IT’S A BIG DAY OUT!

After Soulfly and Logan Mader each went their separate ways, I called Mikey Doling and asked him to fill in on lead guitar. He was struggling with Snot’s loss of Lynn Strait (RIP) and was emotionally happy to join in. I had a nice spot for Soulfly on Australia’s Big Day Out festival tour, just the perfect mood elevator for everyone!!

No sooner was the band onstage, when some prankster threw a larger than normal flashlight at the stage, splitting Max’s forehead wide open! It’s amazing it didn’t knock him out! What did my beast do? He never stopped for a second. He gave his Tribe what they wanted....a roaring set! The blow to his face knocked his teeth out. Did you know he replaced his front teeth 11 times? I guess you can say he took one for the team...many times over! All were from stage divers and crowd surfers knocking the mic into his face.

The light of the tour was our young son, Igor. We literally did walking meet and greets with him! He had this curly flowing hair and big compassionate eyes! Two years old and soaking it all in!!!

Max was on stage tearing it up! Igor was attracting fans like Walmarters on Black Friday and me? I was on the land line conquering the world! Just like any good Dragon!!

Class dismissed......

TREE OF PAIN...THE CLASSIC!

Soulfly 3 is a rarity, with one of the longest Soulfly tracks on it, Tree of Pain. Max invited a young vocalist from Phoenix, Asha Rabouin, to sing on the track, and did she ever belt that tune! Asha sang from her heart, since her brother Kamal had suffered an early death. It is the Bohemian Rhapsody of Metal, in my opinion. Long and deep, soulful and compassionate. Her voice is so silky and mournful at the same time.

This record was the first record Max produced on his own. We went to the newly relocated Chaton Studios and recorded with Otto "Rusty" Dagnolo, a longtime friend, who had also recorded Nailbomb. I found the studio when I set up the Flotsom and Jetsom demo recording.

Max became a US citizen only a couple weeks before and then 9-11 happened. This seriously affected the lyrics on this record. There is a minute of silence on the track 9-11-01, Call to Arms with Danny Marianino, and the Sacred Reich cover One Nation, all representing the turbulent, confusing times.

The fun moment in this recording was when we brought Zyon, Igor , and two of their close friends, Jade and Noah, in the studio to record the Pledge of Allegiance, to be used as the intro to One Nation. We actually took them to NYC when Soulfly played Roseland. These kids found their courage and walked out in front of a sold out crowd and recited the pledge in front of a mosh pit frenzy of Metalheads! I do recall they punched each other once or twice as they walked out..something to do with their placement on stage LOL!!

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HERE WE GO!! ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER STRIKE!!

The video for Seek and Strike was made in the yard of our home we cal The Mountain House. Sean Lennon penned the lyrics to Son Song there, with Max. A track about John Lennon written by his son, written there! I could only dream of something like that! Killer Be Killed was given birth there. Joe Nunez's first show with Soulfly was at Roxanne's Sweet 16 Party at that location. The Mountain House soothed the children's loss of their brother. It gave them adventure romping through the desert and creek bed. When you walk in the front door, on the floor is a giant carved word...CAVALERA. There is a secret Soulfly logo tucked on the tile in a corner of a room. Many many memories there..

When it came time to make the video for Soulfly 3, Max chose the desert location to be in our yard. 6 spacious acres offered all types of terrain. The only problem was the 110 degree heat that decided to smother us that day! Never fear, as we Arizonans are tough stock when it comes to dry heat! We gathered our Tribe and off we went!

For drama, we painted the faces of everyone with Soulfly logos and tribal paint. Our friend, Ray Nugent, has a large Soulfly logo tattooed on his back; perfect for this occasion! Throughout the day, they all ran through the cactus, up the inclines from the creek bed and the band played on!! We even had a visit from a rattlesnake!

The end of the video was the final gift! Everyone perched on the massive bedrock popping through the volcanic rock and a water truck sprayed everyone with the coolness of the tank! Did I tell you that our property and home is smack dab in the middle of an extinct volcano? Located at the foot of Pyramid Mountain, the last house in Unincorporated Phoenix, also a positive vortex location. It has the vibe that caresses your spirituality.

Please don't ask what happened to the snake!

Class dismissed....

LET’S REVISIT PRIMITIVE, STUDENTS!!

Primitive was an evolution in the Encyclopedia of Max producing records. He never sat at the board but he plotted the rest..the guests, studio, engineers, artwork, mastering, every detail. One of the photos of this time, one he loved the most, was taken of our son Igor with tribal paint on him. It was dramatic!

There were so many guests to arrange travel, contracts and recording schedules, which made my time tight, as well! Tom Araya, Sean Lennon, Chino Moreno, Grady Avenoll, Asha Rabouin and many others. I remember Chino walked in with a cd of rough tracks from White Pony, laying it on the soundboard and 30 seconds later, it was stolen!



Cory Taylor was playing a show and shot in an out of the studio. He crafted some of the meanest lyrics on Jumpdafuckup! He was ON FIRE that afternoon!!!

Max brought in a team of percussionists. He had never worked with Mei Noite before, but admired his style and work. He was invited to throw his shizzle down, along with Larry McDonald. Max met Larry when they both performed in Amsterdam, for the Crossing Borders spoken word event. Larry was a member of Gil Scott Heron’s band.

Things were coming together.. Max had build a comfort zone in his vocal booth and I was there to plot and make his ideas come to life! Even though I had that goofy haircut and glasses....wtf? Lol

But what a great tan! Enjoy your summer, Students! Catch up on classes if you are behind!


Class dismissed.....