Archangel (Soulfly album)

Archangel is the tenth studio album by American heavy metal band Soulfly.^[5][6] It was released on August 14, 2015, through Nuclear Blast.^[7] It is the band's shortest album to date, running thirty-six and a half minutes. It is the band's last album to feature bassist Tony Campos, who left the band shortly after recording to join Fear Factory.^[8] With a peak position of number 130 on the Billboard 200, it is Soulfly's second-lowest charting album to date (behind 2005's Dark Ages, which peaked at number 155). The statistic is common with the decreasing number of album sales worldwide in all genres of music, as digital releases have taken over the market. The ensuing "We Sold Our Souls to Metal" Tour to promote Archangel's release featured Soulfly playing as many as seven songs from the album live each night, which is the first time since the "Primitive" Tour that the band has played the majority of a new album live.

Archangel
Studio album by Soulfly
Released	August 14, 2015 (2015-08-14)
Recorded	2015
Studio	Megawatt Recording Studios (Los Angeles, California)
Genre	Thrash metal groove metal death metal
Length	36:38 (regular edition) 45:16 (special edition)
Label	Nuclear Blast
Producer	Matt Hyde
Soulfly chronology
Savages (2013) Archangel (2015) Ritual (2018)
Singles from Archangel
"We Sold Our Souls to Metal" Released: July 3, 2015 "Sodomites" Released: July 30, 2015 "Archangel" Released: August 10, 2015 "Titans" Released: January 14, 2016

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
About.com	[1]
Blabbermouth.net	8/10[2]
Metal Injection	7.5/10[3]
RockSins	7.5/10[4]

Track listing

Archangel

No.	Title	Lyrics	Length
1.	"We Sold Our Souls to Metal"		3:00
2.	"Archangel"		4:47
3.	"Sodomites" (featuring Todd Jones)		3:55
4.	"Ishtar Rising"		2:45
5.	"Live Life Hard!" (featuring Matt Young)		3:56
6.	"Shamash"		3:48
7.	"Bethlehem's Blood"		4:18
8.	"Titans"		4:44
9.	"Deceiver"		2:44
10.	"Mother of Dragons" (featuring Richie Cavalera, Igor Cavalera Jr. and Anahid)	Richie Cavalera Igor Cavalera Jr. M. Cavalera	2:41
Total length:			36:38

All tracks are written by Max Cavalera except where stated.

Special edition bonus tracks

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Length
11.	"You Suffer" (Napalm Death cover)	Nicholas Bullen	Nicholas Bullen	0:10
12.	"Acosador Nocturno"	Tony Campos M. Cavalera		2:45
13.	"Soulfly X"			5:42
Total length:				45:16

Bonus DVD: "Live at Hellfest 2014" (special edition only)

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Cannibal Holocaust"
2.	"Refuse/Resist"
3.	"Bloodshed"
4.	"Back to the Primitive"
5.	"Seek 'N' Strike"
6.	"Tribe"
7.	"Rise of the Fallen"
8.	"Revengeance"
9.	"Roots Bloody Roots"
10.	"Jumpdafuckup / Eye for an Eye"

^[5][9]

Reception

Andrew "Schizodeluxe" Massie of The Rockpit reviewed that the album is "a somewhat diverse record with the death metal inspired tracks, the groove mid-tempo stuff and the thrashier songs mixed in there. Archangel is both streamlined and very aggressive".^[10] Riley Rowe of Metal Injection wrote that "Archangel, an apt title to indicate Soulfly's spreading of wings towards a more mature style, is the grand and fitting next step in their mystical, musical journey".^[3] Ray Van Horn Jr. of Blabbermouth reviewed that "Archangel is the most daring and freshest Soulfly album since Prophecy, but there's something slightly remiss and somewhat disjointed in this leaner yet embroidered shift toward yet another new order in this band".^[2] Elpida Baphomet of Metal Invader reviewed that "Archangel is characterized by its sophisticated oriental compositions, powerful grooves, multifaceted choirs and religious orientations. All of the instruments and voices stand out in the best possible way".^[11] Steve of Metal Blast! reviewed that the album starts out with a bang showcasing expert performances and then the entertainment fizzles out in the album's second half.^[12]

Personnel

Soulfly Max Cavalera – vocals, 4-string guitar, sitar on "Soulfly X" Marc Rizzo – lead guitar, flamenco guitar on "Soulfly X" Tony Campos – bass, vocals on "Acosador Nocturno", acoustic bass on "Soulfly X" Zyon Cavalera – drums, percussion Additional musicians Todd Jones – vocals on "Sodomites" Matt Young – vocals on "Live Life Hard!" Richie Cavalera – vocals on "Mother of Dragons" Igor Cavalera Jr – vocals and bass on "Mother of Dragons" Anahid M.O.P. – vocals on "Mother of Dragons" Roki Cavalera – intro on "You Suffer" Roman Babakhanyan – duduk on "Soulfly X"

Production Matt Hyde – production, recording, mixing, mastering, interludes Chris Rakestraw – engineering Rem Massingill – assistant Allen Steelgrave – assistant Jon Nicholson – drum tech Samuel Petit – direction (DVD), editing (DVD) Fred Ricci – editing (DVD) Benoit Gilg – audio mixing (DVD) Patrick Villeneuve – production (DVD) Eric Hallier – production (DVD) Sombrero & Co – production (DVD) Artwork Eliran Kantor – album cover art Leo Zulueta – logo Hannah Verbeuren – photography Marcelo Vasco – design Maicon Ristow – illustration

Charts

Chart (2015)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[13]	41
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[14]	31
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[15]	17
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[16]	28
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[17]	21
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[18]	33
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[19]	22
French Albums (SNEP)[20]	66
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[21]	19
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[22]	11
UK Albums (OCC)[23]	57
US Billboard 200[24]	130

References

1. Hinch, Matt. "Soulfly - Archangel Review". About.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2015. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
2. Van Horn, Jr., Ray (August 17, 2015). "Soulfly - "Archangel"". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
3. Rowe, Riley (August 11, 2015). "Album Review: SOULFLY Archangel". Metal Injection. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
4. Whitehead, Philip (August 13, 2015). "Soulfly - Archangel Album Review". RockSins. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
5. "MAX CAVALERA On 'Archangel': I Have Not Been As Excited About A SOULFLY Album In Ten Years". Blabbermouth.net. July 4, 2015. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
6. "Soulfly: 'Archangel' Release Date Revealed; Tour With Soilwork, Decapitated Announced". Blabbermouth.net. May 4, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
7. "Soulfly Reveal 'Archangel' Track Listing + Artwork". Loudwire.com. June 5, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
8. "Former Static X Bassist Tony Campos Exits Soulfly, Joins Fear Factory". Blabbermouth.net. May 1, 2015. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
9. "Soulfly present Archangel details - Metal Hammer". Metalhammer.teamrock.com. June 6, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
10. Massie, Andrew. "Soulfly - Archangel (2015) Review". The Rock Pit. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
11. Baphomet, Elpida. "Soulfly - Archangel". Metal Invader. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
12. Steve (July 27, 2015). "Soulfly - Archangel". Metal Blast!. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
13. "Australiancharts.com – Soulfly – Archangel". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
14. "Austriancharts.at – Soulfly – Archangel" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
15. "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
16. "Ultratop.be – Soulfly – Archangel" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
17. "Ultratop.be – Soulfly – Archangel" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
18. "Dutchcharts.nl – Soulfly – Archangel" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
19. "Soulfly: Archangel" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved August 25, 2015.
20. "Lescharts.com – Soulfly – Archangel". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
21. "Offiziellecharts.de – Soulfly – Archangel" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
22. "Swisscharts.com – Soulfly – Archangel". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
23. 21, 2015/7502/ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
24. "Soulfly Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved August 25, 2015.