Soulfly - Chama (Album Review)

Soulfly - Chama
Released: October 24, 2025

Line up

Max Cavalera // Vocals, Guitar
Zyon Cavalera // Drums, Percussion
Igor Amadeus Cavalera // Bass, Vocals
Mike DeLeon // Lead Guitar

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Thirteen albums in and Soulfly remain one of my great comfort bands. You know exactly what you’re gonna get between Max Cavalera’s downtuned four string riffs, some nods to world music culture and guest stars who add their unique flavour to each song. I’m pleased to say though that Chama has a few points that are different from the last couple of Soulfly records. Max has handed the production reins to his son Zyon, whose drummer instincts are all over this one. The production style itself is more reminiscent of early Celtic Frost or even Scott Burns’ work with Sepultura. At least I think that’s what they’re aiming for. It’s dark and gritty however at times it lacks tone and shade. 

Zyon‘s percussion and drumming is very much at the forefront. Max has often written Soulfly songs himself but here it’s all co-written with Zyon. The instrumental opener, ‘Indigenous Inquisition’, layers drumming with additional percussion, throwing back to Soufly’s debut. It brings out a more experimental side to Max’s use of guitar too, he’s channeling feedback and distortion while Zyon’s drums carry the beat of ‘Always Was, Always Will Be…’ it climaxes with some great thrashing that gets lost in the muddy production. Parts of it sound like it was recorded outdoors, there’s an airy ambient distance to it, and, whilst that’s charming on the instrumental jam ‘Soulfly XIII’, it becomes problematic on the heavier tracks. 

Chama is damn heavy, preferring shorter blasts of groove and thrash that dip into grind and hardcore. That’s where my comfort comes in and the Cavalera’s deliver pseudo best hits. ‘Storm the Gates’ recaptures the groove of early Nu-metal influenced Soulfly, with a nod to that era’s protest slogan lyrics. ‘Black Hole Scum’ is a great title with some hellacious riffs and a doom laden outro. ‘Favela/Dystopia’ is your thrashfest with morbid lyrics, with touring guitarist Mike DeLeon cracking out a shrieking solo. There’s some killer riffing on ‘Chama’ but it gets weighed down by the production and mix, with chords often blending with the drums and making the whole thing a noisy wall of sound. DeLeon fires away and the song’s second half gets overwhelmed by distortion effects, even on Zyon’s great drum solo. 

There’s good value in the LP’s guest stars. Single ‘Nihilst’ has already made waves with the Cavaleras welcoming Nails’ Todd Jones for a guest vocal that’s badass, though DeLeon’s solo is the star. As a tribute to Entombed frontman LG Petrov, it’s an album highlight. ‘No Pain = No Power’ is a pure riff fest with help from frequent collaborator Dino Cazeres, whose tight rhythmic picking is all over it. The track features the album’s only clean vocals from Ben Cook (No Warning) and Gabe Franco (Unto Others) filling out the song’s hook and recognising them as Max’s latest hook ups. He brings in Arch Enemy melodic death metal legend Michael Amott and lets him loose on ‘Ghenna’ - a two minute blast of lightning and thunder where Max shares vocals with his son Igor Amadeus.

It’s so hardcore it would probably fit better on their joint project (Go Ahead and Die) than here but it adds to the album’s diverse tracklisting. 

I’m pretty torn on this one. There is both comfort and ambition all over Chama but it’s shrouded in bleak production that doesn’t always showcase Soulfly’s strongest riffs. It definitely unveils Zyon Cavalera as a force and his work upholds the family’s legacy. Hopefully next time the sound will be better.

Rating: 6.5 / 10
‍Chama is out now on Nuclear Blast. Stream it here. 
Words by KJ Draven @kjdraven