Igor Amadeus is Born...1995!!

In honor of our son , Igor, the lesson this week will be dedicated to him. One quarter of Lody Kong, one seventh of our gang of kids and 100% punk rock...that's Igor. The child who never wanted to come off the road, never liked to go to school, and the one who was born 50% Max and 50% me. Yes, Igor can play drums with the precision of a click-track, play guitar and bass, write riffs all day long, and that brain is stuffed with common sense and organization! He has a massive intellect and acquired my photographic memory. But let's go back....

I found out I was pregnant when Zyon was only about 20 months old. We were in the end of the Chaos AD Tour, a long and extremely successful tour for Sepultura. I had taken Zyon along on all the tours. He was an exceptionally chill and well behaved child...naturally. No problem to take the little guy on tour; the band loved him so much and joked that he was our mascot. Two babies on the road was another story. How the heck could I tell everyone? What would happen? I didn't know how to be a distant manager, sitting in a office unconnected to my work! 

Zyon and Guilia Kisser (Andreas' Daughter)

  I decided to tell Max when we were wrapping up the world tour. We went to Brazil with the Ramones at the end of 1994, so I figured I would light the baby news bomb while we were there. Alone in the hotel room, one afternoon, I laid the news out for Max. He was totally shocked and immediately had the same reaction as I did...how could we make our lives work with 2 babies? When the dust settled, we figured we would simply go with the flow...

We came home to Phoenix and the rest of the band went to Brazil for an extended vacation. I worked on growing my little bundle and Max planted himself at the kitchen table. Roots was born in this incubation period. Roadrunner found out Max had written a record in these months and they invited Max and me to come to Amsterdam to have a meeting. Max grabbed his 4 tracks of Roots, Straighthate and other songs and we crossed the Atlantic, bundle still in the oven.

 The label was concerned about the title Roots being perceived as a soul or R&B release but Max convinced them to trust him and his art, and in the end, they did. The ball was rolling. After the meeting, Max and I hopped a train to Salzburg and Vienna, Austria, to seek out Mozart's apartment and his musical roots. During this time, I asked Max if we could honor his brother and my Russian roots and name our son Igor. Max added his touch, Amadeus as the middle name.

Mozart's Apartment

Max and I in front of Mozart Monument

Three weeks before Igor was born, Max and me, with the kids all in tow, flew to the Netherlands to do the Nailbomb show. The band was playing 2 shows at a club in Eindhoven, Holland and at the Dynamo Festival, the day after. I had to fib a bit to the airline to get on the plane. They didn't allow pregnant women who were in their last month of pregnancy to fly. We safely made it there and back, rocked till the sun disappeared on the horizon and returned to business as usual. After all, I was setting up the Roots release, Nailbomb was popping and the Seps were about to return for rehearsals.

Super Pregnant!

Me, Igor, and Max

On July 2, 1995, after a difficult delivery, Igor Amadeus Cavalera opened his eyes to his rockstar Dad and green haired Mom! He was the largest of my children at birth, weighing nearly 9 pounds! When he was born, Dana said the 7th child was the most intelligent; he had read it somewhere. He whispered to Igor that one day he would be a doctor....Dana never got to see his prophecy come true....but from the typing I hear coming from Igor's room all hours of the day, I know Dana was right about many things he said that day...

A gift to Igor from the Deftones

Class dismissed....

Throw and Go 101

Many new bands have asked how to make a show when they are cruising through their tour and have days off. Days off mean no income and spending money, which can seriously eat into your budget...especially if you go partying!! These spontaneous gigs are known as Throw and Goes...pull up, throw the gear on stage, play the shizzle out of it and head back out the door. The term also refers to gigs where you pull up late for any number of reasons and have little time to set up. Recently, our Maximum Cavalera Tour had 2 days off in a row. We pulled off a gig at the last minute....here's how to do it!

Traveling on a tour bus and 2 days off means you need to find someplace to plug the bus in so your bus stock of food stays fresh, you don't use fuel and you don't get a huge-ass ticket for violating the local laws which do not permit buses running in city limits. In the rest of the world, tour buses do not have generators like in the states. They plug into special plugs which are located at most venues.

KFZ Club

Show Flier!

Empty Club

Our friend at Wizard Productions, Frank Ragusa, found us a small club in Marburg, Germany, named the KFZ Club, that would let us plug the bus in and even use their showers. This was a major score, since the club was in the center of the town, with many clubs and restaurants..even a huge castle to hike to!

The club asked if Incite and Lody Kong wanted to do a show on the second day. This was fantastic! They would charge 5 Euros at the door and the band could also use a small area in the bar, to sell merch and cds. Of course we approved this and in no time at all, the club made fliers and posters, and covered the town with them! Four days to promote did not frighten us! Major posting online and a city festival to pass out fliers gave us huge opportunities to spread the word.

BBQ!

 Tony Campos enjoying the weather...We got a Hot bus!

While we were waiting for load in to start, Frank went to a grocery store and came back with an assortment of bratwurst and beef steaks to bbq!! Throw this on some European fresh baked bread and you have a kickass lunch!

Loading In!

Fans ready to Rage!

Load in, soundcheck and setting up the merch is next for the day. People started lining up early. I must say we were all surprised with the turnout! Nearly 100 people moshing and hair windmilling completed the night!! I thought I felt a slight earthquake from the crowd when Max joined Incite for The Slaughter!! Next, a big rush to the merch booth and off the Metalheads went into the night. Us?? We loaded out, hopped on the bus and left for our next victim..er, venue...

Lody Kong!

INCITE!

INCITE w/ special guest Max!

Merch!

Class dismissed....

Bring Jerry Home!!!

Please, my dearest friend Bob Pfeifer's son was kidnapped and taken to Eastern Europe, illegally! Help reunite him with his son! Bob is a treasured friend of Max, me and our family. He helped us when Dana was killed. Let's get together, Tribe, and help him find his son. Thank you all!! Please share this.

"One year ago, my son, Jerry was kidnapped by his Slovakian mother, Maya Misejova Pfeifer. She fled to Europe with Jerry and his half brother, Sasha Hummel, both American boys.

I have not seen or heard from Jerry since July 2012.

I'm begging for your help. The situation they are living in is not safe. With every day that goes by, I am more worried for their safety. My son and I cannot live without each other. He means everything to me.

I have court-ordered permanent sole legal and physical custody of Jerry. Last year, Jerry's mother and grandmother left the United States with the kids. They haven't returned. 

The internet has made the world a small place. Someone you know may have seen Jerry and Sasha. Please, please share the link to this site and spread the word. 

Thank you so much for your help. Email me at the address below with any information"

bob@BringJerryHome.com

http://www.bringjerryhome.com

SOULFLY MEETS EL TORO!

Max and I like to sample the customs in other countries, the cuisine, superstitions and traditions of old. These have been one of the common bonds we share and share with our tribe. Many fans have met us in tiny, dark cafes, barbecue chuck wagons, or country side truck stops, with our big brood.

Plaza De Toros Arena

Such was a visit to Madrid, Spain one year. Soulfly was on the road, family in tow. We also had our sons' nanny, Joey Nugent (who directed and produced the new Lody Kong video), Drew Enriques and old friend Fattytizer in tow. Our hotel was near the Plaza Del Toro so we planned a venture to check it out.

Max and I

When we reached the bullfighting arena, we were shocked to see the tickets were only equivalent to $2.00 each. We took tons of photos with the beautiful matador posters and statues out in the front entrance and then made our way to the ticket booth.

Our $2.00 tickets lead us to the nosebleed section...the top row of seats, facing the burning sun. Ok. We would deal with it. It was an even bigger surprise to see the gates to each portal entrance were locked and no one could leave during each bullfight! They were open briefly to use the restroom or grab a drink, but then they were quickly locked again. As we settled in with the scorching sun and dizzying heights, we noticed that there was not one other child in the arena! Whoa! We were learning more and more about this tradition.

I will admit, the matadors looked fantastic in their outfits with hats and matching clothes. The rolling of their capes to attract the bulls was a liquid, fluid motion, in sync with the sway of their bodies. The bulls never cowered or appeared frightened. They behaved as fearless, charging bulls.

The gates finally opened and we walked the distance to our hotel. The bustling streets, once overstuffed with people heading this way and that, were now deserted. Not a soul to be seen on the weaving sidewalks. It was as if World War Z had mobilized, or the "Flash" had hit while we were safely locked in the arena. It was THE SIESTA...another custom to sift through. No restaurants, no window shoppers, just peace and serenity for your busy day. A nice concept....

Class dismissed...




Class dismissed...

GETTING TRIBAL TATTS....JONATHAN SHAW STYLE

It was early 1993. Zyon had just been born. I had work to sort in New York City, so Max and I planned a small trip. Sacred Reich was rolling through New York and Roadrunner Records was arranging a meeting. We bundled up our little mini and headed for the skyline.

NYC

Zyon, Dave McClain, and Max

The rumor in the 90's was that the best tribal tattoo artist in the world was an artist in NYC named Jonathan Shaw. His name circled the earth and his tatts were prized possessions. One night, we decided to hit him up and get tatts together. Of course our little Z accompanied us!

Jonathan's studio was super cool with memorabilia everywhere...lots of stories included! His friendly wife was his assistant. Max was really happy with the big forearm piece that was designed for him. It took quite a while to complete. When he was done, I got to slide in the chair and Jonathan designed a tribal piece that sits on my left arm, above my elbow.

Jonathan launched a killer tatt mag called International Tattoo. It seriously was one of the nicest quality magazines around. Featured in its pages were the top tattoo artists in the world, and some of the finest skin canvases on the planet! And then....he disappeared!

Rumors come and rumors go, but a strange one got associated with J. Shaw! The last we heard, he was trying to sell Charles Manson's artwork and some serious feds were looking for him. But let's not believe the rumor mill...let's imagine he is in a small village in South America tatting the locals!

Max, Jonathan, and Myself

A couple years ago, the memory of Jonathan Shaw filed in my card catalog in my brain, I entered an AMPM to pay for fuel. The clerk looked at me in shock and said "You have my grand father and Uncle Mohammed's name tattooed on your arm!" He pointed at my "tribal" tattoo. What could i do, besides protest? I laughed my butt off!

Class dismissed...