There are few combinations capable of creating quite as much chaos as Nailbomb and Soulfly sharing the same bill. With Max Cavalera at the centre of both, Glasgow was effectively getting two very different sides of one of metal’s most recognisable figures in a single night.
Nailbomb’s story stretches back to 1994, when Cavalera, then fronting Sepultura, joined forces with Alex Newport of sludge metal pioneers Fudge Tunnel. The result was a vicious collision of thrash, punk, industrial noise and sludge that produced the now legendary Point Blank. It was an album that made an impact and then, almost as quickly as it appeared, Nailbomb disappeared.
More than three decades later, the prospect of seeing Nailbomb live again is enough to make tonight feel like far more than just another date on a UK tour. Throw a full Soulfly set into the equation afterwards and Cavalera certainly isn’t taking the easy option.
Opening proceedings in Glasgow are local pop-metal outfit Lo Rays, fronted by Finn Laura Takala, who immediately becomes the focal point of their performance. Her switch between clean and harsher vocals carries shades of Jinjer’s Tatiana Shmayluk, sitting over a mixture of synth-heavy pop elements, glitching riffs and heavier passages.
Visually, there is plenty going on. Lo Rays lean heavily into a post-apocalyptic theatrical presentation, accompanied by lighting that at times feels closer to Gary Numan than a conventional metal show. It certainly gives them their own identity, although musically and theatrically it doesn’t particularly land tonight.
The Glasgow crowd are welcoming enough, but it feels like the kind of performance that could have received a much tougher response elsewhere.
Then things change completely.
By the time Max Cavalera and the current incarnation of Nailbomb walk onto the stage, anticipation inside the venue has reached ridiculous levels. The opening moments of ‘Wasting Away’ provide the release everyone has been waiting for, and what follows is around 45 minutes of absolute carnage more than 30 years in the making.
Calling Nailbomb the support act almost feels wrong.
For a sizeable portion of the sold-out crowd, this is undoubtedly one of the main reasons they are here. Nailbomb have built an almost mythical reputation from a remarkably small body of work, and the rarity of actually seeing these songs performed live gives the entire set an atmosphere unlike anything else tonight.
The aggression coming from the stage is relentless. There is nothing polished or overly refined about it, nor should there be. Nailbomb still sound hostile, abrasive and dangerous, exactly as this material demands.
Picking individual highlights from an eleven-song Nailbomb set is almost pointless, but ‘24 Hour Bullshit’, ‘Guerrillas’ and ‘Sick Life’ are particularly vicious tonight.
What is perhaps most impressive is how little the material has lost with age. If anything, some of these tracks feel even more ferocious live now. The younger musicians surrounding Cavalera bring a huge amount of energy to the performance, and he seems to feed directly from it.
By the time ‘Sick Life’ closes the set, Glasgow has been given a rare glimpse of something many probably thought they would never experience in person.
Hopefully we don’t have to wait another 30 years for the next one.
Following Nailbomb was never going to be an easy task, but there is probably only one sensible solution: send Max Cavalera back out again.
After a change of clothes and little time to recover, he returns with Soulfly and ‘Back to the Primitive’ immediately sends the room back into motion. Those unmistakable tribal rhythms and enormous grooves have the crowd bouncing together, while the occasional crowd surfer emerges above the sea of bodies.
Any suggestion that Nailbomb might have exhausted Glasgow disappears almost immediately.
Where Nailbomb felt raw and unpredictable, Soulfly are a different beast. Cavalera looks completely at home commanding the stage, leading a band that sounds tight, powerful and considerably more polished without sacrificing the aggression that has always driven the music.
Across thirteen songs, Soulfly pull material from six albums, giving the set the feel of a journey through different periods of the band’s history. Brazilian rhythms, groove metal and flashes of thrash are thrown together in a combination that could easily become a mess in the wrong hands. With Cavalera, it has always felt completely natural.
Mike DeLeon is particularly impressive on lead guitar, bringing both presence and precision to the performance while never distracting from the rhythmic weight at the heart of Soulfly’s sound.
‘No Hope = No Fear’, ‘I and I’, ‘No Pain = No Power’ and ‘Tribe’ are among the strongest moments of the set, but there is little doubt which song causes the biggest reaction.
‘Jumpdafuckup’ does exactly what you would expect it to do.
The floor erupts.
Finally, ‘Eye for an Eye’ brings the evening to a suitably heavy conclusion.
It has been a night built around two very different forms of aggression. Nailbomb delivered the rare, raw and almost historical moment, while Soulfly followed it with the groove, experience and sheer force of a band that knows exactly how to control a room.
At the centre of both stood Max Cavalera.
Two sets, two bands and a sold-out Glasgow crowd put through the wringer.
Not a bad night’s work.
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