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Members- Derrick Green - Vocals
- Andreas Kisser - Guitar
- Paulo Jr. - Bass
- Igor Cavalera - Drums
Biography
From their humble beginnings in Belo Horizonte,
Brazil, Sepultura went on to become the most successful Brazilian heavy 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 all were only in their teens and still
learning how to play their instruments, the band quickly evolved into underground contenders. After landing a deal with
independent Cogumelo Records, Sepultura recorded four songs for a split LP with fellow Brazilians Overdose. Now 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 tour with a triumphant set of shows in its homeland.
After obtaining new management and
relocating to Phoenix, AZ, 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 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." After touring for over a year, the members of Sepultura took a well-deserved
break before starting work on their most ambitious album yet, 1996's Roots. The introduction of native Brazilian percussion
and musical styles into their trademark down-tuned guitars and increasingly sociopolitical themes resulted in a highly
unique record which could be loosely described as heavy metal world music. Roots marked Sepultura's creative peak, and the
band's continual rise to ever-greater fame seemed guaranteed until a family tragedy set off a series of events which would
break up the band.
Just hours before taking the stage at England's Monsters of Rock festival, the band discovered that the teenage son of
manager (and singer Max's wife) Gloria had been killed in a car accident. A shocked Sepultura took the stage as a trio
while Max and Gloria boarded the first plane back to America. Only a few months later, the band confronted Max about
severing ties with Gloria and finding new management. Still recovering from the recent trauma of a death in his extended
family, Max viewed this as a huge betrayal and left the band amid much bad blood and acrimony. As the band's creative
leader, many expected his departure to spell the end of Sepultura, but the band announced that it would carry on and soon
began looking for a replacement.
After a long search, Sepultura recruited Cleveland native Derrick Green as their
new singer and began laying down tracks for 1998's Against. Though it retained much of the intensity and diversity of its
predecessor (including a collaboration with Japan's Kodo percussion ensemble on the track "Kamaitachi"), the album lacked
the unique spark which had characterized the band's prior work. It also sold only half as many copies as Cavalera's first
album with his new band, Soulfly, clearly showing with whom fan loyalty remained. Undaunted, Sepultura returned in early
2001 with Nation. The album followed in the footsteps of its predecessor, despite better reviews and a more seasoned Green
on vocals. In order to reach out to its slowly shrinking fan base, the group released one of its last live shows with Max,
Under a Pale Grey Sky, in the fall of 2002. An EP of covers, Revolusongs, arrived in 2003, followed by the full-length
Roorback. Live in Sao Paulo arrived in 2005.
The Best Sepultura Video
Sepultura - Roots Bloody Roots
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