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Friday, October 27, 2017

TIMOTHY LEARY'S DEAD....... LEGEND OF A MIND

The end of 1992, as we were ending the Ministry tour, was a season of Big Events!! I was about to give birth to Zyon. Max, Igor and Co. were coming off a successful 18 months of touring and Max's brain was brimming with riffs for the next record. It was this year that he started carrying around a mini recording studio. Max didn't realize it at the time, but one of the tracks on that recorder would later become the legendary Soulfly 1 instrumental. He wrote it in Australia, when we were in a hotel room.


I am not 100% sure, but if I recall correctly, the last show was at the Universal Amphitheater, in Universal City, California. It was a fitting end to a rocket launched tour. The backstage was memorable, a who's who of LA celebrities..who none of us really knew! We were astounded when Anthony Keidis and Flea came on our bus! But the all time coolest of all was when Dana came on the bus grinning from ear to ear, saying he had just met Timothy Leary!! Holy schizzle!!!!


For those of you who don't know, Timothy Leary was an American psychologist and writer, known for advocating the use of LSD. He taught at the University of California, in Berkeley and also at Harvard University. He was a frequent user of LSD and believed in its properties of mind expansion. Basically, he was a G. President Nixon referred to him as "the most dangerous man in America." Most likely because Leary came up with catchy phrases made trendy by the youth, such as "turn on, tune in, drop out," and "think for yourself and question authority." After a wild ass journey through life, he died the day after Dana's 21st birthday.


If I could have gotten my pregnant butt out from the bus in time, I could have met him too!! I learned a lesson and when Neil Young popped by, I went to check him out..... 


Class dismissed.....

Friday, October 20, 2017

MAX AND HIS OBSESSION WITH THE DETROIT LIONS...2017

Some years ago, Max never knew one fact about American football. He was soccer all the way, and nothing sportswise was getting in the mix!! Little by little, he would join in when my Dad, or brothers or sons were watching a game, but he never really accepted it. One day, it all started to click and he decided to learn a bit about it.



We bought Cardinal's season tickets and started going to games when we were in Phoenix. We all swooned over Larry Fitzgerald and the days of Kurt Warner, but Max wasn't quite decided on who his team would be. While still scoping the teams out, he began to learn the rules, stats, players, uniforms, and the history of the game. It didn't take long until he was hooked deep! One day, when he saw that lion emblem on the brilliant blue backdrop of anything Detroit, he made his decision. Just like any good Leo, the Lions were adopted! The Cardinals have a place on the field, but the Detroit Lions stole the love!


Through the years, at Max's birthdays and Christmases, I outfitted him with his name on official jerseys, shorts, jackets and even slippers made from the jersey cloth!! I admit the boys grumble when they go to Cardinals games and Max is wearing the Detroit jersey when the Lions aren't playing! We all just laugh nw and know he loves them!!


Yesterday, Max had one of his dreams come true! He got a personal tour of Ford Field in Detroit...home of his beloved Detroit Lions!! I will take you all on a mini photographic tour below, and you can walk the field and the halls with Max!! He went to the locker room, the suites, press areas, the field, the legendary original road through Detroit that is embedded in the new stadium, and of course the gift shop!! Enjoy your tour with Max and Zyon at Ford Field! All he was missing was Roki and Marlie!! I hate to say it, but he likes it a drop more than soccer. Ouch! Sorry soccer fans...
















Class dismissed....

Friday, October 13, 2017

SEARCHING FOR THE PROPHECY....

In the fall of 2003, Max was in the studio recording The Prophecy, Soulfly's 4th studio album. We recorded the basic record in Mesa, Arizona, at the Saltmine Studio. For the spices, Max and I travelled to Belgrade, Serbia. Spirituality is steeping like a cup of black tea, in Serbia. Holistic medicines, religious beliefs adorning every home and business.... life is simple and sometimes testing. It reminds me of America in the '60's...when it was normal, and everyone wasn't a judge.




Max chose to record in the home studio of Bare (sorry, his last name escapes me), a friend he had made acquaintance with. Bare helped to find the gypsies, and he knew the band Eyesburn, whose singer, Coyote, Max selected to work with on a couple tracks. Coyote brought his uncle, Ljubomir Dimitrijevic. who was a professor at the university. He specialized in instruments from the Middle Ages.




In this studio, Max and Coyote crafted the bouncy track "Moses." My daughter, Christina, was pregnant with a son, who would be named Moses. Little Moses' upcoming arrival gave birth to the track. This song ended up being the most requested Prophecy track on college radio.
Coyote's uncle brought in various instruments made of animal skins and ancient woods. He was a solid commander of these percussion tools. It was fascinating to listen to him demonstrate how the instruments were made and played.



The Grand Finale was the band of gypsies, collected on the street. The drummer got in some sort of trouble, so they arrived without a drum. They had a unique language, big smiles and humble attitude. They were very interested in the recording process and also in giving the best musical performance possible. They chose an old war song, The March on the River Drina. I had to do an artist agreement with them stating they could be on the record. They had the leader sign and he produced a big "X." It was cool!



Class dismissed.........

Friday, October 6, 2017

1997....SOULFLY PRESENTS EYE FOR AN EYE

1997 was a year of awakening. It didn't happen overnight. It took everything we could dig up, every last puff of faith, to motivate. I was in the middle of an intense investigation and Max was brooding; we had our share of shocks. The family needed attending to..Igor developed juvenile diabetes and the ship was filling with water. It was the dawn before the rebirth.





One day, Max came out of the bedroom and began carting gear in. It definitely caught my attention! Speakers and drum machine, mics, cords, and before long, a big stack of guitars in the hallway. He went in and soon enough, he was calling me to hear his songs. Eye For An Eye was first, with the classic lyrics....not the ones on Soulfly 1. Primitive and Tribe soon filled the hollow air in our home. Judas, Loser, No, on and on, track after track, it all came together!



Once again, we flew to NYC, to meet with Cees Wessels and Monte Conner, songs safe with Max. It didn't take much convincing. The music spoke for itself! Max returned home refreshed and I returned home with a badass deal for 5 LPS! No band, band members, band name or gear...but a solid deal. It worked! They could see the vision that was laid out. That was 20 years ago. Next year will be the 20th Anniversary of the release of Soulfly 1 and Max intends to Bring Da Shit to his Tribe!



The boys were so young then., Richie was stepping into Dana's shoes as my my Number One Son...the one who helps, consoles and takes charge. The rest of us were all just trying to get back to normal. It wasn't easy. But that music!!! That music carried away the pain to its permanent location in our hearts. It gave us strength to carry on. No Hope No Fear! Pain with Chino and Grady...both friends of Dana's. Everything was linked. There was no turning back!



Many of you have been with us since these days and you helped us more than you will each ever know. The Tribe that Max once told me we would have is a solid reality and it's the biggest in the world! It spans continents, oceans and forests. It grows every single day! And all we can do is bring the music to you! Our Tribe is Your Tribe!


Class dismissed!!