How do you supersede a 30-year career that has irrevocably altered the tides of global metal while spawning 15 albums that put Brazil on the heavy music map? You simply do what Sepultura has always done — unleash the power of monumental thrash amplified by orchestral drama and the tribal tempos of the Amazon.

More than a “Means to an End,” the hyperbolic Quadra (from the Portuguese word for ‘sport court’) reverberates with vision-inducing venom, thanks to an enthusiastic delivery by the iconic band’s current roster.

A demon-throated throwback, Quadra finds new glory in the old school appeal of formative releases like Beneath the Remains (1989) and Arise (1991). Ripped from the mean streets of Belo Horizonte, the bellicose war drums of “Capital Enslavement” and dizzying favela architecture of “Last Time” keep the BPM burning high.

Further afield, the aggressive stance of “Ali,” stuttering malice of “Raging Void” and slashing ambition of “The Pentagram” confirm that vocalist Derrick Green and guitarist Andreas Kisser remain at the top of their virtuosic game.

Dissatisfied with watching history repeat itself, these magical death machine messiahs feel bound to keep blasting out “thrash metal anthems for a fucked-up age” and we’re lucky they succeed in doing so, season after season.

Best Track: “Ali”

MORE REVIEWS

Indistinct Conversations

KiCK i

Beer and Loathing

Rough and Rowdy Ways

Shadow Offering 

Forever + Ever x Infinity

GENE

Planet’s Mad