Shocking and unexpected news | Max Cavalera has announced a devastating news just now

Hello Max! Thank you for taking the time to do this interview with us.

No problem man, how are you doing?

I’m fine, thank you for asking. I’m catching you in the middle of the Third World Trilogy’ tour. How is it going so far?

Yes we have a day off in the Netherlands on our way to France. The tour is fantastic man, just a ball of energy. The shows are insane, packed and full of nostalgia. We are playing Hour and half – everything from the three albums and it is an incredible feeling to play every night, as this material is amazing. We can’t wait!

You will be visiting Bulgaria I think for the 11th or 12th time. What do you expect from the Bulgarian audience?

Oh, l love Bulgaria. Some of my favorite Soulfly shows have been in Bulgaria as the crowd there is amazing. I think this tour specifically is one that you don’t want to miss because it is an incredible celebration of these tree records together. That’s why it is called Third World Trilogy, and we get to play stuff from “Bestial Devastation”, “Morbid visions”, “Schizophrenia” and some other surprises. I think the Bulgarian fans will go nuts. As I said it is quite nostalgic, but also something for the new generations to enjoy.

“Third world trilogy” revisits the first three releases from Sepultura. We have seen you revisit old albums with tours like “Roots”, “Arise” and “Beneath the Remains”. But this time it’s different because you actually re-recorded the first three albums. What was the feeling of going to the studio for these songs?
Do you think that the songs in these records were maybe ahead of their time and now they are having a second chance.

Well Yes, We never had a chance to show the power of those records. We didn’t have any money or enough time in the studio. You know, everything was done in a rush. But the songs are incredible, and the records themselves are incredible. The imagination behind those albums, the topics… We kind of revived them and brought them back to life with new energy and aggression, without losing the spirit of the original. And that is super important. It is impossible to deny that the new recordings have the same spirit and the exact same vibe. Despite the better production and sound it still sounds dirty and aggressive. It is the same with the artwork. The artwork reflects the music.

Eliran Kantor did amazing work with them.

Really well done man! And the songs really came to life. It is a surprise to me that some songs that we play live now like “Septic Schizo”, “Rest In Pain” and “Funeral Rites” that were not meant to be main tracks on the album, but now are coming back to life more than ever, just because of these re-recordings.

You got so inspired by those old songs that you actually did a new track in the same style?

Yes, there is a new track on the “Schizophrenia” album called “Nightmares of Delirium”. It is a brand new song but inspired from that 1987 era .

The song is quite good so that’s why I wanted to ask you how you got inspired?

What I did was , I listened to “Schizophrenia” for one week non stop and got quite influenced by this record. It was easy to put myself in the mind of young Max and I thought what if I had to write one more song for Schizophrenia? So the result is “Nightmares Of Delirium” with great lyrics by my son Igor Amadeus. I think the result is incredible. A lot of people that heard it want a whole record like those right now. He-he. But it was really cool that we managed to do a new song that sounds so powerful like the originals.

It is good that you found inspiration by your younger self. To me that is most important nowadays. So let me take you 30 years back when you did Nailbomb’s – “Point Blank” was released. You and Alex Newport approached the recording of this album quite differently. I mean a lot of sampling different sounds.. combining them with drum machines etc and having fun in general. Because I know this was never meant to be a record at all. Did this record change the way you approach producing and writing new music now?

Nailbomb taught me a lot about the possibilities in music. And losing the fear about trying something different. What me and Alex wanted was… you know we Love Ministry and Nine Inch Nails, but we were thinking that they are not heavy enough. So we wanted to hear something like that, but in a heavier setup. So we messed around with some riffs and sang together. I think that what we came up with was quite unique and really ahead of its time for that era, with the label “Industrial Metal”. You know when I hear the term “Industrial Metal“ – Nailbomb is the first thing that comes to my mind. Because it has everything – The aggression, the power, the speed, the machines’ sound….

“Beating old washing machines with metal bat” sounds?

Yes, yes – exactly! And I wish we could have done more records with Nailbomb, but we decided to do only one studio album. I still play Nailbomb songs live though and hopefully I can bring it to Europe on a tour someday.

That’s good news because a lot of people will be looking forward to that.

I did such a tour in America and it was amazing. The crowd went crazy. Those songs are great live and that record has aged really well. You know if you play it today it still sounds great. Not all albums are like that but this one especially is great even today.

Your culture, folklore and nationality is deeply embedded and reflected in your music. Do you think this is what makes you stand out? Should other bands and musicians put more emphasis on their culture?

Hm.. You don’t have to. But if you have the chance to explore your own roots and heritage and you think that it is important for the world to know about it – Then yes of course, do it. A lot of countries do have, including Bulgaria, You know ancient history, ancient folklore and mysticism, alchemy etc. When I decided to do it it was quite organically. It really started with the Arise album, when we started to think about what “outside” sounds to include. We did a little bit more in “Chaos AD” and “Roots”. And of course in Soulfly it is a huge element with the percussion and the tribal grooves. I’m really proud to bring that to the metal world and I think we changed the metal universe with this. And yes if others have the chance they should do the same.

You know a lot of bands start with copying others bit at some point they find their own way.. When was it for you?

Influence was always there. All my records are influenced by everything that is around me, even today I’m influenced by other music all the time. As far as originality it comes little by little. For me the major turning point for me was when I moved to the USA and got married to Gloria. She taught me a lot about politics and how to see the world in a different light. That’s why “Chaos AD” was so politically oriented and touching so many different subjects was a turning point for me to write different lyrics that are dealing with more social issues that involve people around the world. For me it was really cool way to look at the world in a different light, and its great if you have a partner to help you with that like I did with Gloria. Otherwise I would still write songs about demons and Sаtan you know he-he.

Bands still do that.

Yeah it’s Ok, it’s ok. I just turned to something close to what I really care about and the aggression of the music was always there. But now we have stuff like Go Ahead And Die and which is quite a protest type of music. Also the latest stuff I do with Soulfly I got the chance to voice my opinion on many different subjects. And we need that in the world today, because the world is messed up right now. All these wars, all these fascist leaders. It is bad and we need people to see and hear more about this stuff.

I always admired musicians working together with their families like you and your brother did..Or how you got your wife and sons involved in your music. What are the pros and cons of working along with a family member?

The Pros are that we can really trust each other. We depend and we count on eachother. Nobody is going to fuck you up and betray you. They will give everything for you. Literally they would give their life for you. We come from a really big family where everyone helps with the music. Now I’m involved with my brother, my sons, my wife and even my grandkids are getting involved. That’s great man. We are like a big Mafia Ha-ha.
The cons … you know they are not so many. Sometimes there are arguments on certain songs. Some disagreements in opinions, but arguments are good. If you don’t argue means you don’t care. To me it is a dream come true to be able to work with my family so it is an amazing feeling.

I know that as kids you were not into music at all but more interested in football.. but one Queen show changed that for you both. Believe it or not there are people nowadays that were influenced by your music like you were.. Do you think that is the most important thing? Musicians to inspire and influence younger generations?

Of course that is important. It is all that music is all about. Inspiring people, make you feel better as a person, as a human being or how you approach life in general. To me heavy metal is not just a music, but a way of life and because it is a way of life – everything I do is connected to music. And I will thank Queen forever for doing that to me. They don’t know that they did that, but that’s ok, they don’t need to know. And that is the beauty of it. We all pass influence to each other and I hope one day many more bands will be born just because of what I do.. And that’s the way it should be man.

You know what. I wasn’t going to tell you that story but in the early 90s, my brother and I were spending the summers in the countryside with my grandparents. Back then just before we went for the summer a schoolmate of mine gave me Arise on a tape and Me and my brother spent the whole summer listening to that album playing “Streets of rage” on the Sega with our minds blown. Now I am a music journalist and photographer and I have the honor to speak with you! My brother is a musician and has an 8 year old son that plays drums and likes Capoeira! …

WOW. See man! … That is the beauty of it. Another good example is the UFC fighter Alex Pereira. He is one of the best right now and he is hugely into the Brazilian-Indian Heritage and tribal life. He actually uses the song “Itsári” from Roots for his entrances to the arena. When I recorded the song I never thought it was going to be used at sports events to stimulate an athlete to go and fight.
Inspiration works in so mysterious ways and I love it. It is the beautiful thing about music

What the near future holds for you Max? New Cavalera Release, New Soulfly? Or maybe something else?

Tour and Soulfly. That’s about it he-he. We are going to tour the rest of the year and next year some more Cavalera stuff because this is doing really well and then a new Soulfly record. I’m working on it right now. I think this new record will be really interesting because right now I have the opportunity to do the Cavalera and Go Ahead And Die stuff with which my extreme metal music thirst is solved. So I get to be more open minded, experimental and bring Soulfly to the future with an album that will be much more adventurous and risk taking. I’m really looking forward to the new Soulfly album next year.

Good news! Sounds optimistic and I wish you all the best and we will be looking forward to this album. You mentioned a few times that recently you are inspired by your younger self. So let’s imagine that you can go back in time, let’s say 1985 and meet yourself 16 years old. And you can say just one sentence to him. What will it be?

Oh.. that’s one of those tough questions. I don’t know… maybe…
“Live life to the fullest!” I do that right now but I would tell myself the same back then. Enjoy every minute and every second. Enjoy the people around you and everything you do and don’t take anything for granted.