Sepultura Bio, CDs, Links
Brazilian Heavy Metal Rock From Minas Gerais

Heavy-metal band Sepultura (Grave) was Brazil's most popular recording act internationally at the end of the 20th century, with record sales rivalling those of Sérgio Mendes and Brasil '66 in the late 1960s. The quartet -- Max Cavalera (vocals/rhythm guitar), his brother Igor Cavalera (drums), Andreas Kisser (leader guitar), and Paulo Jr. (bass) -- came from Belo Horizonte in Minas Gerais state and released their first full-length album, Morbid Visions, in 1986. Their apocalyptic intensity generated a cult following abroad, and their international audience was expanded by their 1989 album Beneath the Remains (released by an American label) and an appearance at Rock in Rio II (the 1991 follow-up to the first event). Arise, launched that year, sold more than one million copies worldwide. Two years later, their album Chaos A.D. addressed social problems in Brazil and elsewhere. The song "Kaiowas" was about a tribe of Amazonian Indians who had committed suicide rather than be moved out of their rain forest home by the Brazilian government. "Manifest" was inspired by a revolt of inmates in the Carandiru prison in São Paulo, in which more than one hundred prisoners were massacred by police. "Biotech is Godzilla" included lyrics by Jello Biafra, founder of the punk band Dead Kennedys. Roots (1996) furthered the band's explorations and guested the Xavantes Indians tribe on the track "Itsari." In 1997, Max Cavalera left Sepultura to form his own band, Soulfly, and Sepultura continued without him.
 

Sepultura: Dante XXI (CD)
(2006)

After losing Max Cavalera to his own ambitions in Soulfly, Sepultura brought in Derrick Green, and then seemed to stumble a bit. But that’s not the case here. Dante XXI is a powerful record, on that stands alongside of Sepultura classics like Beneath The Remains and Chaos A.D.. Loosely based on Dante’s "The Divine Comedy" and clocking in at less than 40 minutes, this is hardcore thrash with a literary bent. Using the classic Sepultura speed metal churn, "City of Dis" burns along with a strong vocal performance by Green. But it isn’t a one-note piece of music either, as the band learned from their more experimental phase: "Fighting On" digs in with a slower torch, while "Ostia" has a beautiful string instrument break. Many people wrote the band off when Max left, but it would be a mistake to dismiss this album, as the band has once again found the same intensity they showed in their earlier years. --Robert Arambel
 

Sepultura Albums, A-Z

Against
(1998)

Arise
(1991)

Beneath The Remains
(1989)
 

Blood Rooted
(1997)

Chaos A.D.
(1993)

Morbid Visions / Bestial Devastation
albums released in 1986 / 1990
(re-release CD, 1998)

Roorback
(2003)

Roots
(1996)

Schizophrenia
(1987)

Under A Pale Grey Sky
recorded live in 1996
(2002)

Soulfly (with Max Cavalera)
3
(2002)

Primitive
(2000)

Soulfly
(1998)

Sepultura DVDs

Sepultura Chaos (DVD)

Sepultura Links

Sepultura Home Page

Sepultribe