Conquer (album)
| Conquer | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Soulfly | ||||
| Released | July 29, 2008[1] | |||
| Recorded | September 2007 at Porch Studio | |||
| Genre | Thrash metal,[2] groove metal,[3] death metal[4] | |||
| Length |
57:10 (Regular edition) 71:17 (Special edition) | |||
| Label | Roadrunner | |||
| Producer | Max Cavalera | |||
| Soulfly chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Conquer | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
 Special edition digipak |
||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| About.com |   [2] |
| Allmusic |  [3] |
| Alt Press | (#241, p.166) |
| Blabbermouth.net | [4] |
| ChartAttack | [5] |
| Kerrang! | [6] |
| Metal Hammer | [7] |
| PopMatters | [8] |
| Sun Media | [9] |
Conquer is the sixth studio album by the band Soulfly. It saw official release on July 23, 2008, in Australia, although the album had leaked early onto file-sharing networks. It was released on July 29, 2008 in Canada and the United States and debuted at #66 on the U.S. Billboard 200 — Soulfly's highest Billboard peak since their 2002 release, 3.
Production and release
The album was tracked by Tim C. Lau in late 2007 at The Porch Recording Studio in Orlando Florida and mixed by Andy Sneap in early 2008. In promotion for the album, Max Cavalera stated that he had been heavily influenced by Bolt Thrower, Napalm Death and Slayer in writing for this album, which he declared would make Dark Ages sound like a pop album.
A bonus edition of the album was released containing three bonus tracks and a DVD. The DVD features a full live concert from Warsaw, Poland and the music video for "Innerspirit" from the previous album, Dark Ages.
The album sold over 8,400 copies in the U.S. during the first week of its release.[10]
Songs
"Unleash" was the album's first single with the accompanying music video directed by Robert Sexton. This song and its video features Dave Peters of Throwdown.[11] The second single released was Blood Fire War Hate, the first track of the album, featuring Morbid Angel vocalist David Vincent. "Touching the Void" is heavily influenced by Black Sabbath as it contains doom and sludgy riffs, with outro recorded by French dub artist Fedaya Pacha.[2] "Warmageddon" explores war and Armageddon,[12] hence its portmanteau.
Critical reception
Conquer has thus far garnered positive reviews from most media outlets and review websites. Chad Bower of About.com calls it "outstanding", with "great musicianship and songwriting" and "new styles, sounds and experiments, which also hit the mark." Nikos Patelis of Metal Invader notes the "hardcore beatings, extreme thrash speeds and many implements of weird sounds that have nothing to do with metal" and deems the album "dark as hell". In comparison to Cavalera Conspiracy's debut earlier this year, Dominic Hemy of Planet Loud considers Conquer "tighter, heavier, more diverse, more original, and far more engaging than Inflikted".
Track listing
All lyrics written by Max Cavalera except where stated; all music composed by Max Cavalera except where stated.
| Conquer | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
| 1. | "Blood Fire War Hate" (feat. David Vincent) | Max Cavalera, David Vincent | 4:59 |
| 2. | "Unleash" (feat. Dave Peters) | Max Cavalera, Dave Peters | 5:10 |
| 3. | "Paranoia" | 5:31 | |
| 4. | "Warmageddon" | 5:22 | |
| 5. | "Enemy Ghost" | 3:02 | |
| 6. | "Rough" | 3:27 | |
| 7. | "Fall of the Sycophants" | 5:09 | |
| 8. | "Doom" | 4:58 | |
| 9. | "For Those About to Rot" | 6:47 | |
| 10. | "Touching the Void" | 7:25 | |
| 11. | "Soulfly VI" | 5:20 | |
| Special edition[13] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
| 12. | "Mypath" | 4:43 | ||
| 13. | "Sailin' On" (Bad Brains cover) | Gary Miller, Darryl Jenifer, Paul Hudson | Gary Miller, Darryl Jenifer, Paul Hudson | 4:41 |
| 14. | "The Beautiful People" (Marilyn Manson cover) | Brian Warner | Jeordie White | 4:23 |
| iTunes Bonus Tracks Version [14] | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 12. | "Mypath" | 4:43 |
| 13. | "Sailin' On" (Bad Brains cover) | 4:41 |
| 14. | "The Beautiful People" (Marilyn Manson cover) | 4:23 |
| 15. | "Roots Bloody Roots" (Sepultura cover; Live in Poland) | 3:24 |
| 16. | "Jumpdafuckup/Bring It" (Live in Poland) | 4:43 |
Bonus DVD listing
Live in Warsaw, Poland[15]
- "Prophecy"
- "Downstroy"
- "Seek 'n' Strike"
- "No Hope = No Fear"
- "Jumpdafuckup/Bring It"
- "Living Sacrifice"
- "Mars"
- "Brasil"
- "No"
- "L.O.T.M."
- "Porrada"
- "Drums"
- "Moses"
- "Frontlines"
- "Back to the Primitive"
- "Eye for an Eye"
Music Video
Personnel
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|
Chart positions
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | US Billboard 200 | 66 |
| 2008 | UK Rock Albums | 7 |
| 2008 | Germany | 15 |
| 2008 | Austria | 16 |
| 2008 | Australia | 19 |
| 2008 | Finland | 20 |
| 2008 | Netherlands | 33 |
References
- ↑ Roadrunner Records
- 1 2 3 "Soulfly - Conquer Review". About.com.
- 1 2 "Conquer - Soulfly". Allmusic.
- 1 2 "CD Reviews". Blabbermouth.net.
- ↑ "Soulfly — Conquer". ChartAttack.
- ↑ "Kerrang! Review". Kerrang!.
- ↑ "Metal Hammer Review". Metal Hammer.
- ↑ Begrand, Adrien (26 August 2008). "Conquer review". PopMatters. Retrieved 6 August 2009.
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20081211054147/http://calsun.canoe.ca/Showbiz/2008/07/27/6278621-sun.html. Archived from the original on December 11, 2008. Retrieved July 29, 2008. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - ↑ SOULFLY: More 'Conquer' First-Week Chart Positions Revealed - Aug. 8, 2008" Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved on August 8, 2008.
- ↑ "SOULFLY: Full New Song 'Unleash' Available For Download - June 24, 2008". blabbermouth.net. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ↑ Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics
- ↑ Conquer special edition details; Max featured in "Global Metal" documentary Retrieved on May 31, 2008
- ↑ Soulfly - Conquer on iTunes
- ↑ SOULFLY: 'Conquer' Special Edition To Also Include Bonus DVD - May 21, 2008 Retrieved on May 31, 2008