Back to the Primitive
2000 single by Soulfly
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"Back to the Primitive" is a song by heavy metal band Soulfly, released in 2000. The song, composed by Max Cavalera, is played as the first track of the second Soulfly album, Primitive.
| "Back to the Primitive" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Single by Soulfly | ||||
| from the album Primitive | ||||
| Released | December 4, 2000 | |||
| Recorded | 1999–2000 | |||
| Genre | Nu metal | |||
| Length | 4:22 | |||
| Label | Roadrunner | |||
| Songwriter | Max Cavalera | |||
| Producers | ||||
| Soulfly singles chronology | ||||
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Music and lyrics
The song features simple downtuned riffs, plus tribal drumming and blabbering; it also plays berimbau to begin the song. Lyrically, this political song is about demoting national government back to local tribal society.[1] Every choruses begin with 'Back to the Primitive', except for the first line of lyric Um, dois, treis, quatro ("one, two, three, four" in Portuguese) to begin the song, and verses containing just "primitive" per line.[2]
Music video
The song begins with a berimbau, but it is not the case for the accompanying music video. Instead, the intro plays tribal percussion with 'Soulfly' chants alternately by Cavalera and spectators; the berimbau is shown, but not heard. The drumming intro lasts 29 seconds, compared to just 23 seconds for the berimbau intro. Interspersed in the video are religious imagery and people of different cultures while the band performs the song in front of an audience. At the end of the video, Ozzy Osbourne makes a cameo by saying "Primitive!" into the camera.[3]
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Max Cavalera except where noted; all music is composed by Max Cavalera.
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Back to the Primitive" | 4:01 | |
| 2. | "Terrorist" (Total Destruction Mix) |
| 4:39 |
| 3. | "Back to the Primitive" (Dub Shit Up Mix) | 4:35 | |
| Total length: | 13:15 | ||
- include music video "Back to the Primitive"
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Back to the Primitive" | 3:58 |
| Total length: | 3:58 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Back to the Primitive" (Uncensored Version) | 3:58 |
| 2. | "Back to the Primitive" (Censored Version) | 4:00 |
| Total length: | 7:58 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Spineshank – New Disease" | 3:16 |
| 2. | "Soulfly – Back to the Primitive" | 4:20 |
| Total length: | 7:36 | |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Back to the Primitive" | ||
| 2. | "Terrorist" |
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Personnel
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Charts
| Chart (2000) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[4] | 120 |