Roots Review

Sepultura is a Brazilian metal band that formed in 1984 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera. Having a constant lineup change, their most famous members are Max and Igor. They have been known to cover a wide range of metal genres those being Groove, Thrash, Death, and Black metal. They have released 15 studio albums and have sold 3 million units in the U.S alone but have sold 20 million units worldwide. They as well have had multiple gold and platinum records.

I took interest in this album after having two of their songs recommend to me by YouTube. Those song being Roots Bloody Roots, and Straighthate. I loved them so much I decided to check out the album. What resulted was one of the most unique and badass metal albums I've ever heard.

What sets this metal record apart from the rest is how primal and raw the drumming is. Not only that but this record embraces the band's Brazilian heritage by including musical recordings from an indigenous tribe, The Xavante tribe. Whom they collaborated with to record this album. As well as having Brazilian Portuguese vocals, and Latin tinged rhythms. All aspects that I find incredibly awesome. I love when bands aren't afraid to show off their heritage through their music. One of my favorite bands that do this is Mexican Post-Punk band Caifanes.

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Songs

Roots Bloody Roots
One of the band's most famous songs kicks off the record. Right off the bat you'll notice the tribal drumming which only adds to the overall aesthetic of the album. The guitar riff hits hard and mixes well with Max Cavalera's screaming vocals. Lyrically being about taking pride in one's culture and not being afraid of embracing it.

Attitude
This song has rhythm changes throughout the song to keep you on your toes. It also has the return of the tribal drumming as well as Max's amazing vocals. The bass on this track is also mesmerizing. Overall it's a great track.

Cut-Throat
Compared to the others this is more of a stand out track. Lyrically it's about the dominance of the music industry. The guitar riff on this song is aggressive and compliments the chorus very well. The drumming is once again superb.

Ratamahatta
Ahh My favorite song. This track starts off with chanting from the band, then silence. Then it starts back up again with drums, only for the menacing guitars to join in shortly. This track is entirely sung is Brazilian Portuguese which only adds to how badass it is. It is very percussion heavy and even features Ex-Korn drummer David Silvera. This really makes me feel like I'm in the jungle, overall amazing track.

Breed Apart
Immediately starting off with the assault of drums it is shortly joined by the frightening riff being played by the guitars. The chorus on this song just flows so smoothly. This is another percussion heavy song as evident by the song stopping for a second only to have a tribe drum solo inserted into it.

Straighthate
Another favorite of mine. This song is overall savage as fuck. It has a slow start with a repeating bass, drums, and heavily distorted guitars. Only to explode with screaming vocals and the instruments finally going in for the attack. The chorus also makes me want to scream along with it. "What goes around! Comes around! You're going down! Straight hate!" It's so fucking cool!

Spit
This next song is a change in pace as it's a lot more faster then it's predecessors, giving off a more thrash metal vibe. The drums are once again amazing. The distorted vocals on this track adds to the overall badass tone. Towards the end of the song one of the guitars in my right ear goes insanely high up and gives me chills.

Lookaway
If the last track was fast this one is the polar opposite. Taking a more somber mood, this song is heavily influenced by Nu-Metal. It even features guest vocals from Korn frontman Johnathan Davis as well as featuring Mike Patton from Faith no more. Overall not one of my favorites but it still far from bad.

Dusted
Starting off with the heavy blows from the guitars, this song's vocals in particular are brutal enough to melt flesh off. It also has rhythm changes that won't leave you bored.

Born Stubborn
Another very aggressive song, then again they all are, some more than others. This like Spit is fast paced. Max Cavalera's vocals like the guitars pound the ears (in a good way). The drums again don't disappoint on here.

Jasco
This song takes a break from the hostile, barbaric, Savage, metal. It's an instrumental consisting of acoustic guitars. It's short and sweet, a nice break from the previous songs. Overall it's a very stunning performance.

Itsàri
Like the previous song this isn't a metal song but instead a song preformed by the Xavante tribe. It's a beautiful performance and interesting to listen to. It's good way to learn about a different culture and their differing music. Overall a very welcome addition to the track listing

Ambush
Diving right back into the metal, this songs fuses both metal and elements front the previous song Itsàri. This song is brutal, lyrically being about the deforestation of the Amazon Rainforest and how people are driving out the indigenous people out of their native lands for construction. The chorus also makes you want to scream along and get into a fight

Endangered Species
Next one up Endangered Species is heavy and leans a little into Death metal territory. The guitar work on here is one of the best on the album. You're already know what I'm gonna say about the drums. The bass on here is also nasty.

Dictatorshit
This track is the fastest on here and gives off big Slayer vibes. Lyrically it's very punk, being against the military dictatorship that Brazil has experienced. It's also very short, it would've been nice to hear it for longer but it's fine the way it is.

Canyon Jam
An unlisted track, there's much to say. It's 13 minutes of night ambience. Towards the middle of the track, tribal drums join in, evntually a few other instruments follow it.

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Final thoughts
In conclusion this has got to be one of the coolest, most unique, metal albums I've had the pleasure to listen to! I'm very happy I decided to check it out. The mixture of groove metal and tribal elements make for a truly awesome album. If you're a metal fan and don't mind screaming vocals I'd highly recommend this album, it's a masterpiece.

If I had to rate it out of 10: 10/10

Favorite Songs

• Roots Bloody Roots
• Attitude
• Cut-Throat
• Ratamahatta
• Breed Apart
• Straighthate
• Spit
• Dusted
• Ambush
• Endangered Species
• Dictatorshit

For those interested in checking it out here's a preview song