A rooster's crowing and a gong-like noise were our alarms in
the morning. I found out later they were
hitting a large railroad tie that was suspended to a tree.
We applied our morning toiletries: a very thick layer of insect repellent, and
on top of it, sun-screen. Though it was
early, the insects and sun were relentless.
With the new day, so came hunger and thirst.
We marveled that the Indians never seemed to drink, eat, or sleep, as we
do. We saw them eat an occasional mango,
but never more than that.
With no supplies still, I was overjoyed I could still have my morning
coffee. Such little luxuries. I must admit, though, we were getting a bit
nervous without a sign that our airplane was approaching, but continued with
the day’s activities as if we had no worries.
The band was led to a hut where they were given the traditional bamboo wrist
and ankle bands, the rope and feather necklace, and the rope belt. Lastly the paint was applied.
The paint from the healing ceremony was red paint from the waist to neck, with
three stripes down each arm and on each side of the chest, and also red paint
on each thigh, like a band. Black paint
was applied from the ankle to the knee.
Feathers were then arranged in their hair to provide the finishing
touches.
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| Max |
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| Andreas |
During the painting ceremony, as luck would have it, our plane with supplies
arrived. Finally! Along with our food and water, it carried our
most important gear - our recording equipment.
The gear was set up under the three mango trees we visited so
often. The Indians said the acoustics
were great, and the large trees provided us with sanctuary from the sun.
A short test song was done this time.
Sepultura sat in the center of the circle, Max and Andreas on acoustic
guitars, Paulo and Igor on drums. Ross
Robinson, our producer, directed. He was
"connected," he told us.
Some of the men used various percussion instruments - handmade gourd
maracas. They all stamped their right
foot in time to their chanting, which grew louder and louder, sometimes
diminishing to almost a whisper.
Once, the children surrounded me, admired my tattoos and writing, and touched
my green hair. I was joined by a tribe
elder and shared my Marlboros. He was
splendid, with the red paint on his forehead and both ears pierced.
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| Me with the tribe kids |
They wear a piece of wood which is inserted through a very large hole in their
ear. In September, they held their
piercing ceremony. When a boy turns 14,
he is to become a man. They stand in the
river for two days to soften their skin, coming out only to eat and sleep. A slender piece of wood is inserted through
their ears. The older and wiser they
get, the large the piece of wood.
The women and children watched the dance, only the men participated this
day. I learned that when a man marries,
his father chooses his bride. They are
also allowed more than one wife.
We soon stopped for a break, with the hot sun beating on us. We took a lunch of potatoes, rice and
chicken, and the enjoyed the luxury of a short rest. The flies and other insects attacked us as we
tried to sleep.
Around 4:30 P.M., the band did a very impressive photo shoot with Michael
Grecco manning the cameras. It took
place in an old abandoned building nearby.
When this was completed, we returned to the recording site.
The Indian performed various chants to decide which chant would be most suited
to accompany Sepultura. The Datsi Wawere
chant was selected and the test recording done.
It was now dusk, we had a break for dinner and returned for an
hour.
We returned and the final take was done.
The tribe asked for Sepultura to perform, but we explained that
Sepultura plays with amplifiers and much more gear. They understood and returned to their late
night activities.
The band, Roadrunner reps, Ross, myself, Cipasse, Severia and the chief met at
the school house for a meeting that went on until midnight. It was here that we went into detail about
the intent and usage of the photos and video.
The tribe was extremely concerned about how we will project their image
to the world. It was a great meeting,
with Sepultura also expressing their concerns.
They, too, have suffered prejudice because of their music, tattoos and
overall appearance. We ended with mutual
respect and heart felt admiration for each other.
