Some bands actually sound better live, and SEPULTURA captures that elusive fact plainly on this double CD set. Captured live in their "home" town of São Paulo (that's in Brazil for all you geography buffs), their enthusiasm for the crowd and their skill of reproducing their music in a way that is both familiar and fresh, makes this one of the best examples of live music put to plastic.

The band sounds tight as ever, the production for a live recording is top-notch. You hear every cymbal crash, Derrick Greene's vocals never get lost in the mix. Every sound here is heard as it should be, probably even better than if you were at the show. Also, all of their records are represented here, from '85s "Bestial Devastation" all the way to tunes from '03s "Roorback". Quite a span, one that most bands don't take on in one show. They pull it off though, and with style. The show begins with all the 'intros' from all the records played one right after another, like they are letting the fans know that none of their recordings will be left out. After many 'classics' are ripped out and the band has you firmly in their clutches, they pull out covers of U2's "Bullet the Blue Sky" and PUBLIC ENEMY's "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos" both done SEPULTURA style. When the band starts into "Biotech is Godzilla" from their acclaimed "Chaos A.D." album, they turn to LED ZEPPELIN's "Dazed and Confused" to mix things up before the big finish. With all the respect being paid to other artists here, I guess it is fitting that they end their set with "Roots Bloody Roots".

Altogether an amazing representation of the band's career, spanning 20 years now (shit, am I that old?), a must have for your collection, and just in time for your Christmas list too.

- Murtaugh

OFFICIAL SITE: www.sepultura.com

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