I am sure I will not be the only person who will be sorry to see the end of Sepultura when they complete the current tour as their albums in recent years, have been some of the very best they have ever released. The trio of Paulo Jr. (bass, backing vocals), Andreas Kisser (guitars, backing vocals) and Derrick Green (lead vocals, percussion) have been together since the departure of Max in 1997, while drummer Eloy Casagrande joined in 2011. However, in 2024 he left to join Slipknot and was replaced by Greyson Nekrutman from Suicidal Tendencies. During the lengthy farewell tour the band have been jamming in soundchecks and felt the energy from the 23-year-old which made Andreas decide to dust off some old demos which is why we have this four-track EP which will be their final statement.
Just 17 minutes in length, here we have a band who have nothing left to prove, so we get a power ballad with clean vocals, some jazzy elements, and of course the groove metal we have expected from them for so long. 40 years is a long time for any band, so it is not surprising they have decided to call it a day, but this does not sound like a group of people at the end of the road but rather one which is full of ideas and promise. They have expanded what we expect from them, and consequently it is a fascinating mix of new and old, which does make me wonder if this truly is the end of Sepultura. I would not be surprised for them to take a healthy break and then decide that possibly they haven’t quite achieved all they want to as while Eloy took them in one direction, Greyson is pushing them in another and his style allows them to spread their wings. If this truly is the very end then they have gone out with their heads held high.
Rating: 8/10
Links:
https://www.sepultura.com.br/
https://www.nuclearblast.com/