Shazam Meets…Max Cavalera
Max Cavalera is best known for his enigmatic performance and creative influence in one of thrash and metal’s most successful acts, Sepultura. He currently fronts and writes the material for Soulfly; just one of his ongoing projects and a hugely successful band in their own right.
Meeting Max Cavalera was an honour and an experience, from his wild brown eyes to the tattoo on his knuckles declaring ‘Zyon’ he is a calming and intelligent man, who Shazam spoke to on everything from his choice of films to touring, and the release of his latest album with Soulfly, Omen.
So you are currently on tour, how is that going?
Good, it’s the second UK show so far. We played Southampton last night and it was really great; it was packed. Looking forward to tonight, the London show is always exciting.
Do you like playing London?
Yeah, it’s exciting playing the UK in general . We are coming back for Sonisphere later in the year so it should be a good year for us.
Do you like touring, especially the long tours you seem to do?
Nah, its cool. I like it – I love the shows. The crowd to me is like a drug, I need that drug. So when I’m home for like ten days and I don’t have that drug I feel like I need it! I need my crowd fix.
What about the waiting to play?
That’s the hard part. It’s good to have interviews. It makes the time go faster , otherwise we are just watching movies. Which I do a lot anyway – those are my movies there (gestures to an enormous CD binder); there is about 200 in there.
What kind of movies do you like?
Mostly classics like Lawrence of Arabia; Dr Zhivago; Ben Hur; Scarface; Apocalypse Now and City of God. Kind of drama classics.
Do you go in for blockbusters or the American mainstream of film making?
Yeah I like some comedies. I liked Chris Farley, before he died, with movies like Black Sheep and Tommy Boy and I also like Adam Sandler and Will Ferrell!
How is touring compared to playing festival shows?
Festivals are shorter so we only play for an hour or 45 minutes and also at festivals we do more like jam sessions in-between songs to get the crowd clapping, whereas club shows we are more brutal – more in your face with like fast s**t. The crowd don’t mind if I bust out an obscure Sepultura tune from the 80s, they actually like it!
Both are exciting. Shows like tonight (London O2 Islington Academy) we are closer to the crowd. It’s a weird tour this one because we are alternating between festivals and club shows so it gonna go twenty thousand people, then 500 people on a day to day basis. Doing festivals and clubs back to back will be really psychotic.
Do you prefer a bigger or smaller crowd?
I like both. I think I have more fun with my own crowd because they are there for you and they appreciate whatever you play where as at a festival it’s not your crowd, it’s a mix. But we do ok at festivals. We seem to get everyone with their hands in the air.
Your New album is called Omen and is out on the 25th of May 2010, and there is a new track from it on your Myspace; are you playing that song ‘Kingdom’ tonight?
No, we are playing ‘Lethal Injection’ and ‘Rise of the Fallen’ off the new album, which is also the first single.
The new single ‘Rise of the Fallen’ features Greg from Dillinger Escape Plan, how will that work vocally live?
I’m actually doing Greg’s part! I do the whole thing, which felt weird at first, but now it’s ok. I have a high pitched voice I can put on to simulate his sound. It’s such a great song I didn’t want not to play it because Greg wouldn’t be on tour. It would be a waste of a song.
What is ‘Rise of the Fallen’ about?
It’s about the rise of the people that are treated like s**t. So it’s really a song for the oppressed; a song for metal heads like us…for when society looks at you like you’re scum – so this is our time. That’s the idea.
Did you write it for the fans, the metallers who are working day jobs and coming to shows?
Yeah it’s for people to believe in themselves and be proud of themselves. To be proud of what you are and not be embarrassed – f**k society!
Do you feel that society is that way towards you still despite your success?
Yeah! I still get searched on airplanes all the time and I joke “what? do I look like a terrorist?” But it’s just the dreads and the tattoos. I’m not changing nothing though, that’s who I am. It’s part of life.
So how would you describe the sound of the new album?
It’s more brutal than all the other records and it’s the biggest mix of metal and hardcore that I have done since Sepultura’s ‘Chaos AD’ and it reminds me of that vibe. ‘Bloodbath and Beyond’ has a kind Discharge type riff and they are a band I love. I’m obsessed with them and I wanted to write and opener to the album with that kind of riff.
The album ended up being about murder in a subconscious way. I didn’t mean to write it like that but songs like ‘Jeffrey Dahmer’ which is about the American serial killer and ‘Lethal Injection’ which is about America’s death row, which I’m against; and then ‘Off With Your Heads’ is about when people are captured and the videos end up on the internet and that kind of thing. A lot of those types of ideas are on the album.
So in your opinion is the world becoming more brutal or was it always like this and now because of the internet we just see more of it?
I think there is more of it now and I think people have gotten used to it so when 10 years ago you heard of a car bomb on the news it was a big deal; but now there are car bombs nearly every day and it’s become no big deal. It’s as common as rain.
Do you worry then where society is going?
Well I think we will enter the Apocalypse and Armageddon. All these things that are in the bible, I think they’re true; I think they are going to happen. So it’s kind of exciting, but it’s fucked up.
Where did you record the new album?
It was recorded in LA.
How was LA?
Yeah, it’s OK . There is a really good engineer called Logan and he worked with Devil Driver, who I really like, so I went for that sound – he has a great sound. So the place doesn’t really matter, the last record was done in Florida, Orlando which is kinda cheesy place; so the place doesn’t matter to me. LA was cool. It was pretty mellow.
Do you like being in the studio?
I like it to a certain point, when I’m being useful. I enjoy the creative bit but once it gets to the mixing and they listen to a song for 5 hours straight that’s when I gotta get out of there because I don’t smoke or drink coffee like those guys, so I have to leave.
Greg, who we spoke about earlier, guests on the new single. How did that come about?
Well, Dillinger Escape Plan opened for Cavalera Conspiracy on a US tour and we became friends and he told me he was a huge Sepultura fan - he said ‘Chaos AD’ changed his life, which was cool to hear. So when I was in LA at a Deftones show, I had gone to sing with them, he was in the dressing room and out of the blue because I didn’t tell the label or anything I just said “hey, wanna come sing on the new Soulfly record?”. He lives in LA, so he just came along and did some amazing vocal parts. Our voices work really well together – it was one of the great surprises of the album.
Both Cavalera Conspiracy and Soulfly are on Roadrunner Records – is that a good home for your work?
Yeah, they understand me. I’ve been with them for probably longer than anyone else on the label - I’m probably the oldest artist on the label. They let me do what I want; there is no pressure; I can play what I want; they would never say “we need a pop album”; none of that bulls**t.
I know the people and I’ve worked with them for so many years – for 20 years or more - so it’s a long career and long friendships.
If you could pick one song from history to call your own what would you pick?
Black Sabbath ‘Symptom of the Universe’ it’s my favourite riff.
Soulfly’s new album ‘Omen’ is out the 25th May you can purchase it here.
Or if you can’t wait check out the new video for the single ‘Rise of the Fallen’ right now…
