Roots

Sepultura

album cover

Brazilian Metal, More Than a Novelty

Before this album it's safe to say that much of the rock world viewed Brazilian heavy-metal band Sepultura as a novelty—competent imitators who could be dismissed the same way the cognoscenti write off French hip-hop MCs and Japanese crooners. But after Roots, the fearsome four-piece from Belo Horizonte became unassailable: Nobody in metal anywhere cranked with such primal intensity.

Released just as the "alternative metal" of Korn and others hit big in the U.S., Roots is a masterwork of pressure-cooked aggression that marks a turning point for Sepultura (which is the Portuguese word for "grave"). On its previous five albums, the band sang mostly in English, and proffered riffs that bore the unmistakable influence of Metallica.

This time, vocalist Max Cavalera and his cohorts embrace their heritage—singing in Portuguese, while integrating African and Brazilian percussion (the instruments used on "Dusted" include the West African djembe drum and a "rusted propane tank" played by Max's brother Igor). The repetitive polyrhythms, which incorporate ancient ritual elements and field recordings of the Xavante Indians, help Sepultura bust the plodding stutter-stomp of metal into a million spectacular pieces.

Genre: Rock
Released: 1996, Roadrunner
Key Tracks: "Roots Bloody Roots," "Straighthate," "Breed Apart."
Catalog Choice: Chaos A.D
Next Stop: Slipknot: Slipknot
After That: System of a Down: Toxicity
Book Page: 689

Buy this Recording

Share this page:

Comments:

Post a Comment:

Name:

Email:

Location:

URL:

Remember my personal information

Notify me of follow-up comments?

Submit the word you see below:


Note that your comment will be reviewed by an editor before it appears on the site.


About 1,000 Recordings

Celebrate the joy, the revelation, the mystery, the fun, the sheer shivers-up-the-spine pleasure of great music.

Essential operas. Milestone rock albums. An education in the blues. The world of world. Classical from Bach to Bartók to Beethoven to Brahms. And dozens of unexpected gems, surprising discoveries, and long-lost masterpieces.

This is an online version of the list (published alphabetically in the book). The entries in the book break down genre bias and broaden every listener’s horizons—think Miles Davis to Claude Debussy to the melodic story-songs of The Decemberists. And the writing is passionate, informed, opinionated.

More about the book

site design: Juxtaprose