SOULFLY Mainman: 'Each One Of My Albums Brings The Certain Place Of Mind I Was In'

George Pacheco of the Cape Cod Rock Music Examiner recently conducted an interview with SOULFLY/ex-SEPULTURA guitarist/vocalist Max Cavalera. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On his death metal roots:

"Yeah, I'm still connected to that part of my career. I think there was a lot of great music came out of that, and I still write music based upon that — a lot of my riffs are still based on that era. I still feel a strong connection with stuff like DEATH, POSSESSED, CELTIC FROST and MASSACRE; I'll never let that die, and I know it'll always be a part of me, because writing fast, aggressive music never really went away, you know? That spirit is alive with SOULFLY."

On SOULFLY's musical progression over the years:

"Each one of my albums brings the certain place of mind I was in, and I'm proud of them all. 'Soulfly' had a lot of jam sessions, while 'Primitive' had a lot of guests, from Tom Araya to Corey Taylor and Sean Lennon. 'Soulfly III' and 'Prophecy' had more thrash things going on, which drove right into 'Dark Ages', 'Conquer' and now [on the new SOULFLY album] 'Omen'. I have very good memories of all of them, and they all represent every era of my life. Sure, we've came back to a more ‘metal' sound here with SOULFLY since 'Dark Ages', but I never backtrack, man. I don't compare the albums. I just look forward and do each album one at a time. I'm never looking back to the last one, or in the future towards the next."

On whether he has noticed his way of songwriting changing much over the years:

"It's the same, and has been for twenty years or so. Everything goes down to a four track and a drum machine, so most of the stuff which comes to the studio is 90 percent done; I write it at home, and translate it into the band form. We add bridges, solo sections, intros and outros, but the majority of the song is already written at home, which is the most important part, I think."

On working with former SOULFLY guitarist Logan Mader on the production of "Omen" and the current SOULFLY lineup:

"Logan worked with me on the CAVALERA CONSPIRACY project, as well, so it went really well, man. He really got a great sound on the album; he's very talented, and just a great guy.

"The lineup we have now has actually been the most consistent, existing since 2003! I really like these guys. We get along real well, and are good friends. We all live in different parts of the U.S., so we see each other on tour, but stay separate most of the other time, which I think is good, because you're not connected to that person all of the time. I'm glad that this lineup has persevered, but if it changes, I'm still going to continue SOULFLY not matter what, man."

Read the entire interview from the Cape Cod Rock Music Examiner.

Video footage of SOULFLY performing a brand new song, "Lethal Injection" — featuring a special guest appearance on vocals by PRONG mainman Tommy Victor — on March 6, 2010 at the Culture Room in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida can be viewed below.