Never let it be said that
Sepultura
are not ambitious.
A-Lex
is a concept album whose lyrics were inspired by
Anthony Burgess
' book
A Clockwork Orange
, which was the basis for the
Stanley Kubrick
film. And the impressive thing is that
pull this off without sounding either geeky or pretentious. For all its intellect, this early-2009 release doesn't sacrifice anything when it comes to intensity; this is a vicious, loud sledgehammer of an album, and the kids in the mosh pit will have no problem connecting with alternative metal scorchers like
"Filthy Rot,"
"The Treatment,"
"Paradox,"
and
"Forceful Behavior"
on a gut level. The
Clockwork Orange
angle is intriguing if one has either read
Burgess
' book or seen
Kubrick
's 1971 film, but for metalheads, the bottom line is that
have no problem bringing the noise -- and
Derrick Green
's angry lead vocals are an important part of
's intensity. There was a time when the idea of
recording without
Max Cavalera
(their former lead singer) seemed unthinkable;
Cavalera
played a vital role on pre-
Green
albums such as 1991's
Arise
and 1993's
Chaos A.D.
But the incendiary
turned out to be a fine replacement after
left
to form
Soulfly
in 1996, and he certainly helps bassist
Paulo Jr.
, guitarist
Andreas Kisser
, and drummer
Jean Dolabella
get the job done nicely on
.
Paulo
, it should be noted, is the only remaining member of
's original 1984 lineup. Personnel changes can have a very negative effect on a band, but
have maintained their vitality all these years -- and that vitality is alive and well on the superb
. ~ Alex Henderson