Road Trippin': Sepultura

DOES IT BLOW YOUR MIND THAT THIS IS YOUR 30TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR?

Andreas Kisser [guitar]:
“When Sepultura started touring in the 80s, we couldn’t go to many places. Now we’ve played 73 countries in 30 years! This is one of the most complete tours we’ve ever done. We’re celebrating the beautiful history of a Brazilian band singing in bad English! It’s like watching your own biographical movie. We respect and represent Sepultura as a whole, from the first album to the last, regardless of the formation. We’re still enjoying ourselves, which is what matters.”

ANY SURPRISES UP YOUR SLEEVE FOR THE UK SHOWS?

“We’re bringing a few songs we haven’t used before, like the early and raw Bestial Devastation, although Paolo Jr [bassist] is the only original member, so he played it years ago. Grief [from 2013’s The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart] is very dark and slow, and I’d love to reproduce that live, too.”

DO YOU HAVE ANY STRINGENT REQUIREMENTS FOR YOUR FOOD AND DRINK RIDER?

“Food and drinks are a great way to connect with the local culture. Derrick [Green, vocals] has been a vegetarian for more than 20 years so he knows how to survive on the road when he doesn’t have much food choice. Luckily, the vegetarian culture is growing now people understand that fish isn’t a vegetable. ‘Derrick’s a vegetarian…’ ‘Oh OK, we have a fish here!’ Ha ha!”

DOES IT SURPRISE YOU HOW MUCH THE WORLD STILL LOVES SEPULTURA?

“We find metal fans everywhere, in Russia, Cuba, Morocco, India and Japan – they know the history of the band and all the lyrics. The world’s a lot smaller now. Indonesia in the 90s was one of the most amazing experiences of our career. We played for 60,000 people in 1992. It’s great that music always opens the gates through all religions and political regimes of different countries.”