French metallers GOJIRA were joined by MACHINE HEAD‘s Robb Flynn on stage last night (Saturday, July 19) at the Release festival in Athens, Greece for a performance of the SEPULTURA classic “Territory”. Flynn, who was celebrating his 58th birthday, handled guitar duties and shared lead vocals on the song with GOJIRA frontman Joseph Duplantier. Fan-filmed video can be seen below.

Back in September 2022, Joseph was asked by Brazil’s “Multishow” if he remembered the first time he heard the Brazilian metal band SEPULTURA and how much of an influence SEPULTURA had been on GOJIRA‘s early sound and style. Joseph said: “I do remember the first time I heard SEPULTURA, and it blew my mind literally — not literally [laughs], actually. But I was blown away. And we were in a time in our development as people, in our teenage years, where this sound fueled something in us and inspired us to start what we’re doing today.’

He continued: “The first [SEPULTURA] album I discovered was the album ‘Arise’; it was very death metal. And then what they did after that, the ‘Chaos A.D.’ and the ‘Roots’ album, redefined metal, really. So I think they are a very, very important band in the history of metal.”

Four years ago, Joseph commented on the fact that some people have compared GOJIRA‘s song “Amazonia” to SEPULTURA‘s “Roots” album. Asked how much of an influence SEPULTURA had been on GOJIRA‘s sound, Joseph told Cuartel Del Metal: “How much? From one to 10? A solid seven, whatever that means. I could say 10 also, because I love them so much. But SEPULTURA is massive in the history of our band, for some reason. I discovered ‘Arise’ first, and I was pretty blown away — it was so dark and so fast and so technical. It was right after I discovered the band DEATH and MORBID ANGEL, and then SEPULTURA. And I was absolutely blown away by their craft. And then, I had a few bands in high school, and I started to get together with my brother. We were playing at home, sometimes after school, and then we decided to form our own band. We dropped our other bands, got together, and ‘Chaos A.D.’ came along. And we were absolutely blown away — absolutely blown away. And [it was] easy to play too — it’s simple riffs. They stripped down everything to the core… I mean, oh my God. They said it all with this album.”

As for what he thought when people compared “Amazonia” to SEPULTURA, Joseph said: “I go, ‘Yup.’ And it’s a compliment, and there is no shame here. And we ripped them off, but we didn’t do it on purpose. But we realized it right after. We were, like, ‘Oh, that sounds like SEPULTURA. Ahhh, whatever.’ It’s a tribute to SEPULTURA — how about that? It’s about Brazil. It’s about the Amazon. It’s tribal.”

“Amazonia” is taken from GOJIRA‘s latest album, “Fortitude”, which came out in April 2021 via Roadrunner Records. The follow-up to 2016’s “Magma” was recorded and produced by Joseph Duplantier at Silver Cord Studio — GOJIRA‘s Ridgewood, Queens, New York headquarters — and mixed by Andy Wallace (NIRVANA, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE).

Proceeds from “Amazonia” are benefiting the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB) who advocate for environmental and cultural rights of indigenous tribes in the Amazon who have suffered immensely — victims of deforestation, land loss, forced labor, violence, and harassment.

GOJIRA initially laid the foundation for “Fortitude” in 2020 with the surprise release of the single “Another World”.

The artwork for “Fortitude” was created by Joseph Duplantier.