; it confronts the listener head-on. Tumulario‘s sound is primal and confrontational. Its riffs slice through the air like polished obsidian, and its vocals feel channelled from some subterranean altar, imbued with ancient power. The lyrical diction is sharp and precise, the atmosphere profoundly ritualistic, and the band’s intent is unmistakably clear: this is metal presented as a genuine invocation, not mere entertainment.
The Final Seal — Closing the Crypt
As Vestigios descends into its closing passages, the ritual nears completion. Before we unveil the final three sins, we extend our gratitude to Satanath Records for granting us the honour of reviewing Tumulario’s unholy fruit of art. Now, with the crypt doors closes and the last echoes fades…
The Fifth Sin, The Memorabilia
The Sixth Sin, The Artwork
The Seventh Sin, Disrelish
Tumulario
Morgûl — Drums, Vocals
Abrahel — Bass, Backing Vocals
Tar-Minastir — Guitars, Backing Vocals