Video Premiere: SEPULTURA's 'Phantom Self'

"Phantom Self", the new video from Brazilian/American metallers SEPULTURA, can be seen below. The Mauricio Eça-directed clip delivers haunting images and sociocultural criticism.

"Phantom Self" is taken from SEPULTURA's new studio album, "Machine Messiah", which will be released on January 13 via Nuclear Blast. Inspired by the robotization of our society, the disc was produced by the band and Jens Bogren (SOILWORK, OPETH, KATATONIA, AMON AMARTH) of Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden. The CD's stunning cover artwork was created by Filipino artist Camille Della Rosa.

"'Phantom Self' starts with a short intro based on the Brazilian rhythm 'Maracatú', originally from the Northeast region of Brazil", explains SEPULTURA guitarist Andreas Kisser. "We mixed this very Brazilian sound with violins performed by a Tunisian violin ensemble, the Myrath Orchestra. This was a suggestion from Jens Bogren, the producer of the album, who worked with this orchestra before and he thought it could be a nice combination. We used the violins on different parts of the song and that opened a lot of new possibilities, especially for my guitar parts."

He continued: "It was great to have that conversation between guitar and violins, making the part even more special.

"It's a very heavy song, with a lot of groove, one of the most complete songs we ever worked with, and it's taking SEPULTURA to a new level!"

Adds SEPULTURA singer Derrick Green: "The lyrical idea came from an article that Andreas sent me. It was about a young man who had everything going for him and unfortunately was in a horrific car accident in the '70s. After the accident, he lost his entire idea of who he was. No one could figure out what was going on inside his mind. He would have glimpses of his former self but doctors realized that chemical elements of his mind had shifted. He had become an entirely different person within himself.

"There is this element of change that exists within all of us. This ability is important for our evolution as human beings to move forward even after traumatic events."

"Machine Messiah" track listing:

01. Machine Messiah
02. I Am The Enemy
03. Phantom Self
04. Alethea
05. Iceberg Dances
06. Sworn Oath
07. Resistant Parasites
08. Silent Violence
09. Vandals Nest
10. Cyber God

Regarding how SEPULTURA ended up working with Jens Bogren on the new CD, Kisser told SVT.se: "We did like a small research on different producers that we didn't work [with] before; we wanted to work with somebody new. And the Swedish music and scene and the bands like MESHUGGAH, OPETH and many others inspired us to come here and to work with him. He also worked with KREATOR, a band from Germany, and ANGRA, another band from Brazil, friends of ours, and I was really impressed with the way he worked [with] both bands."

According to Green, "Machine Messiah" sees him and his bandmates continuing to take their sound in new, previously unexplored directions, something that has become somewhat of a SEPULTURA trademark.

"This album, it's exciting, because I think a lot of fans don't have any idea what to expect, but they know that a SEPULTURA album is always different from the last," Derrick said. "I think that makes us better musicians, and I think that's what our fans expect."