The Cavalera apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, you know? And rightfully so – if your father/stepfather was a veritable metal legend, you’d probably follow suit…or at least give it the old college try. Incite happens to the band fronted by Richie Cavalera (Max’s stepson), who has been on at least a half-dozen touring support slots with Soulfly, along with the occasional onstage or studio guest appearance. Don’t try to play the nepotism card – you’d do the same thing if your dad was the man who is responsible for Beneath the Remains.
Incite doesn’t sound a thing like Sepultura and/or Soufly on their second albumAll Out War, instead choosing to operate in the modern metal field with Machine Head being the most likely band of comparison. Mad props to guitarist Gene Macazan, who churns out nearly a dozen groove metal goodies, full off nifty chord progressions, tremolo action, and some melodic grit to boot. He’s at his best on “Feel the Flames,” a spunky quasi-thrash number that with a crappier production job, would be the best song Sacred Reich ever written.
Richie Cavalera on the other hand, suffers from the malady of not knowing when to keep his mouth shut. It’s an unfortunate happening, especially given how excellent the guitar work is. Cavalera refuses (and resists) to let these songs breathe, and his one-dimensional vocal tone doesn’t do him any favors either. He’s like the proverbial dog chained to the proverbial tree, barking to get some attention, becoming a nuisance when he has no reason to be. At least Richie doesn’t bark out one-word song titles in the chorus…that would be total Max.
With the Cavalera name behind them, Incite have a legitimate shot of gradually climbing the underground metal ladder. Opening slots with Soulfly and/or Cavalera Conspiracy are more than likely in the band’s future, so we’ll see how the songs on All Out War fly. Maybe by then Richie will have figured out how to tone things down a bit.
(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)