Artist: Sepultura
Label: Roadrunner Records
Release Date: 3/20/01
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Title: Nation Artist: Sepultura Label: Roadrunner Records Release Date: 3/20/01 |
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Abyss's Review:
I think we’re all a little curious as to how Sepultura will rebound after the tragedy that was Against. My first introduction with that particular album was while listening to WSOU, supposedly right as they got their promo. They made the mistake of playing “Arise” right before the new track “Choke”, unwittingly displaying the new material’s shortcomings from the get go. The album, in my opinion, was disheveled, droning, and unfocused. The state of affairs that was present at the time, plus the breaking in of a new singer, excuses the effort to an extent, but what troubled me was that it didn’t seem Sepultura, in its new form, had a chance of ever living up to its pedigree.
That brings us to Nation, the first release by this band that really can’t make any excuses. The band’s gotten to know each other and assimilate, and they took their sweet time in between albums. So I think it’s safe to say that this is the first clear-cut look we have of what Sepultura will be from now on.
"One word review: boring." The good news is that this album is far better than Against. Mr. Green seems to have lost enough of his hardcore influences, or at least gained enough metal influences, so that he no longer seems like a fish out of water. In fact, his voice is one of the more interesting parts of the album. His screaming rants have good meter, cadence and tone and his forays into a less aggressive crooning reminds one of Faith No More’s Chuck Mosely (although his attitude is decidedly less cartoonish). So it’s safe to say that Derrick Green has fulfilled his obligation, but unfortunately this album fails in pretty much all of the other catagories.
Now we’ve all already given up the hope that Sepul would reverse coarse on the nu-metal and go back to the brutality that we remember them for. It seems that this album continues on the road that they, and Soulfly, have been going on, this album probably being the most commercial of the bunch. The riffs are simple and uninteresting, and while Soulfly succeeds to a point due to their ambitious rhythm section, Sepultura’s percussion is just a shadow of what it used to be. So basically, although the vocals have improved the songwriting has deteriorated. And while the writing is better than the last album, it still comes up short.
Every once in awhile a catchy chorus grabs your ear and gets your head a-bobbin’, but they are few and far between and last for very little time. Lead track “Sepulnation” sums up this album pretty well, and is probably one of the better songs on the disc. Longtime fans will be disappointed, but if you found ways in which to defend Against (and there are quite a few of you out there) you’ll be happy enough, but I can’t recommend this one. One word review: boring.
Death's Review:
I remember the day when a new Sepultura album release was a red-letter day in Metal Nation. I remember grabbing Chaos A.D. right when it came out and slamming around in drunken ritual with Geoff Nadolski and Dave Feohl while we threw all the furniture in the house up against the wall. When Metallica officially cheesed, with Metallica in 1991, Sepultura was right there to pick up the reigns. They ruled. But notice my use of the past tense here? It's intentional.
"They ruled. But notice my use of the past tense here? It's intentional." Sepultura's split from Max Cavalera is one of metal's defining events of the last decade. Neither side survived this seminal tale of murder and betrayal (I'm not kidding - I heard VH1 was contemplating a Sepultura Behind the Music; Megadeth, I know, is confirmed and is airing in May) with its musical integrity intact, in my humble opinion, with Soulfly going nu-metal and Seputura trying to reinvent themselves as a hardcore band. What happened to the band that was once commonly accused of being a South American Slayer rip-off? What happened to the band that released the awesome Beneath the Remains?
Sadly, folks, they are long since dead. If Nadolski is out there somewhere, I'm sure he doesn't give a fuck about the new Sepul, and that makes me sad. What's worse? The fact that if he did like it, it would make me even sadder.
Derrick Green just doesn't work for me, although I agree with Abyss that his vocals are improved and more Phil Anselmo -style "extreme" than they were before. This is a good thing. The opening and best track, "Sepulnation," employs a quasi-Slayer-esque main dual guitar melody that nevertheless falls somewhat short of being exciting due to its simplicity and repetetiveness. Still, this is a cool song.
"I want to like it. But in the end, I just don't even care." Overall, the record is OK, mostly because it is less "experimental" (READ: "confused") than the last album was and therefore feels more stripped down and viscerally-aggressive. But it is really very boring: it sounds exactly like nothing at all in any way inspired. I want to like it. But in the end, I just don't even care. As Hel sings it - "Rise! Rise!... Substandardnation!"
Hel's Review:
I consider myself to be a realist, and I thought I approached this album with realistic expectations. However, it proved to be impossible to prepare myself for the extent to which the entire album would be essentially 4/4 drivel. That's right - drivel. Attempts to use the tribal rhythms and elements such as we saw back on Roots exist, but fall far short of the greatness achieved on that album. The nu-metal tendencies apparent on Against are still present, but I don't consider that to be a good thing, merely what I had expected. On the whole, the album lacks the bite and inspiration of old Sepultura, and without the aggression and spirit Max brought into the equation, I'm afraid it can never be recaptured.
Fundamentally, this record tries too hard. They want to continue to endear themselves to the deep-pocketed teen Slipknot fans that loved them on the Tattoo the Earth tour, yet at the same time please the old-school fans. Unfortunately, too much of the former wins out, and as a fan of the latter, I have to wonder - what happened to the death metal parts? Music that I'm certain was intended to be slow and groovy, comes off as dull and boring. At no point did I feel like I found any true substance on this round piece of plastic.
"Music that I'm certain was intended to be slow and groovy, comes off as dull and boring." I believe that those who enjoyed Against will be pleased, but that's not saying much. Those looking for a return to old Sepul however, should dig out Arise, sit down, and have a good cry. Do it, it's good for you, and it is the only way you'll be able to move on. If you can content yourself with simply the substance of Igor's drumming, then you'll be fine, frankly, he's the principal reason this album received a second skull at all. For the sake of comparison, I just popped in Chaos A.D., and I'm tempted to take that second skull back again. I think I need to go cry some more.
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