Album
Type : Full Length
Date
Released : 25.10.2013
Label
: Nuclear Blast
The
Mediator Between Head and Hands Must Be The Heart, track listing :
1.
Trauma Of War 3:45
2.
The Vatican 6:33
3.
Impending Doom 4:15
4.
Manipulation Of Tragedy 4:16
5.
Tsunami 5:10
6.
The Bliss Of Ignorants 4:51
7.
Grief 5:34
8.
The Age Of The Atheist 4:19
9.
Obsessed 3:53
10.
Da Lama Ao Caos 4:28
The
Band :
Derrick Green | Lead Vocals
Andreas Kisser | Guitars
Paulo Jr. | Bass
Eloy Casagrande | Drums
Andreas Kisser | Guitars
Paulo Jr. | Bass
Eloy Casagrande | Drums
Review
:
Sepultura
either ceased to exist in 1997 or evolved into a very different but no less
excellent band, depending on your viewpoint. For me, it took a couple of albums
but with Roorback Derrick Green established himself as front man of high
calibre. Sepultura don't make albums like Arise any more, but then again
they stopped doing that with... Arise, in 1991. They have been evolving
ever since and putting out high quality and thoughtfully left field releases (Roorback,
Dante XXI, A-Lex, Kairos) for a decade.
Down
to business: the new one (ridiculously lengthy title aside) is more
straightforward than Dante but more progressive than, say, Kairos. The
record, inspired by the 1927 film “Metropolis”, explores the consequences of
the mechanisation of society/human beings. It is not a concept record exactly,
but it explores a unifying theme. Perhaps to go along with this, the record was
recorded onto tape- hiss and all- with no click tracks, no computer trickery
etc. What you hear is what the band play- and they play phenomenally well.
Check out the performance of Eloy Casagrande on drums- he is the Seps' third
drummer and stamps his personality all over the record. At 22 he is an
incredible talent- blessed with technical ability and feel. Insane.
Trauma
of War
answers the opening bell with fury and precision. The beautiful intro to The
Vatican gives way to a masterful piece of metal and is followed swiftly by Impending
Doom, which explores slower tempos and allows the production to really
shine. Even on a fairly low quality stereo you can hear everything; bass,
guitar, drums, percussion and vocals all have room in the mix. Producer Ross Robinson, he of Roots
and other much worse metal albums fame, returns and does a sterling job. Seps
regular Steve Evetts mixes and comes up with a brilliantly balanced and unique
sound. Andreas Kisser has a unique tone- murky yet precise in approach- and it
is captured very well here.
Manipulation
of Tragedy
features an incredible drum track and excellent riffing- almost death metal but
at slow tempos (think early 90's Morbid Angel) while Derrick Green turns in a
throat shredding performance. Tsunami muses on the power and force of
nature while utilising razor sharp riffing and frenetic rhythms. Classic latter
day Sepultura is summed up well here- power with thought put behind it. The
Bliss of Ignorants opens with Latin rhythms and percussive sounds before
bringing light and shade in equal measure; the album becomes quirky with this
track. Paulo Xisto locks down the bottom end effectively here, as he has done
for nearly thirty years, and the album moves into its second half.
Grief
opens with a very maudlin guitar and offers a bridge into the albums last three
tracks by way of short verses and extremely sombre sentiments. Truly unusual in
Sepultura's catalogue this track is a fine example of the band spreading its
wings to good effect. The Age of The Atheist was the taster track that
the band put out ahead of the album release and as such represents the more
accessible side of the record. It is heavy, rhythmically adventurous and full
of Sepultura-isms. Disjointed verse sections are replaced by a head nodding
rhythm as Green exhorts us to consider “No gods! No leaders!” The track heats
up and double bass drums are brutalised, grooves locked into and any doubts
regarding the new line-up are further dispelled.
Obsessed contains a guest
spot from Dave Lombardo who contributes a dual (duel?!) drum track with
Casagrande. Excellent stuff and a real percussive treat for those out there
interested in such things. Da Lama Ao Caos finishes the record. From
what I know, this is a track by Brazilian artist Chico Science- who is by
reputation quintessentially Brazilian. As such, there is a kind of tribal/hip
hop flavour to the track (kisser does the lead vocals here- in Portuguese) as
the groove takes a front seat and heads nod along. An interesting and
satisfying way to end an album of concise length- it is both direct and winding
by turn, hangs together as an album perfectly and makes a virtue of the breadth
and depth of musical approaches that Sepultura have covered over the course of
their career.
Sepultura
will never be a straight forward thrash band again (and haven't been in over
twenty years, or ever; depending on how you view the death elements of their
early sound). Good for them, I say, as they continue to make interesting and
adventurous metal, full of great concepts, riffs, vocals and rhythms.
Sepultura
originally made such an impact, in part, due to their third world provenance
and very different background to other successful thrash acts. One imagines
that growing up in the favellas is no picnic (to say the least) and thus people
were interested in what the band had to say.
Kisser resides in Sao Paulo- the largest city in the southern
hemisphere- and that sprawling metropolis and all it contains must inform the
way the band write and approach their craft. For those of you who won’t give
them a chance after Roots, Chaos AD or even Arise: you are making
a mistake. Yes, they are a different band now; but by making albums of such
high quality as this one they continue to be a relevant and creative musical
force. There are not many metal bands who have been around as long who can
claim as much. A superb album.
Words
by : Richard Maw
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