Soulfly - 3

Worst Soulfly Album Ever!!!!!!!!!

What an under produced mess of a stale album. What happend Max?
I loved the self-titled and 'Primitive' was a masterpiece. So as the world was beginning the dark ages Max & co. deceided to put out'3'. Max now being at the helm shows much imaturity. His production flat out sucks. The music, although there is some memorable tracks(L.O.T.M.& Four Elements) is put together so badly it makes you think who is Max and what great band did he front???? I mean the arrangments are so weak and so badly put together I'm surprised they still had a record contract after this bomb. It seems like Soulfly has reached the creative end......really. And what is up with 'Tree of pain'??????
Ok we all know Dana(Max's stepson) was mudered sometime ago. And a tribute to his memory is a great idea....but.....this song sucks. Mainly due to the fact that Max's other stepson(Richie)sings or screams on the track. So sorry to say but Richie has no talent. He has no sense of timing and really ends up leaving this album almost worthless. I was very disappointed with this release and gave up on Max.......until 'Prophecy' ofcourse. October 17, 2005

(3.5 stars) Soulfly's worst, but that doesn't mean it's bad

As of 2002, Max Cavalera had three albums under his belt with his band Soulfly. Their appropriately titled third album, "3," was, at the time, probably their heaviest album. Unfortunately, this album was also a step down from the band's previous two releases, because it offers nothing at all new. It has the same loud guitars and yelling, with occasional tribal beats. But, three albums into Soulfly's career, this formula's newness had definitely worn off; now sounded somewhat stale, tired, monotonous, and recycled. Plus, it doesn't have the great, raw energy that "Primitive" and "Soulfly" had. "3" isn't over-produced or slow by any means, but it just doesn't get the listener's blood pumping as well. Maybe it uses tribal drums too much. Fortunately, there are enough hooks, good riffs, and decent songs to prevent "3" from being a disaster.

"Downstroy" starts out strong, with explosive guitar work. Then, around the middle, after the heavy churning riffs, Soulfly's famous tribal drums come aboard the track and play for over a minute. The power chords eventually come back, at the very end, however.
"Seek `N' Strike" is a good, energetic song, with more good guitar work and a shout along refrain of "Here we go!" This song sort of echoes 2000's "Jumpdaf -ckup."
"Enterfaith" is another loud rocker. The beginning is occupied by steam rolling riffs and heavy yells, then the guitars chug and churn fast, and the song ends with several a capella yells of "Faith is a weapon!"
"One" begins with smattering of tribal drums, followed by a cameo by Ill Nino's singer, Cristian Machado. The choruses are still heavy, though, and have booming riffs. This song is sort of incomplete, however, because it just sort of fades out at the end.
"L.O.T.M." has more fast, scorching, sometimes machine gun guitar work. Unfortunately, by now (track five), the album has become quite monotonous.
"Brasil" begins with what sounds like an acoustic guitar. The tribal drums kick in and Max starts singing (about God knows what) in Spanish. The choruses are interesting, though, because they're instrumental and have punching riffs.
"Tree of Pain" is a personal favorite because it wisely breaks up the monotony. The beginning has light strumming and a soft drum beat, then a female voice comes on and sings very cleanly. The song is so melodic until about halfway through, when, all of the sudden, some speaker rattling guitar noise and raging vocals storm onto the scene. The female vocals and melodic instruments eventually re-appear, after the electric guitars die down, and the song ends with the sound of wind whooshes.
"One Nation" has a very catchy and rhythmic beat, with more good chug and churn riffs. Even a little guitar solo is tossed in.
"9-11-01" is one minute of silence, dedicated to the victims of the 9/11 attacks.
"Call to Arms" is a very short, ultra heavy rocker, with more smokin' guitar riffs.
"Four Elements" begins with more heavy churning riffs and pounding drums. Unfortunately, the song is then taken over by more tribal drums. And even though there are some cool, ascending riffs at the end, this song is too similar to "Downstroy."
"Soulfly III" is a very nice and peaceful track. It's an instrumental, and it begins with still more tribal drums, but this track varies the formula a little bit, with rattles, chimes, an African rainstick, and a wind instrument of some kind.
"Sangue De Bairro" features both guitars plowing straight ahead, with riffs that almost grind.
"Zumbi" is another instrumental thrown in to break up the monotony, but this one is nothing special. It's just more acoustic plucking and a soft drum beat.

So, ultimately, this is a decent, 3.5 star C.D., and the songs on this C.D. make for a good listen, but, the album as a whole sounds like Max needed new ideas. Fortunately, 2004's "Prophecy" would breathe new life into Soulfly's music. As far as this C.D. goes, "3" has its moments, but, unless you're a diehard death metal or Max Cavalera fan, there's really no reason to own it if you already have "Soulfly" and "Primitive." September 9, 2005

Soulfly F&(^'s S&!% Up

This album like the other self titled Soulfly album reaches out to you and Downstroy is one of the best songs I have ever heard. I recommend this album just to hear Downstroy. The first 4 songs make this cd worth buying because

1. Downstroy has really sweet repeating riffs
2. Seek n strike here we go!! has a good getting through everything feel
3. enter faith is kinda repetative but stands up for SOUL power (religion)
4. One is another good song by soulfly One God One faith One Life (shows that everybody has similar senses so they should be able to relate better)
5.-9. a bunch of unrelated stuff to the cd but Brasil's lyrics translated is sorta soulfly -like and 9-11-01 is a good tribute.
10.-14. more soulfly is good. August 18, 2005

3 gets 2

The downward spiral of Soulfly is truly depressing. It isn't until Prophecy is released that Max and friends get back on the horse (even then there are problems). The songs here on 3 are mainly boring, tiresome, and filler. I absolutely can't stand it when a song goes 2 minutes, and then goes into a guy tapping on drums for a minute and a half only to go back to the heavy riff for a few seconds before coming to a close. Downstroy is honestly a good song, but it's ruined because of this. The experimentation that Soulfly presents on the album is evident, but it fails miserably. I have a deep respect for 9/11/01 as I am sure everyone else here does. And the song Call to Arms is my favorite one here, but it's only 1 minute and a half! And no lyrics are given for it, as well as One nation and Sangue De Barrio (those 2 are covers, its understandable). But the one thing that drops the A-bomb is Soulfly III, a terrible formulaic instrumental with corny sound effects. The closer instrumental Zumbi doesn't help either. The song Four elements, has lyrics obviously ripped from the Sepultura song Clenched Fist (which by the way, is better then anything here) and also features the dude tapping slowly on the drums. Tree of Pain just really ticks me off. Max, please, do not bring this stupid woman into any more of your songs. Oh wait, he did again on Prophecy, (or at least someone like her) with the song Wings, the worst Soulfly song to date! But let's go back to 3. Other songs just don't stand up, everything sounds re-used and tired. But it isn't to the point where it's a 1 star.

Also on the IMPORT, the 4 bonus tracks do help a little bit, but they don't make it worth paying 30 bucks for. The songs Pain and Eye for an Eye at Ozzfest can easily bring back an atmosphere from when Soulfly was good. The Black Sabbath song Under the Sun is interesting but pales in comparison, and you guessed it, instead of the solo at the end, they replace it with a dude tapping on drums. Seriously I would think that all this drum tapping would make the concerts really boring, wouldn't you? The other bonus song I Will Refuse (a Pailhead cover) goes along the same likes as Under the Sun. Soulfly is a good band in my opinion, but almost anything by Sepultura with Max, is godlike in comparison , and this record just flat out sux. Get it cheap or used. I hoped this helped.
November 2, 2004

Similar to Primitive... sadly

This disc was another letdown to all fans of Max and Soulfly. This album saw the same problems arise that came up on Primitive. The disc has some good moments, but all in all, it is choppy, inconsistent, and frustrating. Many of my sentiments expressed in my review of Primitive also hold true on this record. I would say this one is for fans only. You must look deep to find the diamond in this rough. For some of us, the search is worth it. For most, it is not. August 7, 2004

More reviews at Amazon.com ...