MAX CAVALERA on Re-Recording Schizophrenia and Dreaming of Riffs!
Published on 09 August 2024
Was there one particular album that really left a mark on you as a kid?
Actually, there were probably a good few, weren't there? Each one showing you a new path towards exciting, incredible music that you’d never heard before?
I certainly had mine, but for the purposes of today, I’ll focus on one…my friend at school had a big brother who was so Metal, he painted his own leather jacket and wrote a fanzine. This brother ended up becoming the editor of Terrorizer magazine, but before that, he was our (unwitting, perhaps) guide into the exciting & dark world of metal.
Creeping into his bedroom, we’d see his walls and ceiling plastered with posters and flags, not of Metallica and Megadeth but of Dark Throne, My Dying Bride, early Opeth and one band in particular who had incredible album artwork: Sepultura.
When he threw us a CD of their Chaos A.D. album (inside a metal tin, no less), little did he know that he was putting me on a journey that I suspect will be one I tread for the rest of my days: the True Path of the Mighty Riff. Nothing beats a well placed guitar riff with a killer groove behind it in my book. It’s the lifeblood of heavy music, and whenever I hear it happening, it’s a huge thrill to this day.
Max Cavalera, guitarist, vocalist and principal songwriter with Sepultura back in the day, is a prime practitioner of this mystical art. His riffs are iron-clad, grade ‘A’ monolithic battering rams, and the music he has spent his life making is one of modern metal’s strongest bodies of work.
Cavalera and his immensely talented drummer brother Iggor left Sepultura after the seminal Roots album, and have since been involved with other bands like Soulfly, Killer Be Killed and The Cavalera Conspiracy. The two brothers - touring as Cavalera - have spent recent years revisiting Sepultura’s earliest work and re-recording those albums with today’s production and tech for a ‘best ever’ sound.
(photo: Annie Atlasman)
Recently, they released the Sepultura classic Schizophrenia and toured the UK in support. I desperately wanted an audience with the great man but his schedule didn’t allow a full face to face conversation. What he did have time for, though, was a few quick questions over email, and this is what I present to you now. My younger self is moshing hard in appreciation, and I hope you are too…
Max Cavalera Interview
Guitarguitar: Schizophrenia is a tight, complex and intense musical experience. Even though it was you and Iggor who wrote it in the 80s, did revisiting the material throw up any problems in terms of recreating the music? Apart from the production (which sounds amazing), did you feel tempted to change any parts of the album for the re-recording?
Max Cavalera: No, I was mostly excited to revisit the material. We embraced the challenge and I recall the riffs but we stayed true to the power of the original.
GG: Is there a sense of catharsis in being able to revisit the records that make up the Third World Trilogy and release them with the sound and production that you’d always wanted them to have? Was part of the intention to breathe fresh life into them?
MC: We wanted to present the songs with the sound we always wanted it to have.
GG: Did reconnecting with that early attitude prove inspirational on new music you might be making now?
MC: It’s always inspiring to create new music, regardless of whether it’s old or new. I also feed off the energy from the tours when we’re playing the songs live.
GG: Revisiting this headspace and even donning the arm-spikes again: did it bring back any cool memories & feelings from that time back in the mid 80s? People, places, experiences?
MC: We feel very nostalgic about these records, that’s why we’re wearing the spikes and bullet belts. It connects to the aggression of the music.
(photo: Annie Atlasman)
GG: I was at your recent Glasgow show and you are as passionate and ferocious onstage as ever. Do you still feel the brutal magic and energy of the music as deeply as you ever did?
MC: Yes, it never goes away. It’s inside of you. Because to me, Metal is a lifestyle.
GG: How does it feel to play on stage alongside your son every night? And not only that, but having him play on music that you made when you were even younger than he is now? That must be incredible for a father to experience!
MC: It’s an amazing feeling, especially since he wasn’t even born when I made those records. Sharing my life art with my family has been one of my favourite things throughout my life.
GG: Talking of family, do you think that growing up and playing music with an exceptional drummer like your brother Iggor has shaped how you behave and react as a guitarist?
MC: We connected through music at an early age, so it was natural throughout our life. It’s a different type of connection than being with friends in a band.
GG: The difference between a good guitar riff and a great one can often be quite elusive. From Sepultura to Nailbomb, Soulfly to Cavalera, you have always been able to write consistently excellent guitar riffs and grooves. What is the secret to writing amazing riffs?
MC: Riffs come very naturally to me. Oftentimes I wake up with a riff in my head. Sometimes I dream a riff and remember it in the morning. It’s always exciting when you know you’ve found a great riff. My wife, Gloria, witnessed me create the riff to Ratamahatta as I was sitting at the soundboard in the Indigo Ranch Studio in Malibu when we were recording Roots.
GG: Equally, your guitar tone is exceptional, particularly on this current tour. It’s the best metal tone I’ve heard in a long time! What are you currently using, equipment-wise?
MC: I play ESP guitars and plug them directly into a Peavey 6505. I use number 10 SIT strings. I use a few pedals, including a Boss Delay, a digital Wah, and an Organ pedal for the doom parts.
(photo: Annie Atlasman)
GG: You’ve long held governments and powerful corporations to criticism through your music. Rock music right now seems to be shying away from making statements of criticism or resistance, even though the world is in a bigger mess than ever. Why do you think so few people right now are choosing to make a stand the way you have always done?
MC: There is a lot of fear in the media and you don’t always get presented in the true light. I also feel, and it is shocking, that some bands agree with the growth of fascism which we're seeing right now, and they don’t want people to know their true beliefs. If we don’t make a stand now, we’re going to lose many of our basic human rights.
GG: Finally, once the touring cycle for Schizophrenia is complete, you have lots of touring with Soulfly ahead. Are there plans for any further re-recordings after that?
MC: Currently, there’s no plans for any more re-recordings. I have a new Soulfly record coming out next year and I’m looking forward to the touring cycle and uniting with my Tribe.
This man doesn’t stop! Soulfly are touring soon, so make sure you don’t miss a nearby show by clicking through to the official Soulfly website for tickets and dates.
My thanks to Max for taking time on tour to answer these questions, and to Annie Atlasman for putting me in touch with Max, and for all of the outstanding photos you see in this blog.
For more exclusive interviews, head over to the guitarguitar interviews section, where you’ll find conversations with Behemoth, Slipknot, Jane’s Addiction and over 150 more!
