Roots [EXPLICIT LYRICS]

Sepultura

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 12, 1996)
• Original Release Date: February 1996
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Explicit Lyrics
• Label: Roadrunner Records
• ASIN: B000000H5K
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (110 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #41,531 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
If Sepultura's album Chaos A.D. established the band as more than just another death metal outfit, Roots expands both its search for identity and its quest for sheer aural destruction. Frontman Max Cavalera explores his past in "Roots, Bloody Roots" and "Endangered Species," and plays with a remote Brazilian tribe on "Rattamahatta". Elsewhere, Sepultura experiments with minor-key dynamics and atonal harmonics, imbuing their wall of noise with an oppressive sense of mystery. They also extend their musical horizons, adding clattering tin drums and what sounds like a jew's-harp to "Breed Apart," and garnishing "Lookaway" with DJ scratching, half-speed vocals, and a gothic, chiming mid-section. --Jon Wiederhorn

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sep's most creative & experimental offering, July 19, 2005

By	A. Stutheit "Teyad" (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Even though "Chaos A.D." was Sepultura's bravest and most innovative album (because it premiered a song which was an instrumental consisting entirely of acoustic guitars and tribal drums), I still consider "Roots," Sepultura's sixth, their most experimental and creative work. This 1996 album was also Sepultura's last with frontman Max Cavalera; he would leave the group and go on to front a solo band, Soulfly. And, until 2004's "Prophecy," "Roots" was also more experimental than anything Max would make in Soulfly.

In addition to the aforementioned tribal drums and acoustic strumming, this album also features a Jew's harp, maracas, a Brazilian tribe, tin drums, and DJ scratching. But creativity came with a cost. "Roots" is still a heavy metal album, but the death metal is long gone, because (as was the case with "Chaos A.D.") these riffs are tinged with punk. Plus, since Max adopted Korn's downtuned guitars and had guest appearances, some fans think this album helped usher in nu-metal. I, however, still believe that the experimental aspects of "Roots" made it innovative. And Max may have been partially influenced by nu-metal, but he was equally as influenced by his own heritage/upbringing. (Max is from Brazil, thus explaining the Brazilian tribe, maracas, and tin drums.)

"Roots, Bloody Roots" is the first single, probably the heaviest song on "Roots," and is one of Sepultura's best known songs. It remains a staple of their live shows, and the success of this song has influenced some Soulfly songs (like "Prophecy.") Plus, Max has even adopted this song as his own, and played it during some Soulfly concerts. The album opens with the sound of crickets chirping, then this song launches into heavy, de-tuned guitar bluster. These guitars, which make a heavy churning and humming noise, are a big part of why this song is so heavy and catchy (even though there are some good vocal hooks, here, too). I enjoy how the beat comes down, then Max comes out of no where to let out one of his loud, ascending yells.
"Attitude" features guitars which are at first flamenco, then punching and pounding.
"Ratamahatta" is the song with the Brazilian tribe. It begins with what sounds like maracas and tribal drums. The guitars kick in and there's some catchy, aggressive scat in the background. The verses on this song are soft and restrained, making a good friction between the verses and heavy choruses.
"Breed Apart" has tin drums at the beginning, before turning to chunky, chug and churn guitars and vocals that alternate from supple growling to raging yells. The Jew's harp comes aboard and plays briefly over the beat, and the song ends with some static-sounding white noise.
"Spit" starts with (what sounds like) guitar feedback and some distant yelling (of "Un, dos, tres, cua!") The crunchy guitars eventually come to the front, and there are a few more of Max's heavy yells.
"Lookaway" has an instrument that could be a flute and a catchy drum beat, followed by DJ scratching (compliments of DJ Lethal-a DJ who would later join Limp Bizkit). Even though there are some guitars, this song's pace is about half as fast as the others. Two guest vocalists, Faith No More's Mike Patton and Korn's Jonathan Davis, make an appearance and sing/whisper over distant, dreary, ghost-like noises.
"Dusted" begins with a banging of the drum sticks, then the guitarists (Andreaas Kisser and Max Cavalera) make some of the heaviest and fastest guitar riffs since track one.
"Born Stubborn" has a beeping guitar noise which becomes increasingly fast and heavy, but some more tribal drums and Brazilian chants are tossed in near the end.
"Itsari" mixes more South American chants and maracas with acoustic guitar strums and soft hand percussion.
"Ambush" is highlighted by a nice breakdown of heavy, groove-y guitars, which comes after the song veers into soft, serene territory.

So, this album further expanded Sepultura's innovation and it helped prove that these guys can do more than pound power chords and double bass drums. With "Roots," Sepultura really came into their own, after stepping out of the shadows of other death metal bands, like Morbid Angel and Slayer.

If you collect everything Max Cavalera or Sepultura, "Roots" obviously needs to be apart of your collection. And you should also check this album out if you're a diehard heavy or nu-metal fan. If you're new to the band, even though this is a great C.D., I wouldn't start here; I'd pick up "Chaos A.D." and "Beneath the Remains" first.

When Max was apart of this group, Sepultura were headed in quite a curious direction. "Roots" was their least heavy album, but it was also their most imaginative and experimental. One can't help but wonder what the next Sepultura album would have sounded like; would it have been a return to their death metal roots, or would it have been a straight forward, unapologetic nu-metal album? I don't know the answer, but whatever the case, I think Max, Andreaas, Igor, and Paulo would have had a hard time outdoing themselves and making an even more creative album than this.

33 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars In The Jungle, The Mighty Jungle..., April 25, 2002

By	Nicholas Alla Koholick "anonymousnick2001" - See all my reviews

Sepultura's Roots went bravely where no other metal album had gone before. It mixed Afro-Brazilian drums and tribal rhytms/music with downtuned nu-metal guitar and death metal vocals. An astonishing achievement. However, there are some things I have to say about Roots as a whole...

It's not the masterpiece people say it is. It was released at a great time, rivaling and overtaking most other musical accomplishments of 1996(metal, anyway). Slayer had just released their very own Spaghetti Incident?, Pantera made one big mess of album in Trendkill, and KoRn's abysmal follow-up Life Is Peachy was out too. Amidst this, Sepultura released Roots. If you compare it to Metallica's Load, well...we'll just leave it at that. Nonetheless, it lacks the flare of previous releases. Beneath The Remains was a classic, Arise was a masterpiece, and Chaos A.D. was experimental and brilliant. Roots isn't. Better than other metal releases of the time, but not an opus everyone makes it out to be.

Chaos A.D. mixed the tribal elements with the music fairly well, but managed to thrash and burn like hell, with riffs occasionally slowing down enough to hurtle skullward. Many don't consider that album very highly, but it took the tribal stuff pretty far without commercializing it. On Roots, it's almost a gimmick. All the band members cut their hair and put on makeup. Solos are removed from songs, messy, or nonexistent-only to be replaced with percussion interludes and brazilian tribes singing. The speed isn't too slow, but it makes Chaos A.D. sound incredibly fast, and Arise sound lightspeed. The change from Chaos to Roots was completely uncalled for, regardless of the tribal stuff on Chaos. The tight playing is sacrificed for a sprawling 72-minute noisefest. Another thing-there's a lot of profanity in here! Not one or two words, mind you. The album's drenched in it, and there's no PA sticker!

Some songs are still good, and the album does the whole nu-metal thing much better than anyone of KoRn's 'influential' pieces of garbage. Highlights: "Roots Bloody Roots," "Attitude," "Ratamahatta," "Spit," "Born Stubborn," "Jasco," "Itsari," "Dictators**t," and the Canyon Jam.

I recommend this to Sepultura fans and nu-metal fans. It's not thrash metal, so don't expect vintage Sepultura here. Try to enjoy the experience. Roots truly kick started nu-metal, and opened the world to tribal metal. If you don't like it, check out Chaos A.D. for a thrashier approach, and Arise, Beneath, and Schizo for intense, brutal, aural insanity. Peace.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ending an era... beginning another one!, August 30, 2005

By	Antonio Palacios "She was asking for it" (Perú) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

When we talk about Sepultura we can make a difference between two eras: the trash/death metal era and the tribal/trash/groove/core (weird, isn't it?) era. Roots stands in the middle, the inflection point. It has elements of trash and death metal but the experimentation with tribal rythms and instruments is starting to have more presence. Well, I must say that this is the last album with the mighty Max Cavalera. The end of an era as I said.
To the Sepultura purists, this album is a shame; to the newcomers, this is their the best album. I'm not saying this album can comapre to the earlier albums (Beneath the remains, Arise, Chaos AD) but it's good because of the risk they took to make something different in music.