Some bands play for one season….others play for some years – 3, 5 or even 10. But there are others who after 20 years of activity are still capable of releasing excellent albums and filling up a whole stadium when touring.

Sepultura is one of them, as after 22 years of playing they just released a new (great) album. Dante XXI – Hell. Heaven. Purgatory. is the album’s name and, as the name says, it is inspired by the famous opera of Dante Aligheri.

The first thing I noticed when first hearing it is the excellent voice of Derek Green, the vocalist that some years ago replaced Max Cavalera. I cannot say I like him more than Max, as Max had a certain something that still makes me consider him one of the best vocals ever, but Derek certainly improved significantly and is now fully integrated in the band. He adds a hardcore feeling to the general sound now and his occasional screams throughout the tracks are excelently integrated in the whole. The entire sound is much more mature now and you can feel them playing as a whole group, not as distinct individuals.

The album definetely adds more thrash to the sound Sepultura had on its previous albums and somehow it reminds me of their first albums. Even though, without Max, it is not the same (yeah, I’m a sucker for him…)

The track I liked most – and is here for sharing – is “Convicted in life“. Starting with the famous “Abandon all hope he who enter here” verse, it is one of the fastest tracks on the album.

Overall, I can definetely say I like Dante XXI most out of the ones Sepultura released recently (post-Max era). Definetely worth a try, worth buying and worth listening for a long time. Congrats !!!