Umbra Sum - Obras de Misericordia

Release date: 4/25/2026

An essential for fans of US indie, intimate shoegaze, experimental folk, acoustic emotional resonance, and Latin roots.

Acuarela Records is proud to present the vinyl edition of Obras de misericordia (Works of Mercy), the long-awaited second album from Umbra Sum (Ed Sánchez-Gómez), following his cult debut Aún no has demostrado nada (Acuarela, 2014).Ed Sánchez-Gómez is a Costa Rican-born artist now based in Evanston, Illinois.

After a complex relationship with classical guitar at the University of Costa Rica, travels through Europe and Argentina (where he absorbed South American folk), and improvisation studies in Chicago, he has forged a deeply personal sound.

Born from profound grief and the global pandemic, Obras de misericordia is an intense, moving acoustic album that blends artisanal shoegaze with infinite noise-pop harmonies, South American folk textures (charango, mandolin, hammered dulcimer) and the languid beauty of John Martyn, The Declining Winter and the Elephant 6 Collective. It explores sounds beyond the guitar — adding musical saw, piano, violin, viola and cello — creating landscapes that shift between introspection and catharsis. It is the most hi-fi lo-fi album you will ever hear.

Recorded by Ed between January 2022 and March 2024 in Evanston, IL and Peru, IN; mixed by Abel Hernández (Migala, El Hijo) and mastered by Santiago Quizhpe (Pullpush Studio, Madrid).

1    Obra de misericordia VII
2    La promesa
3    La nueva sangre
4    La sapiencia
5    Aquelarres anónimos
6    Mi panacea y yo
7    La remisión de todo
8    Francamente, iracundo
9    En los días cuerdos
10    El acabose
11    Clemencia y luz I
12    Clemencia y luz II
13    La esperanza nos está matando