Following the Flame: An Interview with Max Cavalera (Soulfly)

Chama, the title of Soulfly’s thirteenth studio album released on October 24^th through Nuclear Blast Records, is a Brazilian word with a dual meaning. It can be used to mean both ‘flame’ and ‘a calling.’ The album is accompanied by a short story describing the journey of young man searching for meaning and direction in life, traveling from a Brazilian favela to the jungle seeking inspiration, led by a flame. When you consider frontman Max Cavalera’s musical career, the name and story are apropos, even mirroring his odyssey to where he is today in the metal world.

Max found himself in a situation similar to the protagonist of the Chama tale after the loss of his father at an early age in his native Brazil. His family had to move to a less affluent town in his teenage years, and he was left with anger and sadness while searching for direction and purpose. That calling turned out to be heavy metal, as he and his brother Iggor channeled their emotions into creating the music that would make Sepultura the most famous metal act to emerge from their home country. Infusing traditional Brazilian sounds and instrumentation with killer riffs and anti-establishment lyrics led Sepultura to international renown before Max left the band in late 1996.

Again faced with a difficult, emotional obstacle to overcome, the fire still burned within Max to continue to create the music he believed in. Soulfly was born from that passion in 1997, with the goal of creating a band without permanent members that relied on collaboration and innovation with numerous artists who shared his vision. Thirteen records later, Chama continues the tradition set forth from the first Soulfly record, merging industrial and jungle sounds with a host of guest collaborators. I had a chance to speak with Max about the new album, and a number of other topics, including:

the reception of the Chama and the new songs Soulfly have been performing live, the companion story written by Max’s son Igor that complements the music on the record, the potential for an animated piece to accompany the music of Chama, and a discussion of old school stage sets versus new age screen presentations for live bands.
the guest solo from Michael Amott of Arch Enemy on “Ghenna,” the different collaborators used on the new record, his struggle trying to get idol Tom Araya to sing some classic Slayer lines on “Terrorist,” and his bucket list of dream guest appearances for future Soulfly albums.
how it feels to be able to play music with his sons Zyon and Igor, a sparsely attended autograph session he had on his first trip to New York at Slipped Disc in Valley Stream, a tale of two albums he bought based on how cool the album covers were, and a healthy discussion of vinyl records.
Max’s feelings about the prospect of retirement and reflections on how it feels to be widely known and respected for music that celebrates his heritage and have it be embraced on a global scale by fans.

You can view the entire interview HERE:

It was an honor to speak to such a legend in the metal world, and Max seems as down to earth as you would imagine from his lyrics and general outlook on life. After forty years and an innumerable number of classic records, it’s clear from speaking to him that he found that flame and his calling early on in life way back in those hungry days in Brazil, and from the fire and passion he exudes while talking about Chama, it sounds like he has no intentions looking back or slowing down anytime soon.