Sepultura - Roots (1996)

 

 Roots is the sixth studio album by Brazilian heavy metal band Sepultura. It was released in Europe on February 20, 1996 and in the U.S. three weeks later on March 12 by Roadrunner Records. It is the band's last studio album to feature founding member and vocalist/rhythm guitarist Max Cavalera.

Following the shift to slower tempos and Latin-tinged rhythms on the album Chaos A.D., Roots delves even further into Brazilian musical textures and features significant contributions from iconic Brazilian musician Carlinhos Brown, who guided and arranged the sections throughout the album that feature ensemble percussion playing. Both in sound and overall aesthetic, Roots is also a conscious nod to Brazil's marginalized indigenous population and cultures. The song "Itsári" features a Xavante chant that re-appears on the song "Born Stubborn" and serves as a loose thematic thread for the whole album, which on the whole showcases the band's increased affinity for experimentation and collaboration.

"Lookaway" features guest appearances by Korn vocalist Jonathan Davis, then-Korn drummer David Silveria, House of Pain/Limp Bizkit turntablist DJ Lethal, and Faith No More/Mr. Bungle vocalist Mike Patton. Riff-wise, Roots also draws influence from the then-surging nu metal movement, specifically Korn (whose first two albums were also produced by Roots producer Ross Robinson) and Deftones. After leaving the band, Max Cavalera would continue to pursue the nu metal and "world" stylings of Roots with his solo project Soulfly.

Since its release, Roots has sold over two million copies worldwide.

 Roots is the product of a concerted effort on the band's part to embrace its Brazilian heritage. On many levels, the album reflects Sepultura's heightened focus on the music, culture, and politics of their native country. The overarching concept for the album was inspired by the film At Play in the Fields of the Lord (particularly the scene in which Tom Berenger's character parachutes onto a tribe). The movie inspired Max Cavalera to want to record with an indigenous Brazilian tribe. After convincing Roadrunner Records to support the project, Cavalera contacted Angela Pappiani, at the time the communications coordinator for Brazil's Núcleo de Cultura Indígena (Indigenous Culture Center). Nearly one year after Cavalera's initial contact with Roadrunner, Pappiani arranged for a small party including band, herself, Robinson, and then-manager Gloria Cavalera to travel to Mato Grosso, Brazil to visit the Xavante tribe and record with them. At the time, the members of Sepultura were only peripherally aware of the indigenous tribes residing in Brazil's interior.

 

 

-Tracklist:

1.     Roots Bloody Roots     03:32
2.     Attitude     04:15
3.     Cut-Throat     02:44
4.     Ratamahatta     04:30
5.     Breed Apart     04:00
6.     Straighthate     05:21
7.     Spit     02:45
8.     Lookaway     05:25
9.     Dusted     04:03
10.     Born Stubborn     04:07
11.     Jasco     01:57       instrumental
12.     Itsári     04:48       Instrumental
13.     Ambush     04:39
14.     Endangered Species     05:19
15.     Dictatorshit     01:26
16.     Canyon Jam     13:15       instrumental

01:12:06

-Lineup:

  • Max Cavalera : Vocals, Guitars (rhythm), Guitars (acoustic) (track 12), Berimbau (tracks 2, 5), Lyrics (tracks 1-3, 5-7, 10, 13-15)
• Paulo Jr. : Bass, Timbau (track 12)
• Igor Cavalera : Drums, Percussion (tracks 2, 5, 10), Timbau (tracks 12, 13), Djembe (track 9)
• Andreas Kisser : Guitars (lead), Guitars (acoustic) (tracks 11, 12), Sitar (track 13), Vocals (backing) (tracks 6, 9, 13), Lyrics (tracks 5, 9), Songwriting (track 11)

 

 

 

 

 Label: Roadrunner Records. RR 8900-2

The cover artwork is based on an illustration taken from a 1990 Brazilian 1000 Cruzeiro bill.

"Itsári" means "roots" in the Xavante language. The chant included in this track is the "Datsi Wawere" healing ceremony chant.

On the promo edition of this album, the song "Jasco" is named "Leaf".

The song "Straighthate (Zardonic remix)" (06:25) was officially released only on Zardonic - Metal Up Your Bass (2007).
"Straighthate (Zardonic remix) [2012 Revamp]" (06:40) was officially released on Zardonic - Metal Up Your Bass II (2012).

Co-produced by Sepultura.
Recorded at Indigo Ranch, Malibu, CA.
Mixed at Soundtrack Studios, New York, NY.

"Itsári" recorded live in the "Aldeia Pimentel Barbosa", home of the Xavantes tribe, located in Mato Grosso, Brazil, on 5 November 1995.

 

 

 

 

 

Sepultura - Death From The Jungle [back patch] (1990)

 

Back patch ≈ 32x36 cm

 

 

 

Sepultura in Belo Horizonte, 1985

 

Sepultura - Chaos A.D. (1993)

 

 Chaos A.D. is the fifth studio album by Brazilian Thrash Metal band Sepultura, released on October 19, 1993 by Roadrunner Records. The production was in charge of Andy Wallace and was recorded at Rockfield studios, United Kingdom. Although the album is considered thrash metal, it saw a stylistic departure from the band's earlier style, by incorporating a new groove metal sound. The sound of this album, in contrast to the band's previous works, is darker and heavier, although critics consider that Chaos A.D. it is one of the most important and influential records of all time. This sudden change in style caused a division of opinions among the followers of the band, while some thought that with their new sound they had sold out, others praised the new proposal. 

Chaos A.D. is also Sepultura's only album on Epic Records, who handled its release for North American distribution, as well as the first album to feature Paulo Jr. on bass after having played with the band in a live capacity for several years.

 The song "Kaiowas" is an ethnic acoustic theme was recorded live, amid the ruins of the medieval Chepstow Castle and that became quite a spectacle in live performances, incorporating huge sections of percussion and inviting other bands to play the song together. Jello Biafra, vocalist of Dead Kennedys collaborated on "Biotech Is Godzilla," while Biohazard's Evan Seinfield made an appearance on "Slave New World." In addition, the song "The Hunt" is a covered song by the British group New Model Army. For its part, "Manifest" talks about the Carandiru massacre, a riot in the Carandiru prison in São Paulo, Brazil, in which 111 prisoners died.

Gloria Cavalera, Max's wife, was the manager of the group and was in charge of all the planning, the release process and various matters related to the promotion. The recording studio, in addition to having a reception and control room also it was equipped with pool tables and other features, including a piano used by the Queen band for the single "Bohemian Rhapsody" from the album A Night at the Opera.

 The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), having sold more than 500,000 units in the United States. United and reached position 32 on the Billboard 200 chart.

 

 

 

RR 9000-2

 

 

-Tracklist:

 

01. Refuse/Resist     03:19
02. Territory     04:47
03. Slave New World     02:54
04. Amen     04:27
05. Kaiowas     03:43       instrumental
06. Propaganda     03:32
07. Biotech Is Godzilla     01:52
08. Nomad     04:58
09. We Who Are Not as Others     03:42
10. Manifest     04:46
11. The Hunt (New Model Army cover)     03:59
12. Clenched Fist     04:57

 

46:56

 

-Line up:

• Paulo Jr. : Bass, Floor tom
• Andreas Kisser : Guitars (lead, 12-string acoustic), Viola caipira, Lyrics (tracks 2, 8)
• Igor Cavalera : Drums, Percussion
• Max Cavalera : Vocals, Guitars (rhythm, acoustic), Lyrics (tracks 1, 3-6, 9, 10, 12)

 

Label: Roadrunner Records.

 Recorded at Rockfield Studios, S. Wales, England.
"Kaiowas" recorded at Chepstow Castle, S. Wales, England.
Mixed at The Wool Hall Recording Studios, Bath, England.
Mastered at Sterling Sound, New York, NY. 

Cover illustration by Michael R. Whelan.

Track 12 contains "Clenched Fist" (0:00-4:57), silence (4:58-5:59), laughter & screams (6:00-8:00)

 

 

 

 

 

Sepultura - Chaos A.D. (1993)

 

Chaos A.D. was a watershed moment for the Brazilian group. Not only was it their major-label debut, it was the album with which they burst out of the conventional thrash. Inspired by hardcore, punk, tribal music and extreme metal, Sepultura were determined to make an album that would set them on a new musical path. But it was producer Andy Wallace who helped them get there. First, the band relocated to Phoenix and spent months writing songs. Then, in order to break routine, Wallace arranged for Sepultura to record the album in Wales at Rockfield Studios.

Once he took hold of the material the band had written, Wallace helped them restructure and refine the songs, come up with new experimental ways to express themselves, like adding the heartbeat sound of Cavalera's unborn child to the beginning of "Refuse/Resist" convincing drummer Igor Cavalera to add a Brazilian tribal pattern to the beginning of "Territory" and working with the band to track a trenchant version of New Model Army's "The Hunt."

Sepultura worked so hard on the music that they didn't really think too hard about naming the album. At first, frontman Max Cavalera decided to name it Propaganda after the sixth track on the record. It made sense since there were songs on the album about censorship ("Slave New World"), organized religion ("Amen") and governmental conspiracy ("Biotech Is Godzilla"). But as the deadline approached to get the album title to the label's art department, Cavalera nixed Propaganda and replaced it with Chaos A.D. — a title he came up with thanks in part to his collection of punk records. "I thought about the Misfits album Earth A.D. and I decided to mix it with the word 'Chaos,' because that is the state of the world we were living in. The record company was freaking out because I turned it into them at the very last second. But it's a much better name than Propaganda."

 The tribal instrumental "Kaiowas" was recorded inside Chepstow Castle in Wales.
When Sepultura hired Wallace to produce the record he insisted the band record the album at Rockfield Studios in Wales. On the way to the studio, Sepultura passed Chepstow Castle — the oldest surviving post-Roman stone fortress in Britain — and Cavalera decided he wanted to record the tribal acoustic song "Kaiowas" inside the building. "I thought it would be so cool recording in a Welsh Castle and it was," Cavalera said. "Andy made it happen. He got all the gear and cables in there. And the place we did it in didn't have a ceiling so when the song starts, when you listen with headphones real loud, you can hear all these fucking seagulls flying around."

The title of "Refuse/Resist" was conceived during a ride on the New York City subway.
One day when he was in New York riding the subway, Cavalera was intrigued by the eccentric characters on the train. One, in particular, caught his eye — an African American man wearing a black jacket decorated with words from a political speech. He liked the punk-rock vibe of the outfit and used the last three words as inspiration for the punk-inspired album opener. "It said 'refuse and resist,' so I used that for the song and then I wrote very simple lyrics: Chaos A.D./ Tanks on the street / Confronting police/ Bleeding the Plebs. They're Discharge-oriented lyrics. I listened to a lot of Discharge at the time and they're as simple as it gets. The songs are like two lines that are really powerful and fucking killer. Even today, 'Refused/Resist' feels like riot music to me."

Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra wrote the lyrics to "Biotech Is Godzilla"
As a longtime fan of early punk-rock bands, including Black Flag, Bad Brains, Circle Jerks and especially Dead Kennedys, Cavalera was excited by the idea of having DK frontman Jello Biafra contribute to the album. He didn't want him to sing, he just wanted lyrics. "I don't think Jello is a bad singer, I just think his lyrics are so great. They're so sarcastic and smart. So I asked him to write the lyrics and he said, 'What should I write about?' I said, 'Anything you want to, man.' So he came up with 'Biotech is Godzilla,' which is about the 1992 Rio Summit, where all these politicians got together and talked about technology. Jello's big theory was that AIDS was invented by scientists in laboratories. It was a disease created by us."

While touring for Chaos A.D., Cavalera was arrested at a festival in Sao Paulo, Brazil, for allegedly desecrating the Brazilian flag.
In 1994, Sepultura were rocking out at a festival in their native land in front of 20,000 people. It seemed like the ultimate homecoming – a celebration of all they had achieved since they burst out of their Brazilian town Belo Horizonte in 1988. But the party came to an abrupt end when someone in the crowd tossed a Brazilian flag onstage. "I picked it up and held it up to the crowd to symbolize Brazilian pride, but I got arrested because someone at the venue said I stepped on the flag as a protest against Brazil," Cavalera recalls. "Suddenly there were 20 cops in my dressing room and I'm being taken to jail and charged for being anti-Brazilian. The story kept growing and growing. People starting saying I spit on the flag, and then I pissed on the flag, and finally, they were saying I shit on the flag. I called my grandmother and she said, 'Why did you have to do that with the Brazilian flag?' And I said, 'Grandma, I didn't do anything with the flag. I just held the flag. Everything else was all invented!'"

 

RR 9000-4

 

-Tracklist:

Side A:
1.     Refuse/Resist     03:19
2.     Territory     04:47
3.     Slave New World     02:54
4.     Amen     04:27
5.     Kaiowas     03:43
6.     Propaganda     03:32

Side B:
7.     Biotech Is Godzilla     01:52
8.     Nomad     04:58
9.     We Who Are Not as Others     03:42
10.     Manifest     04:46
11.     The Hunt (New Model Army cover)     03:59
12.     Clenched Fist     04:57

 

-Line up:

- Andreas Kisser: Guitars (lead, 12-string acoustic), Viola caipira
- Igor Cavalera: Drums, Percussion
- Max Cavalera: Vocals, Guitars (rhythm, acoustic)
- Paulo Jr.: Bass, Floor tom.

 

Co-produced by Sepultura.
Recorded at Rockfield Studios, S. Wales, England.
"Kaiowas" recorded at Chepstow Castle, S. Wales, England.
Mixed at the Wool Hall Recording Studios, Bath, England.
Mastered at Sterling Sound, New York, NY.

 

Sepultura - Chaos A.D. (1993)

 

The band considered a number of producers, including avant-garde jazz composer John Zorn and Al Jourgensen of industrial metal pioneers Ministry. They ultimately chose Andy Wallace, who had previously mixed Arise. Sepultura wanted isolation, and for that Andy Wallace suggested Rockfield Studios, located in South Wales.

"Kaiowas" was recorded live among the ruins of the medieval castle of Chepstow. It was an entirely acoustic track, with Andreas Kisser and Max Cavalera on the guitars and brother-drummer Igor Cavalera and bassist Paulo Jr. handling the percussion duties. When they recorded "Kaiowas", the quartet never even considered playing the track live, because they thought it would be too difficult to recreate the drumming on stage. They changed their minds after seeing a video of the American band Neurosis: "We saw in that live video that the Neurosis guys put down their guitars and everybody started to play the drums on stage", lead guitarist Andreas remembers. "We decided to try the same thing. We rehearsed it once and it was wonderful. We haven't stopped playing the song live since.

During Chaos A.D. recording sessions, Sepultura recorded a number of covers: "The Hunt", from New Model Army, "Polícia", from Titãs, "Inhuman Nature", from the American hardcore punk band Final Conflict, and "Crucificados pelo Sistema", from Brazilian Ratos de Porão. Igor, a New Model Army fan, convinced the other band members to include "The Hunt" on the record. Paulo joked that the money of the LP would go straight to new dentures for Justin Sullivan, the toothless singer of New Model Army. The latter 3 covers would be included as B-sides and also on the compilation Blood-Rooted. "Polícia" is also included as a bonus track on the Brazilian edition of the album.
Musical style

Out of the boredom of playing the Arise songs for two years straight and concerned about the threat of musically stagnating, Sepultura pushed the envelope on Chaos A.D. The first track, "Refuse/Resist", revealed the band's new musical direction: slower, with more emphasis on groove than speed. The song starts with the heartbeat of Max's then-unborn first son, Zyon, followed by some Afro-Brazilian drumming reminiscent of Salvador, Bahia samba-reggae group Olodum. About the track's introductory guitar riff, Max acknowledged that it "could have been created by a death metal band." Chaos A.D. was their first record to utilize some lower guitar tunings. Half of the songs in the album are tuned down to D standard, except for "Kaiowas" which is in drop C# tuning.

Diversity was the key to Chaos A.D., revealed Max Cavalera. "Biotech Is Godzilla" was "pure hardcore", according to the elder Cavalera. "Nomad", with its characteristically slow riffs, was described by lead guitarist Andreas Kisser as their answer to Metallica's "Sad but True". The album also featured Sepultura's first all-acoustic incursion, "Kaiowas". "It's like a mixture of Led Zeppelin, Sonic Youth and Olodum", said Max of that particular song. Dazed & Confused magazine stated the album "signalled a move away from the Sepultura's thrash roots, focusing on slower, industrial grooves." In the book The 100 Greatest Metal Guitarists, author Joel McIver stated the album showed a "movement away from extreme metal to a more punk sound" with a stronger focus on "feel and groove". McIver went on to state that the album showed the first signs of the groove metal genre that Sepultura would apply by the mid-1990s. In Ian Christe's book Sound of the Beast, he credits Chaos A.D., along with American heavy metal band Pantera for developing the death metal-influenced music of groove metal that would later influence other artists in the 90s.

-Tracklist:

Side A:
1. Refuse/Resist     03:19
2. Territory     04:47
3. Slave New World     02:54
4. Amen     04:27
5. Kaiowas     03:43
6. Propaganda     03:32

Side B:
7. Biotech Is Godzilla     01:52
8. Nomad     04:58
9. We Who Are Not as Others     03:42
10. Manifest     04:46
11. The Hunt (New Model Army cover)     03:59
12. Clenched Fist     04:57

 

-Line up:

• Max Cavalera : Vocals, guitars (rhythm, acoustic)
• Andreas Kisser : Guitars (lead, 12-string acoustic), viola caipira
• Paulo Jr. : Bass, floor tom
• Igor Cavalera : Drums, percussion.

 

 

 

Label: Roadrunner Records.

Includes an inner sleeve with lyrics & credits.
"The Hunt" originally performed by New Model Army.
Recorded at Rockfield Studios, S. Wales, England.
"Kaiowas" recorded at Chepstow Castle, S. Wales, England.
Mixed at The Wool Hall Recording Studios, Bath, England.
Mastered at Sterling Sound, New York, NY. 

 Management by Gloria Cavalera, Oasis Management.

Mastered by George Marino.

 Cover: Michael R. Whelan.

 The intro to Refuse/Resist is an in utero recording of Zyon Cavalera's heartbeat.
 Chaos A.D. means Chaos Anno Domini. 

 Acoustic version of Kaiowas, recorded live at MTV studios was released only on MTV's Headbanger's Ball 1995 compilation under the name Kaiowas (Para MTVE Most Wanted) (03:08).

  Kaiowas is inspired by a Brazilian Indian tribe called Kaiowas who lived in the rain forest. 

The original version included a hidden bonus at the end of Clenched Fist in the form of laughter outtakes from We Who Are Not as Others, increasing the length of track 12 to 8:01.

An American pressing on Epic separates the laughter outtakes to a 13th track lasting 2:01.

 
 

OBITUARY - Godly Beings (Eindhoven, Dynamo Open Air '91) + SEPULTURA - Eindhoven '90

O  B  I  T  U  A  R  Y :

Obituary is an American death metal band formed in Tampa, Florida, in 1984. Initially called Executioner, the band changed its name to Xecutioner in 1986 to avoid confusion with the thrash metal band Executioner from Boston, and then changed its name once again to Obituary in 1988. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist John Tardy, drummer Donald Tardy, rhythm guitarist Trevor Peres, bassist Terry Butler, and lead guitarist Kenny Andrews. Obituary has gone through several lineup changes, with the Tardy brothers and Peres being the only constant members. The band was a fundamental act in the development of death metal music, and is one of the most successful death metal bands of all time. To date, Obituary has released ten studio albums, and with the exception of their 1997 - 2003 split, they continue to perform live around the world. Their music is based around heavily groove based riffs and drumming along with John Tardy's barking vocals, which create their signature brand of death metal.

 

S  E  P  U  L  T  U  R  A :

Sepultura was formed in 1984 in Belo Horizonte, the capital city of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The band was founded by teen brothers Max and Igor Cavalera, the impoverished sons of Vânia, a model, and Graciliano, a well-to-do Italian diplomat whose fatal heart attack left his family in financial ruin. Graciliano's death deeply affected his sons, inspiring them to form a band after Max heard the album Black Sabbath Vol. 4 the very same day. They chose the band name Sepultura, the Portuguese word for "grave", when Max translated the lyrics of the Motörhead song "Dancing on Your Grave".

The brothers' early influences included Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple, and metal and hard rock artists of the early 1980s, such as Van Halen, Iron Maiden, Motörhead, AC/DC, Judas Priest, Ozzy Osbourne, and V8. They would travel to a record shop in São Paulo that mixed tapes of the latest records by American bands. Their listening habits changed dramatically after being introduced to Venom.

The Cavalera brothers started listening to bands such as Hellhammer, Celtic Frost, Kreator, Sodom, Slayer, Megadeth, Exodus, and Exciter. They also had influences on Brazilian metal from bands like Stress, Sagrado Inferno, and Dorsal Atlântica. By 1984, they had dropped out of school. After several early membership changes, Sepultura established a stable lineup of Max on guitar, Igor on drums, vocalist Wagner Lamounier, and bassist Paulo Jr. Lamounier departed in March 1985 after disagreements with the band, and moved on to become the leader of the pioneering Brazilian black metal band Sarcófago. After his departure, Max took over the vocal duties. Jairo Guedes was invited to join the band as lead guitarist.

 

 

-Tracklist:

Obituary - Eindhoven, Dynamo Open Air '91
01. Godly Beings
02. Turned Inside Out
03. Cause Of Death
04. Body Bag
05. Chopped In Half
06. Slowly We Rot
07. Words Of Evil
       
Bonus: Sepultura - Eindhoven '90
08. Hungry
09. Slaves Of Pain
10. Beneath The Remains
11. Lobotomy.

 

 

-Line up:

Obituary:

  • John Tardy: Vocals
  • Allen West: Guitars (lead)
  • Trevor Peres: Guitars
  • Frank Watkins (R.I.P. 2015): Bass
  • Donald Tardy: Drums.

Sepultura:

   • Max Cavalera: Vocals, Guitars (rhythm)
  • Igor Cavalera. Drums
  • Andreas Kisser: Guitars (lead)

  • Paulo Jr.: Bass.

 

 

 

 

 

Label: Northwind Productions.

Lyrics by John Tardy (tracks: 1 to 7)
Music by Allen West (tracks: 3), Donald Tardy (tracks: 1, 2, 4 to 7), Trevor Peres (tracks: 1 to 7)
Written by Sepultura (tracks: 8 to 11).

 

 

 

Obituary 

May 20, 1991

 

 

 

Sepultura

June 4, 1990

 

 

 

Sepultura & Obituary 1991.

 

 

Sepultura - Territory [single 1993]

 

From their humble beginnings in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Sepultura became the most successful Brazilian thrash metal band in history. Over a ten year period, the band grew from strength to strength, transforming itself from a primitive death metal ensemble into one of the leading creative trendsetters of the international aggressive music scene. Unfortunately, a bitter internal crisis almost destroyed the band, and Sepultura struggled to recover their previous momentum.

Hailing from Brazil's third largest city, Belo Horizonte, Sepultura (which means "grave" in Portuguese) were formed in the mid '80s a time when that country was beginning to emerge from a 20 year military dictatorship. Max Cavalera (vocals/guitar), Igor Cavalera (drums), Paulo Jr. (bass), and Jairo T. (lead guitar) had a hard time even finding rock & roll albums, and especially "socially unacceptable" genres such as heavy metal and punk. Their early influences were Iron Maiden, Metallica, and Slayer (literally the first three records purchased by Max on a visit to the "big city," São Paulo), but the band soon progressed toward a death metal sound, inspired by emerging bands such as Possessed and Death. Their drive and determination (they sang in English from day one) more than made up for their geographic isolation and inexperience, and though they were only in their teens and still learning how to play their instruments, the band quickly evolved into an underground contender. After landing a deal with independent Cogumelo Records, Sepultura recorded four songs for a split LP with fellow Brazilians Overdose. Reissued on CD and named for its first track, 1985's Bestial Devastation was self-produced and recorded in just two days and it shows. Recorded with minimal time and money in August 1986, their first full-length album, Morbid Visions, showed little improvement, but contained their first hit, "Troops of Doom," which attracted some media attention and convinced the band to relocate to São Paulo (Brazil's largest city and financial capital) in order to further their career. They also replaced guitarist Jairo T. with São Paulo native Andreas Kisser, whose greater musical ability would help take the entire band to the next level.

In 1987, Sepultura's technical proficiency finally caught up with their creative vision, and their second full-length album for Cogumelo, Schizophrenia, displayed an incredible evolution in terms of production and performance. It also became a minor critical sensation across Europe and America, drawing the attention of Roadrunner Records, which promptly released the album worldwide and signed the band to a long-term contract. No longer restrained within Brazilian borders, the band set about composing 1989's Beneath the Remains, the first of four albums which would solidify Sepultura's position as perhaps the most important heavy metal band of the '90s. Recorded in Rio de Janeiro under the guidance of leading death metal producer Scott Burns, Beneath the Remains was an immediate critical and commercial success, and the band's ferocious performances on the subsequent European tour (which saw them systematically blowing headlining German thrashers Sodom off-stage) further cemented Sepultura's reputation. The band also filmed its first video, for the single "Inner Self," and finished the year's tour with a triumphant set of shows in its homeland.

After obtaining new management and relocating to Phoenix, Arizona, Sepultura entered Tampa's Morrisound Studios with producer Burns to record 1991's highly acclaimed Arise album. First single "Dead Embryonic Cells" proved to be another resounding hit, and the title track would gain even more attention when its video was banned by MTV America due to its apocalyptic religious imagery. The world tour that followed elevated the album to platinum sales worldwide (a figure rarely achieved by bands of such an extreme nature) and, in a strange twist, found singer Max Cavalera marrying band manager Gloria Bujnowski, who was almost twice his age. Such was the band's success that its label, Roadrunner, obtained a co-distribution deal with Epic Records for its next recording, 1993's Chaos A.D. By incorporating social issues (especially relating to Brazil) into their lyrics, as well as displaying some of their punk and hardcore influences for the first time, the album was another worldwide smash thanks to singles like "Territory" and "Refuse/Resist." 

-Tracklist:

A. Territory     4:45
B1. Polícia  (Titãs cover)    1:48
B2. Biotech Is Godzilla  1:52

 

-Line up:

• Max Cavalera: Vocals, Guitars (rhythm)
• Andreas Kisser: Guitars (lead)
• Igor Cavalera: Drums
• Paulo Jr.: Bass.

 

 

 

 

Label: Roadrunner Records.

Track A published by Roadblock Music, Inc. (ASCAP)/Roadster Music B.V.
Track B1 previously unreleased. Published by Warner/Chappell Edicoes Musicais ltda. admin. by Rightsong Music, Inc (BMI).
Track B2 published by Roadblock Music, Inc. (ASCAP)/Maim That Tune (BMI)/Roadster Music B.V.
Tracks A and B2 from the album Chaos A.D.

Photo illustration, art direction and design by Ioannis for Vivid Images.
Management courtesy of Oasis Management.

 Producer, mixed & recorded by Andy Wallace.

 Photography by Kevin Estrada.

 Lyrics at track 2 by Jello Biafra.

 

 

Sepultura - Morbid Visions/Bestial Devastation [Remastered] (1991)

 

Because of Sepultura's collective lack of money, most of the instruments used on Bestial Devastation were borrowed from friends and acquaintances.
The vocals on the introductory track "The Curse" were performed by a friend of the band; according to Igor Cavalera:

''One thing I remember is that we had one of our friends come and do the voice for the intro ('The Curse') because he would do that voice without effects - he was kind of burping in a way. It was funny, so we had him come down and do it in the studio. I don't even remember his name!''

The band apparently fought with the producer during the recording. In an interview, Igor Cavalera said, "He wanted to clean everything up in the mix and we finally had to play him some records by Venom to show him that bands sounded this way."

 Months prior to recording what would eventually become the Bestial Devastation EP, the band decided to switch their lyrics from Portuguese to English. None of the band members knew how to write or speak the language, so they asked their friend Lino to translate their lyrics. An example of Lino's crude translation skills can be seen in one of the verses of the song "Antichrist":

 ''Churches will be destroyed

Crosses will be brocken

He's laughing in blasphemy

Like a domination of death.''

Bestial Devastation was released in December 1985, alongside Overdose's Século XX EP. Over the next few months it sold 8,000 copies. Sepultura's surprising success was partly attributed to the first Rock in Rio, which took place in Rio de Janeiro in January 1985. This music festival's line-up included Whitesnake, AC/DC, Iron Maiden, Queen, Ozzy Osbourne and the Scorpions, and was responsible for Brazil's hard rock/heavy metal boom.
The EP was later reissued by Roadrunner Records on one CD with Morbid Visions in 1997. The reissue included a demo version of the song "Necromancer" that was the first studio recording of the band, and a live version of "Antichrist" from the Chaos A.D. tour, re-written as "Anticop". 

 

 

RO 9276-2

-Tracklist:

Morbid Visions (1986):

 
01. Morbid Visions     3:23
02. Mayhem     3:15
03. Troops Of Doom     3:21
04. War     5:32
05. Crucifixion     5:02
06. Show Me The Wrath     3:52
07. Funeral Rites     4:23
08. Empire Of The Damned   4:24

 

Bestial Devastation EP (1985):

 
09. The Curse     0:39
10. Bestial Devastation    3:06
11. Antichrist     3:46
12. Necromancer     3:52
13. Warriors Of Death     4:07

 

48:54

 

- Line up:

• Max Cavalera: Vocals, Guitars (rhythm), Lyrics
• Jairo T.: Guitars (lead), Bass
• Igor Cavalera: Drums
• Paulo Jr.: Bass.

 

 

Label: Roadracer Records.

Bestial Devastation artwork: Sergio (Chakal)
Morbid Visions artwork: Alex. 

Remastered by Michael Sarsfield.

Photography by Vanda Guimãraes.

Morbid Visions:
Recorded and mixed in 7 days on 16 tracks at Estudio Vice Versa, Belo Horizonte, Brasil, August 1986
Remastered at Frankford/Wayne, New York, NY.

Bestial Devastation:
Recorded and mixed in 2 days on 8 tracks at J.G. Estudios, Belo Horizonte, Brasil, August 1985
Remastered at Frankford/Wayne, New York, NY.