Max Cavalera didn't always have family support to pursue a career in metal beyond the partnership he formed with Iggor Cavalera during their adolescence. The brothers were typical misfit youths, both in appearance and behavior.
Before finally focusing entirely on music, the two were expelled from several schools and suffered from pressure from relatives to conform to the standards most accepted by society. On one occasion, young Max even cut his long hair – but only to become even more metal.
Radioactive Mike Z podcast , the musician recounted an unexpected deal with a cousin to cut his hair in exchange for something even more valuable. “When I was a kid, I had long hair and my cousin wanted to straighten me out, to make me a ‘normal’ citizen, so he wanted me to cut my hair,” he narrated (via Ultimate Guitar ). “He said he’d buy me any record I wanted if I cut my hair, so I chose Ride The Lightning .”
Metallica 's second studio album wouldn't help Cavalera's mission to become a "normal citizen" at all – on the contrary, the band had a great influence on Sepultura 's early albums . "I cut my hair, picked up the record. My hair would grow back and I got a wonderful album… Yes, I love Metallica," he said humorously.
In the same conversation, the Brazilian also revealed his first reaction upon hearing The Black Album for the first time and commented on the controversy surrounding the group's change in sonic direction on the album. Read it here !