Soulfly
Soulfly (Limited Edition)

I am well aware that I have already reviewed the first album by Soulfly, but the edition I had until a few days ago was the regular one and I was unaware of the existence of this limited edition that Roadrunner has recently put back on the market.

A magical and stunning limited edition consisting of two discs, the first of course containing the actual album (which I won't go into since I have already discussed it in the other review) and 4 additional songs not included in the "standard" edition, songs which I will talk about later as the second disc was the main reason for my purchase. This second CD contains an entire concert, "Live At Roskilde" recorded in 1998, whose amazing setlist not only features Soulfly tracks but is also enriched with Sepultura songs, Max Cavalera's former band, an extraordinary human being in every respect, both musically and personally. The concert opens with the beautiful "Eye For An Eye", the opener of the album being released at that time, its thrashy riffs strike the audience who shout for Max and his new companions, continuing with the energy of "No Hope = No Fear", a song more in the crossover/nu metal style, well-received and excellently sung by the charismatic frontman. Here comes the first classic, directly from the "Roots" album (a masterpiece by Sepultura) comes the fast "Spit", sung obviously by everyone. It follows with "Bleed", a bloody song from the "Soulfly" album, performed to perfection by a band truly on form, another highlight is the following mini-medley between two Sepultura masterpieces, "Beneath The Remains/Dead Embryonic Cells" is one of the most beautiful tracks of this live and demonstrates Soulfly's ability to switch from the most extreme thrash of the Sepultura songs to the crossover and nu rhythms of the new tracks.

The execution of "Tribe" is beautiful, which immediately became a classic of the band, the tribal introduction sung by everyone confirms Cavalera's ability to truly entertain everyone at his concerts by inciting them to shout at the top of their lungs! The fast "Bumba" is well-played, but the audience doesn't seem very moved by this song, it will be the subsequent "Refuse/Resist" that makes everyone jump for its exceptional performance, particularly emotional is "Quilombo", only overshadowed later by "Roots Bloody Roots" which always has a place in Soulfly's setlists, hearing Max set the time with his "un, dos, tres, quatros" is always a pleasure and naturally the song is well-received by the entire audience, same attention for "Attitude", again from "Roots" (also because Soulfly's instruments are tuned in B and it's inevitable to play material from "Roots" if you want to delve into Max's past). The performance concludes with the hysterical and thrashy "The Song Remains Insane" (sung by the crowd) and "No", where Max sings "NO" to everyone. The disc continues with a speech by Max in English on the fourteenth track and the same goes for the fifteenth where however you can also hear bongos and Brazilian instruments in the background, tracks for fans who understand the language essentially. This excellent bonus disc concludes with the demo-tape of "Eye For An Eye", it's quite different from the version that eventually ended up on the album, there are variations of the lyrics, the middle part with the spiritual echoes is absent and Max's voice is more screamed and less heavy, however the power of its basic riff remains the same.

Returning to the unreleased songs after the 15 gems that form Soulfly's debut album, the riff of "Cangaceiro" starts, not inferior to those on the album because it's a good metal song with syncopated rhythms and a strong tribal influence, it's very close to the material from Sepultura's "Roots", the singing is in Portuguese. The following "Ain't No Feeble Bastard" and "Possibility Of Life's Destruction" are very fast and short songs, almost interludes, and have a certain hardcore flavor, the concluding "Blow Away" is rich in technological elements and a drum playing a very tribal rhythm, double voice in Portuguese, a track that can only remind of "Rathamatta" by Sepultura, it ends with a crazy synthesizer (a bit like Slipknot).

In conclusion, this version of Soulfly's debut album has all the aspects and characteristics of a good "limited edition" (live and unreleased), a fan worthy of this name should try to have it at all costs!