A-Lex

Released in 2009, A-Lex marks a significant turning point for Sepultura as the first album to feature drummer Jean Dolabella. This transition moved the band away from the iconic tribal drumming of Igor Cavalera toward a more technical, versatile percussion style. The album is a conceptual adaptation of Anthony Burgess's 'A Clockwork Orange', divided into four distinct movements. Recorded at Trama Studios in São Paulo, the production is crisp and modern, favoring a dense, layered sound that mirrors the protagonist's mental fragmentation. Musically, it explores a wider range than its predecessor, Dante XXI, incorporating piano and orchestral elements, most notably in 'Ludwig Van', which reinterprets Beethoven through a thrash lens. While it retains the band's signature groove, it leans heavily into hardcore punk and technical thrash, cementing the Derrick Green era's commitment to ambitious, long-form conceptual works.