SOULFLY GOES TO THE FRONTLINES!!

I think the year was 2004, or 2005, when Soulfly and our Tribe travelled to Serbia to record 2 videos. My daughter, Christina, was living there and had made acquaintance with a TV show producer, Mira, and through Mira, we were connected to a killer production team. They did television commercials and short independent films, and were able to get us access to locations we could not channel to, by using traditional routes.
We first went to a small village called Golubac, and made the Carved Inside video. It was recorded in an old castle ruins on the banks of the Danube....but that's another blog...

Mira suggested we record at a bombed television studio in Belgrade, as she worked for the channel, and could get us access. Of course, it was bombed by the Americans... It was a bit dangerous and haphazard due to the fact it was not reconstructed after the bombing and lose objects were everywhere. It seemed like a fitting location for a track like the upcoming Soulfly, Frontlines.

This was in the time of Max without a hair log growing out the back of his head, Joe Nunez on drums, Marc Rizzo with hair and what's his name on bass....(fabricator and misogynist, dare I say?). It's my blog, right? I aim to tell the truth through it... Max had a gas mask on for a good part of the day, and stock footage aptly showed scenarios that we wish weren't true, but unfortunately are.

At the end of the day, we had 2 prime cuts, a new experience and even some education, in a sick sense. We decided to wrap it up peacefully, spiritually and with hope, so we all made the trek to the majestic St. Mark's Orthodox Church, where Max and Marc laid the hate down and covered it with the carpet of ambient serenity. Ahhh, the world was back to normal...

Class dismissed......

KEEP YOUR BAGS PACKED, STUDENTS!!! ISTANBUL, TURKEY, NEXT STOP!!!!

Max and I have visited Istanbul many times. The first time we got off the plane there, we didn't know anyone and we explored the city peacefully. Max made several recordings of street sounds and these are found on Dark Ages' Fall of the Sycophant. We checked out the Great Bazaar, the Hagia Sofia, and the Blue Mosque.

The Hagia Sofia was my favorite, having once been the center of the Orthodox religion. After the city was overthrown, ages ago, it was remodeled into a mosque. Max recorded workers clanking their hammers and this is found on Touching the Void, also on Dark Ages. The hammer's echoes bounced around the giant dome and made a vey interesting effect. We also loved the ancient mural showing Mother Mary and St. John the Baptist pleading with Jesus to stop the coming Armageddon. Jesus didn't look very happy.

The Blue Mosque was very impressive and we found the interior to be fascinating, with it's tiled walls. We had to remove our shoes as we entered. On the way out, when i made a "donation," I was told I had 10 tickets to Heaven!

The city is very interesting, situated on both continents of Europe and Asia. Lots of fine shopping, landmarks, museums and delicious food, can be found in all the nooks and crannies of the city! It is a metropolis with a long history, some of it quite bloody!

Since that first trip, I have brought Metal music to Turkey, in various theaters, outdoor festivals and even a club or two! One memorable show was a four hour drive to the middle of nowhere, and there were still fans!!



Let's not forget the fashionable Max Cavalera Store and it's elegant haute couture clothing!! We were quite surprised to learn of its existence! Once, we visited it and really enjoyed meeting the owner! You can check it out on Instagram!!

This week, we will once again walk on exotic soil, as we bring the Return to Roots show to the fans!! For that hour and fifteen minutes set, the Tribe will be as one. All the same emotions come together, moshpit action, singing along and head banging. It's the universal language in our life!!


Class dismissed.....

WAKE UP GREECE!!!! HERE WE COME!!!!

We have been to Greece many times. I took Sacred Reich there first, then Sepultura and Soulfly. During the Greek recession and time of difficulty, we were not able to get a show there, other than in Crete. Don't get me wrong, as we loved Crete and its exquisite cuisine and ancient ruins, but we were denied our Greek Tribe, and that hurts!!

The first time I took Sepultura, Max and I were still sneaking around, keeping our affair and growing love as secret as possible! That was in the days of his extreme alcohol saturation and as you know, Greece is famous for its Ouzo! The promoter, Nana, took us to a super cool restaurant after the show, and of course, Max arrived blasted. I had barely cut into my wrapped grape leaves when he announced we had to get some fresh air! I spent the next 30 minutes wandering the streets of Athens, wishing I had a lasso! I finally found our way back to the restaurant and sat back down, when he erupted and barfed squarely in the middle of the restaurant, spraying the floor and everyone around him! I was super pissed but the promoter had sympathy for him...which didn't compute, to me!! Lol

We returned years later, with our family in tow, even our precious cherub, Moses, was with us! The city was preparing for the Olympics and there was action all around us! We hired a cab driver, who just happened to have mad respect for Americans! He gave us the super secret tour and eventually deposited us at a restaurant, owned by his friends. We were treated to trays of live fish to chose our meals from and warm espressos after.

Next week, I return to Athens, bringing my Return to Roots tour to the Metalhead Greeks. We are all excited as heck! I will be looking for the Tribe in the crowd, so don't be afraid to give us a shout out!! And... keep the Ouzo in the cabinet!! LOL

Class dismissed....

MY BLOODY ROOTS....LET'S GO TO THE NUREMBERG TRIALS

A short Glo history, in memory of my roots. My mother's family stretches back for centuries in Russia. I have told you a bit about my family and as we head to Europe with the Return to Roots, I think about the footsteps my Mother made across her trek from a peaceful childhood in Kosovo to a concentration camp, a forced labor camp and ultimately, to freedom.

Mom was in Nuremberg, Germany when the Americans freed the city. She had just been released from the hospital, having been injured in a bomb blast. She and a friend were walking down the street when an air raid siren began to pierce the air. She told me she looked up and saw the rectangular doors under the airplanes above, open, and the bombs float out. She was with a friend and they desperately tried to make it to a shelter, but they were all locked already. They were running to hide but couldn't escape the explosion. When the dust settled, only one crumpled body lay on the street...my Mother.

After 6 months in the hospital, she reclaimed her life. Walking down the street, on her first free New Year's Eve, she heard a party in the Grand Hotel and stole a peak inside. Though the building needed refurbishment, the party in the ballroom was in full motion. They were celebrating the end of WW2, as well as the fresh start of a new year. A young man saw her and instantly fell in love with her. They were married a short time later, and her new life began.

Her husband got a job at the Nuremberg Trials. It was in the balcony viewing the trial, where Mom found out she had been in a concentration camp, when she was interred in Austria. She had thought it was a work camp with mysterious and frightful goings on, but it was the dreaded Mauthausen. She was shocked beyond words.

One day, she was taken to the jail cells and allowed to peak in the windows. She saw each of the horrific defendants. She recalled Goerring was sitting on his bed in a white wife beater tee.

Roll the years past, to the 2000's..... Max and I were in Nuremberg for a show and we decided to visit the courtroom. We peaked in and there was a trial going on...a man had murdered his wife, and the courtroom was busy and yet, still haunting. The balcony she sat in is long gone, but the plaques remain, for all to see. The books, the movies, and the documentaries all tell the tale. Did we learn a lesson? Will these crimes happen again? History often repeats itself, and after all, we are only human..... My bloody roots will always remain!

Class dismissed........

HOW WE RETURNED TO OUR ROOTS!!

This photo was taken January 30, in London, when Uncle Iggor arrived at the Soulfly gig to visit us. Earlier, we had all been hanging with him, Auntie Laima, and their kids, Raissa and Antonio, in the dressing room. During the show, Zyon hopped off the kit for Roots and Iggor took over. I have always wondered how the heck he gets that fantastic, sonic booming drum sound. When Iggor hits the skins, it doesn't sound like other drummers! It is a powerful Hammer of Thor sound. I have never heard another drummer duplicate this sound. I have studied Iggor's technique plenty and still cannot figure it out. Is it how he hits? Or where he hits? No, it's something outer worldly. Therefore, I have determined it's magic and he was the recipient of this gift!! My intense studies also taught me that when Zyon drums, he makes the exact same face as his Uncle. It's amazing what we inherit!

Although you can't see me, I am sitting on the side of the stage as I took this photo. I was happily watching the excitement, joy and surprise on the faces of the crowd, as Max announced his brother would guest on stage. I began to think to myself..."Look how happy everyone is. They love seeing Max play with his son, Zyon, and they love seeing him play with his brother, Iggor." And it popped in my head....Why can't they give the fans what they want? Why should I feel that they can't play their songs? It was their history, too! So many thoughts began swirling....

I sent our North American agent, Dan Rozenblom, a text from the side of the stage. "I have an idea. This is the 20th anniversary of the Roots record. Do you think we could do a tour and the guys play the entire Roots' record? The fans really love it when the guys play Roots, maybe they would like the whole record?" He immediately shot me a reply, "let me ask around. Give me a couple days."

After the show, I mentioned my idea to Max, and one day later, I had my answer. Apparently, Max brought it up in an interview, just a simple interview, but it blew around the world like a hurricane force gust!! In no time at all, I was mobbed with emails from promoters, fans and journalists wanting to talk about it! My kids even got calls from promoters trying to book the show!! I had my answer and to was YES!!!

The Amnesia Fest in Canada was our "Sticking our toes in the water" gig, and it went great! After that, the world was ours and I could barely keep up with all the requests for interviews and concert dates. I realized many things on this tour. Number one, the new fans are cool!! They don't care who is playing; they don't whine about the reunion. They are Metal to the core and want to hear the record from A to Z, and they want it to sound like the record. They want to see the 2 brothers playing, and they want a great bass player and a sick guitarist. We gave them what they wanted and they gave us back what we had all dreamed of! This tour is one of the biggest sing a long tours I have ever been on!! I must say, these moshers did their homework!!

Class dismissed.....