| Dante XXI | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 14, 2006 | |||
| Recorded | 2005 | |||
| Studio | Estudios Trama (Sao Paulo, Brazil) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 39:06 | |||
| Label | SPV -BMG (Brazil) | |||
| Producer |
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| Sepultura chronology | ||||
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Dante XXI is the tenth studio album by Brazilianmetal bandSepultura, released in 2006 throughSPV Records. It is aconcept album based onDante Alighieri'sThe Divine Comedy. This is the last album withIgor Cavalera on drums.
Dante XXI was originally titled "Dante 05", but it was changed when it became clear the album would not be released by the end of 2005. The first single from the album was "Convicted in Life". A video for the song was released in 2006, and it won theMTVVMB Best Editing in a Video Award that year.[2] In January 2008, the band released a music video for the song "Ostia". The album artwork was done by Stephan Doitschinoff, whom the band commissioned to do 10 paintings based on theDivine Comedy.
Covers ofJudas Priest's "Screaming for Vengeance" andSick of It All's "Scratch the Surface" were recorded as B-sides. "Screaming for Vengeance" was added as a Japanese bonus track, while "Scratch the Surface" is included on the SOIA tribute albumOur Impact Will Be Felt.The Brazilian edition (Krako records), contains two bonus tracks: "Mindwar" (recorded live from Stanley Soares's mixing desk in Erfurt/Germany, on December 3, 2004, while on tour with Motorhead) and "False" (demo recorded at High Five Studio São Paulo, during pre production for Dante XXI in July, 2005).
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| About.com |   [1] |
| AllMusic |  [3] |
| Alternative Press | [4] |
| Blabbermouth.net | (7/10)[5] |
| Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles | (8.5/10)[6] |
| Metal Storm | (8.5/10)[7] |
| Stylus Magazine | C−[8] |
Many critics stated that it was the bestDerrick Green-era Sepultura album thus far. Chad Bowar fromAbout.com praised the album for its intensity and commented that it "brings the thrash at full blast". He also highlighted Green's vocal performance, as well as the album's overall concept.[1]AllMusic's Steve Huey noted that much of the elements that made Sepultura "stand out from the metal pack" are still present on this record, and that this was one of Sepultura's strongest releases with Green on vocals.[3]
Alternative Press reviewer Phil Freeman stated that with this album, Sepultura are "finally back at full strength", giving the listener "exactly what he hopes to get from pioneers in the art of skull-crushing".[4] In a mixed review forStylus Magazine, Cosmo Lee said that the riffs were "unmemorable" and the songs lacked "tension and release". He also criticized the album's artwork, describing it as a "weak, mild-mannered font worthy of indie rock".[8]
Despite mostly positive reviews, sales of the album were disappointing and continued the decrease in sales of Sepultura's albums sinceAgainst, selling only 2,300 copies its first week of release in the US.[9] Dante XXI has sold 120,000+ copies worldwide as of January 2, 2008 and wentGold inBrazil andCyprus (their first music industry certification outside of Brazil sinceRoots).[10]
According to Matthew Teutsch, a scholar of literature and popular culture, the album is "a modern-day soundtrack for Dante’s Divine Comedy" and allows an exploration of the poem "through an aesthetic rendering of twenty-first-century national (and international) issues".[11]
All music is composed byAndreas Kisser,Derrick Green,Igor Cavalera, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Lost (Intro)" | (Instrumental) | 0:59 | |
| 2. | "Dark Wood of Error" | Kisser | 2:18 | |
| 3. | "Convicted in Life" |
| 3:09 | |
| 4. | "City of Dis" | Green | 3:27 | |
| 5. | "False" | Kisser | 3:34 | |
| 6. | "Fighting On" | Green | 4:29 | |
| 7. | "Limbo (Intro)" | (Instrumental) | 0:44 | |
| 8. | "Ostia" | Kisser | 3:07 | |
| 9. | "Buried Words" | Green | 2:35 | |
| 10. | "Nuclear Seven" | Kisser | 3:44 | |
| 11. | "Repeating the Horror" | Green | 3:11 | |
| 12. | "Eunoé (Intro)" | (Instrumental) | 0:13 | |
| 13. | "Crown and Miter" | Green | Kisser, Green, Cavalera,Paulo Jr. | 2:12 |
| 14. | "Primium Mobile (Intro)" | (Instrumental) | 0:29 | |
| 15. | "Still Flame" | Kisser | Kisser, André Moraes | 4:51 |
| Total length: | 39:06 | |||
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16. | "Screaming for Vengeance" (Judas Priest cover) | Halford |
| 3:31 |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16. | "Mind War (live)" |
|
| 3:01 |
| 17. | "False (demo)" | Kisser |
| 3:15 |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Scratch the Surface" (Sick of It All cover) | Koller |
| 2:35 |
| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[13] | 180 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[14] | 166 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] | 64 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[16] | 8 |
| USIndependent Albums (Billboard)[17] | 45 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Cyprus[10] | Gold | 5,000[10] |
