Sepultura have shared “Beyond The Dream”, the second single from their upcoming farewell EP The Cloud Of Unknowing, due out on 04/24 via Nuclear Blast Records. The four-track release is described as the band’s most diverse and emotionally resonant work, and functions as a closing statement on four decades of music.
“Beyond The Dream” marks the fulfilment of a long-held ambition for the band to work in the ballad format. To realise it, Sepultura brought in Sérgio Britto and Tony Bellotto of Brazilian rock institution Titãs — longtime collaborators and composers of the classic “Polícia” — whose melodic sensibility shapes the track alongside the band’s own identity. The result is framed as both an emotional and historical milestone for the group’s final chapter.
The EP’s first single, “The Place”, was released in late February. Vocalist Derrick Green said of that track: “This song deals with immigrants who have come to a place seeking refuge and start a new life. Once assimilated into a false sense of security and relentless propaganda, they began to act out against what they hate about themselves. The transition begins to escape from self-hatred and the lashing out against people who believed in the same ideas. I feel the lyrics truly follow the transitions of the song. Starting with disappointment and arriving at anger.”
The EP was recorded with drummer Greyson Nekrutman, the 23-year-old who stepped in as Eloy Casagrande‘s replacement in February 2024 after Casagrande departed to join Slipknot. Guitarist Andreas Kisser had previously teased the sessions, explaining how they came together: “It was very spontaneous. We had a situation where we played the 70000 Tons Of Metal [cruise in January 2025], and we stayed in Miami. ‘We have this studio. We have a few ideas. Okay, let’s do it.’ [Laughs] And it was great. No pressure from labels, no due date… But it’s great… We did it in our time with no rush… And it’s great. Because of the farewell [tour] idea, we can do that as well, to plan something like that, or not plan something like that, plan as less that we can to really to challenge ourselves artistically to work something like that.”
On whether the decision to wind down Sepultura was connected to a desire to work outside the constraints of extreme metal, Kisser pushed back on the premise: “I never felt kind of locked in the Sepultura world to write [in a specific style]. We were always very fearless in doing whatever we wanted. I mean, Nation is a very different album, A-Lex, all those albums that were inspired by books and stuff. It is, I think, more of the routine of being in a band like Sepultura. 40 years — 40 years, man. Have you ever done something for 40 years, like your job? Think about it. [Laughs] It’s an amazing achievement inside the entertainment business to have such a band for so long, and ups and downs, to have a following.
“Every time we were doing albums, we were playing, we had a deal with the record label, regardless of the formation, regardless of the time we were in. We played for 10 people, then we went back to play big places and stuff. It’s a beautiful history. It’s a beautiful history of art and life. And I was kind of feeling like getting in that mode of doing another album, doing another tour, it’s kind of too predictable. I mean, an artist has to be not in their comfort zone. If you’re there, you’re fucked, because you’re going to lose touch with reality. You’re gonna start living in this bubble of what Sepultura should be,” he added.
“There’s no ‘should’. There’s a new Sepultura every day. We can do anything we want musically, because we conquered that. Sepultura is this. It is not thrash metal. It’s not heavy metal. It’s not dark metal. It’s not Brazilian metal. It’s Sepultura metal. That’s why we have a name, right? [Laughs] Otherwise, why have a name? This is Sepultura. That’s what we are — very free. We’re not scared or to take risks. Art is risky. If you do something new, you’re gonna take risks. There’s no other way. And that’s where you learn, with your mistakes or with your errors and everything.”
“But it’s great to stop in a great momentum without fighting, without an external factor breaking up this band. It’s on our own terms. We chose that very peacefully, a conscious decision. We took two years talking about working out, preparing this, and now we are enjoying ourselves. It’s amazing. And why not? I mean, it’s a privilege to have that, to have that possibility, to stop while we can or to stop in this momentum. And then the future is the future. Let’s see. [Laughs]”
Kisser has also outlined his vision for the band’s final concert, planned for October 2026 in São Paulo: “The idea is to do it around October 2026 in São Paulo, Brazil. A big Sepul-fest type of show, a party with bands that are important. And as a part of Sepultura‘s history, we like to invite every member that was a part of Sepultura, including the Cavalera brothers [Max and Iggor], to be a part of the concert, to play, to jam. I mean, it’s totally irrelevant to discuss the past, who is right, who is wrong. We’re never gonna get to a point — we’re gonna have two different views of it, and that’s fine. This is irrelevant. Let’s jam for the fans, to ourselves, to our families [who had] never seen us together.”
“But not only them — Jairo [Guedz], Eloy Casagrande, Jean Patton and Roy Mayorga, musicians that were a part of Sepultura in very specific and important moments that kept Sepultura flowing and going regardless of our problems and our challenges that we had. So hopefully that will happen. They are gonna be invited. If you wanna be a part of this party, you are welcome. If not, that’s fine.”
The band’s ongoing farewell tour, “Celebrating Life Through Death”, wraps its final North American leg on 05/29 at The Wiltern in Los Angeles. The run kicks off 04/29 in Montclair, New Jersey, and includes festival appearances at Welcome To Rockville and Sonic Temple, with support from Exodus, Biohazard, and Tribal Gaze. Sepultura are also recording 40 songs across 40 cities for a live compilation documenting the farewell run.
