It’s hard to believe that it’s been nearly 3 years since we last heard new material from the legendary act that is Sepultura. Arguably one of the strongest albums that the quartet has released, Machine Messiah was received by both fans and critics exceptionally well and helped take the band to even further heights with tours throughout the world with legendary acts such as Kreator and Testament. With that album doing so well and further cementing the band’s legendary status, will this (their 15th album) continue to push the band even further?
Quadra pretty much picks up where the previous one left off, but packs so much more energy. Tracks such as “Isolation” and “Last Time” are pure thrash tunes with the superb riffs of Andreas and break-neck drumming from Eloy marrying together perfectly. This marriage continues across the whole album with each song sounding exceptionally cohesive and well rounded. “Raging Void” is another prime example of this with both instruments working together perfectly instead of trying to one up the other.
The album also packs a few surprises outside of the traditional thrash music. The introduction to “Guardians Of Earth” and title track “Quadra” are acoustic guitar driven and inject a nice little bit of the Brazilian heritage. And whilst we’re talking about “Guardians Of Earth”, it’s worth saying that it is one of the strongest on the album with its superb choruses and choral parts appearing later on. It is, quite possibly, one of the best songs Sepultura has written in recent years. The thrash however is still ever present and following tracks “The Pentagram” and “Autem” provide a perfect blast from the past.
Rounding things out, “Fear; Pain; Chaos; Suffering” introduces more new musical flavours to the palate with female vocals and an overall more progressive vibe. However, unlike a certain other band’s attempt to vary their style, this change works and suits the album as whole really well. Sure, it might not be an all out guns blazing thrash attack like some might want, but it ends the album in a rather calm manner which, as mentioned before, really suits it.
In comparison to Machine Messiah, this new release feels like the logical next step and a true move upwards in terms of quality and musicality. The elements which were introduced on MM have been built upon and evolved and merged with the classic elements to create something which is rather impressive. If anything, Quadra shows that the titans of Brazilian metal are back. And this time they mean business.
Quadra is out on February 7th. Order through Amazon and support this site!
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