On April 24, 2026, we got the final studio EP from Sepultura as well as 2026 being the year that we would see them stop touring the U.S., I figured it’s time to put them back on the Chopping Block for their Rewind Review. Let’s take a look…
Morbid Visions/Bestial Devastation- listening to this again, I can sort of see why they might’ve been lumped in with death metal bands. Vocally, Max Cavalera sounds a lot like a death metal vocalist and they have that speed. I would actually say that this one leans more towards black metal more than death metal. Interesting fact is that according to Max, the band neglected to tune their guitars as well as having to use a dictionary to translate the lyrics to English. The version that I listened to also included the Bestial Devastation EP and you really can’t tell the difference in terms of sound. Not bad but not anything I’d really go back and listen to anytime soon.
Previous Score: 7/10
New Score: 6/10
Standouts- Morbid Visions, War, Crucifixion, Antichrist (from Bestial Devastation), Necromancer (from Bestial Devastation)
Schizophrenia- whereas the last record was more black metal, this one definitely goes for the death/thrash metal sound. This is the first one to have Andreas Kisser on guitar and he definitely brings them to that next level. While I do like this one better this time around, there are other albums I’d put on before this one, however it’s still a great record.
Previous Score: 9/10
New Score: 7/10
Standouts: Escape To The Void, Screams Behind the Shadows, Septic Schizo
Beneath The Remains- ok here we go….. this is part of what I like to call the quadrology and it starts with this album. This one picks up where they left off and dials it all up to 11!! This album was also their first on Roadrunner Records as well as producer Scott Burns’ first non-American band (he produced all those early death metal albums from bands like Morbid Angel, Obituary, and Death). Everything about this record is absolutely perfect and once you listen to it, you’ll see why this is considered a classic.
Previous Score: 9/10
New Score: 10/10
Standouts: Mass Hypnosis, Beneath the Remains, Lobotomy
Arise- ah yes a Sepultura classic!! This is one of those albums that just goes for from start to finish!! I feel like this is the album that broke them because by now they were starting the tour out here in the states a lot more and from what I can recall a good amount of play in Headbanger’s Ball. Again they used Scott Burns to produce the album and here they incorporate a few non metal influences such as Nine Inch Nails. Interestingly, they were supposed to open the U.S. version of Clash Of The Titans but for some reason they were kicked off according to Max Cavalera. Either way, you cannot deny that this is part of the 4 part album streak!!
Previous Score: 10/10
New Score: 10/10
Standouts: Murder, Subtraction, Infected Voice
Chaos A.D.- oh man here it is….this is peak Sepultura!! This album is right up there with the likes of Master Of Puppets by Metallica, Reign In Blood By Slayer, and so many others. This just takes every that they have done up to this point and dial it all up to 11!! For the song “Kaiowas,” they were actually inspired by the band Neurosis and according to Andreas Kisser, “We saw in that live video that the Neurosis guys put down their guitars and everybody started to play the drums on stage”. “We decided to try the same thing. We rehearsed it once and it was wonderful. We haven’t stopped playing the song live since.” Definitely one of the best albums ever made hands down!!
Previous Score: 10/10
New Score: 10/10
Standouts: The Hunt, Nomad, Amen
Roots: ah yes the one that most people know. What makes this album so unique is that not only does it have elements of Nü-Metal but tribal music too. Now one would think that the band would be familiar with all of this however, that is simply not true. In fact, the overall concept for this album was inspired by the movie At Play In The Fields Of The Lord. Once their label Roadrunner was convinced, the band met and recorded with an actual Brazilian tribe. Of course this would be the last album with Max Cavalera who would carry this sound into Soulfly (for at least the first album). I do have to say however, going back and listening to it in full, it didn’t really hit the same as before.
Previous Score: 10/10
New Score: 8/10
Standouts: Cut Throat, Breed Apart, Ambush
Against: the first without Max and the first with new singer Derrick Green. I have to say, he actually fits the band quite well and this is one of those albums that I forgot how good it is. He’s not a Max copy at all and has his own style. I’m sure there are people who think that Roots was the only album with tribal elements on it but in fact, this one has it too. There are also some great guests on here such as Mike Patton and Jason Newstead among others.
Previous Score: 5/10
New Score: 8/10
Standouts: Hatred Aside, Floaters in Mud, Drowned Out
Nation: I forgot how good this album is. I remember the first time I heard it I wasn’t too keen on it but now I think it’s great. It’s a step up and while it may not be as memorable as other albums, is still good. Again there are some great guests such as Jamey Jasta from Hatebreed and Jello Biafra from Dead Kennedy’s.
Previous Score: 6/10
New Score: 8.5/10
Standouts: Who Must Die?, Reject, Human Cause
Roorback- man oh man I forgot how badass this album is!! This one takes a more hardcore approach and just kicks your ass from start to finish!! What I like about this album is how it just goes for it and it’s just them. No guests and all killer!! Definitely give this album a listen!!
Previous Score: 6.5/10
New Score: 9/10
Standouts: Leech, Corrupted, The Rift
Dante XXI- I remember going to Warehouse Music and actually buying this record. Of course, this was also during the time when I thought that the only albums that mattered with this band were with Max. However, much like the other albums without Max I’ve grown to really appreciate how great this record is. Now this one is a concept record based on Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy with the album artwork by Stephan Doitschinoff, whom the band commissioned to do 10 paintings based on The Divine Comedy. Again, another record that is vastly overlooked and I wish they would have played more songs off of this album when I saw them. Fun fact, this is the last album with original drummer (and other Cavalera brother) Igor Cavalera.
Previous Score: 7/10
New Score: 8.5/10
Standouts: Convicted in Life, Dark Wood of Error, False
A-Lex- another concept record and this one is based on A Clockwork Orange. Again much like the last record, I’ve really grown to enjoy this record. It’s definitely another overlooked album but I feel like when this one came out it sort of just came and went. According to Andreas Kisser about the influences from the author Anthony Burgess, “We will write our soundtrack for this story and Burgess’ life will be an inspiration also to write the music, lyrics and for the artwork.” The title is a pun on the main character from the novel, Alex, and the Latin for “without law”: a (without) + lex (law); presumably referring to how Alex and his companions behaved. Another album that you definitely need to listen to.
Previous Score: 6.5/10
New Score: 8/10
Standouts: The Treatment, Enough Said, Paradox
Kairos- this one is just a straightforward thrash metal album. I think what I like about this one is the simplicity of it. In terms of its simplicity, it kind of reminds me of Roorback. When it comes to the album name, Andreas Kisser states “The whole theme of the album is the concept of the time, and the title reflects that — it’s like one concept of time which is not chronological, from one to two; it’s like an instant in time, it’s a special time of change… Everyone’s life is written by [their] choices — you have many ‘kairos’ moments, like if you go [from] point A [to point] B [to point] C, you are driven by your choices or your guidance; you have to go either one way or the other. And that’s the kind of time we talked about — not about aging or getting old or going back [in time]; it’s just [about those important] moments that can change everything.”
Previous Score: 7/10
New Score: 8/10
Standouts: Dialog, Seethe, No One Will Stand
The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart- we have another concept record and this one is based on the movie Metropolis. When asked about the name of the album, Andreas states “I was inspired by a phrase which is the main message of the story: “The mediator between the head and hands must be the heart” to express what we are saying on the lyrics.” And when asked about the concept, he goes on to say, “In the movie, a crazy millionaire wants to transform a robot into a real person. That’s kind of the opposite of what we live today. More than ever we are robotized, through the worldwide web, Google glasses, chips under our skins and the globalized slavery our society suffers nowadays. The [aforementioned] phrase points to the heart as being the human factor who keeps a man, a man, not a robot. The heart beats with freedom of choice, we have to think by ourselves to create a real world, not a matrix. Being a novel written in the early 1920s, it’s almost prophetical. It helped us to put the ideas together for the lyrics to express what we see today. I live in São Paulo, Brasil, one of the big metropolis in the world with more than 20,000,000 people living and working in it. I know how it is to live in daily chaos, our music reflects a lot of that feeling.”
Previous Score: 8/10
New Score: 9/10
Standouts: Trauma of War, Manipulation of Tragedy, Da Lama Ao Caos
Machine Messiah- one thing I forgot about this record are the Latin influences and the guitar work. Not that any of that wasn’t on previous records but with this one, you notice it a lot more. Now for the concept of the record, the band has been quoted as saying “The inspiration for Machine Messiah is the robotization of our society nowadays. The concept of a God Machine who created humanity and now it seems that this cycle is closing itself, returning to the starting point. We came from machines and we are going back to where we came from. The messiah, when he returns, will be a robot, or an humanoid, our biomechanical savior.”
Previous Score: 8/10
New Score: 9/10
Standouts: Iceberg Dances, Phantom Self, Vandals Self
Quadra- here we are……the final full length album from Sepultura. I must say that knowing that this is the final full length album makes it kind of sad because with the exception of the next two records, this is it. What makes this album great is that it’s divided into four sections. The first is thrash, the second is groove-percussive reminiscent of Roots, the third is more progressive, and the fourth is slow-paced and melodic. It’s a really fun and cool record. The concept of the album is based on Quadrivium, which are the four subjects, or arts (namely arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy), taught after teaching the trivium. The word is Latin, meaning four ways. The concept was discussed with the well known music photographer Marcos Hermes who was responsible for the picture of the album cover. Definitely one of their best and a great final full length!!
Previous Score: 8.5/10
New Score: 10/10
Standouts: Isolation, Capital Enslavement, Autem
Sepulquarta- this one is a re-recording of previous songs. Now this is not a new concept or idea by any means but what makes this a cool record are the guest musicians. We have appearances from the likes of Scott Ian (Anthrax), Fernanda Lira (Crypta), David Ellefson (Metal Church), Phil Campbell (Motörhead), Matt Heafy (Trivium), and so many others. It’s just a fun record but some of these songs are even heavier. I’m giving this one another 10/10
Standouts: Cut-Throat, Apes Of God, Hatred Aside
The Cloud Of Unknowing- for Quadra I kept saying full length and that’s because this is the 4 song FINAL EP. It’s a gift to the fans and a thank you for all the support over the years. Now musically, it sort of combines both what was heard on Machine Messiah and Quadra however I personally would’ve preferred a full length but if this is what we get, then I guess it’s better than nothing. I’ll give this one 8/10
Standouts: Beyond The Dream, The Place
However you feel about this band, one cannot deny the influence these guys have had. Their albums are all great and much like Sabbath, ALL SEPULTURA ALBUMS MATTER!!! I know that there are a lot of people who will say that there is no Sepultura without the Cavalera brothers but that is just not true. Those guys only made 6 albums and aside from that, this band (for the most part) hasn’t had a ton of lineup changes. Derrick Green has been fronting this band a lot longer and has made some great albums. Seriously do not ignore those albums because there are some great songs on them!! And Roots is not the only album with tribal stuff on it either.
It really is too bad that they are not going to be touring anymore because they really do put on a great show and I’ve been lucky enough to see them three times. Either way, this is a great band with some killer albums!!
Previous Album Rankings:
- Arise
- Beneath the Remains
- Roots
- Chaos A.D.
- Schizophrenia
- Machine Messiah
- Quadra
- Dante XXI
- Morbid Visions/Bestial Devastation
- Kairos
- The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart
- Roorback
- A-Lex
- Against
- Nation
New Album Rankings:
- Chaos A.D.
- Arise
- Quadra
- Roorback
- Sepulquarta
- Beneath The Remains
- Machine Messiah
- Nation
- Roots
- The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart
- Dante XXI
- Kairos
- The Cloud Of Unknowing
- A-Lex
- Against
- Schizophrenia
- Morbid Visions/Bestial Devastation
Sinister Reviews 