SOULFLY's MAX CAVALERA: 'For A Young Band Starting Out Right Now, It's Very Difficult'

In a new interview with Chaoszine, former SEPULTURA and current SOULFLY frontman Max Cavalera spoke about how diminishing music sales in the streaming age have affected new bands' chances of surviving and thriving. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's tough, man. It's tough. The record sales nowadays compared to what was 25 years ago. When SOULFLY came out, [the first] SOULFLY [album] was a gold record in America. [SEPULTURA's] 'Roots', [SOULFLY's] 'Primitive' [were both] gold records [which] sold many, many thousands of copies. That doesn't happen now. You have to do all the things now. You have to use social media. You have to go on tour. You have to sell shirts. You have to be creative. It's tough.

"I think for a young band starting out right now, it's very difficult," he continued. "Much harder [than it used to be]. But it is what it is. They created this monster and they don't know how to fix it. And it sucks that the musicians end up paying the price for it. I'm glad that at least we're still making albums. And there's fans that love vinyl — they love the physical copy. And there's still a passion for this music, and I love that. And that's why I will continue making records, because I believe in the album, I believe in the power of a record. I believe in the power of an album. It's a magical thing. It's a cool thing. It's an amazing thing. I listen to my old records, I listen to new records. I'm always inspired by albums. I think it's amazing."

SOULFLY's thirteenth album, "Chama", came out on October 24 via Nuclear Blast Records.

This past weekend, SOULFLY kicked off the "Favela Dystopia" 2025 West Coast tour with GO AHEAD AND DIE. The 17-date trek launched on November 1 in Roswell and will head to Denver, Spokane and Fresno, among other cities, before concluding in Flagstaff on November 23.

SOULFLY drummer — and Max's son — Zyon Cavalera co-produced "Chama", which was recorded at the Platinum Underground Studio in Mesa, Arizona by John Aquilino. John has worked with Max and company multiple times before and is not only a talented engineer but a family friend. The album was produced by Zyon and Arthur Rizk. The latter was also responsible for the mixing and mastering. Rizk has not only worked with the Cavalera family numerous times before, but has also helped to shape the world of heavy metal in the modern day. SOULFLY enlisted Carletta Parrish to create the album artwork. For the album, Igor Amadeus Cavalera (GO AHEAD & DIE, NAILBOMB, HEALING MAGIC) played bass and Mike De Leon played guitar.

SOULFLY's lineup on "Chama" is:

Max Cavalera - Vocals, Guitar
Igor Amadeus Cavalera - Bass
Zyon Cavalera - Drums
Mike De Leon – Guitar

This past May, SOULFLY recruited Chase Bryant (WARBRINGER) to play bass on the band's European tour, which kicked off on June 7 at the South Of Heaven festival in Maastricht, Netherlands.

A month earlier, SOULFLY parted ways with the band's longtime bassist Mike Leon.

Leon, formerly of HAVOK, joined SOULFLY in September 2015 as the replacement for STATIC-X bassist Tony Campos, who left SOULFLY in May of that year.

Guitarist Mike DeLeon has been touring with SOULFLY for more than two years. Prior to hooking up with SOULFLY, DeLeon had been a member of PANTERA singer Philip Anselmo's solo band PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS, which he joined in 2015 as the replacement for Marzi Montazeri. More recently, Mike filled in for Zakk Wylde at the first rehearsal for the fall 2022 PANTERA shows.

Photo credit: Jim Louvau