Max is back! With him, this time around, Max brings with him a new band lineup, and a theory: to make every Soulfly album sound different. Love this album or hate it, you've got to admit it's mighty creative of Max to incorporate death metal with reggae. Now the Brazilian tribal drums may not be a surprise, but the Spanish/acoustic guitars, flutes, African rainstick, brass band, and Serbian bagpipe (that instrument that sounds like a marching band) sure are.

Now, some would say Soulfly got too experimental on this album but I disagree. The reggae/tribal moments are sprinkled on; most of the songs are still atleast partially metal.

Highlights include:

The title-track, "Prophecy", is an instant killer and concert favorite. A screaching guitar intro begins the song, then explosive and extra crunchy guitar riffs explode out of the gate. This song is not unlike Sepultura's "Roots, Bloody Roots," except it ends with double bass drums that sound like cannon fire.

The next three tracks are more hard hitting metal anthems without a trace of melody. They are some of the heaviest songs Max has written with Soulfly. Plus, track three ("Execution Style") has a nice shout along chorus.

"Mars" is where things mellow a bit. The first two minutes are metal, but it ends softly. The last three minutes drizzle on light acoustic guitar work and soft percussion. This guitar gently wails and almost makes a "wah wah" sound in places.

"I Believe" is a heartfelt and visceral song with punching guitars. Lyrically, it's a brave move for Max: telling the world what his beliefs are (God, spirit, immortality and faith.)

"Moses" is where things really get interesting. The first song on the album to be completely reggae flavored, this is the one with the Serbian bagpipe. This song made me realize how good reggae can make you feel (I was jammin' to this song!) But even this one has its heavy points (i.e. the chorus/bridge).

"Born Again Anarchist" is the only song that sticks out as filler to me. But I don't mind it that much, since it's nonetheless catchy and has great, fast riffs.

"Soulfly IV" is an instrumental number with tribal drums (that almost sound like tin drums sometimes) and flutes, and "Wings" is another soft number but it has female vocals, reminiscent of "Tree of Pain" from Soulfly's last album "3". When that part of the song ends, some Spanish people come aboard the track, count a few seconds in Spanish, then a brass band comes on and plays what sounds like trumpets with more soft drumming.

I am very addicted to this C.D. I think it's inspired, interesting, innovative, creative, and all around amazing. Plus, there's something for a variety of people on it. My brother and dad like this C.D. even though they hate metal.

Soulfly are one of those bands that could've easily jumped aboard the "New Wave of American Metal" movement, but on "Prophecy", Max isn't TOO concerned with showing he's metal (he has already proven that with his previous works). With this album, Max shows he's more than a great metalhead: a great musician.

"Prophecy"'s spiky, churning guitars and rolling, tribal-tinged drums are very much as in "Roots," Max Cavalera's last album with Sepultura. But unlike Sepultura, Soulfly experiments with sounds beyond Brazil, such as dub, flamenco, and even Serbian folk music. The results can be jarring, as acoustic interludes come out of nowhere, only to be steamrolled by the next thrashy stomper. However, this ultimately makes for an enjoyable and varied, if occasionally humorous listen. The album falters near the end, starting with an unnecessary cover of Helmet's "In the Meantime" that drops into a baffling psychedelic coda. Overall, however, the album is energetic, uplifting, and colorful.

If you have followed soulfly through the years you would have noticed their music and mood has changed over time. They used to have very loud, pounding music, which is of course a plus. The lyrics also went along the lines of "my life sucks, and its because of _______" in some of their songs. Max has changed into a very religious point of view, and more of a positive outlook on life. This album is mostly about how god has helped him, and how he is serving. The reason this album is so good is because it still has a lot of the hardcore headbanging music, but incorporates a lot of tribal culture and music such as the middle of "born again anarchist", various parts of "porrada", and of course "soulfly IV" is based on a very natural feeling. There is a good blend of music here, it's impossible to get bored listening to it. My sister walked into the room once, then came in again and asked if it was the same group. I am having trouble understanding why this album is parental advisory. The f-bomb is dropped no more than 3 times on the whole album and the overall message is positive. If you are the kind of person that only likes the "heavy" soulfly, then try something else...

since i started getting into metal about six years ago, i have always been amazed by the different varietys, techniques, and styles that bands create in an attempt to fully capture the listeners attention. soulfly is definately one of the best because of this reason. now they have finally mastered there own sound, and it is even more unique and enjoyable.

anyways, something other reviewers did not mention is how unlike the rest of the soulfy albums, this one will stay in your cd player for months... i have their debut and primitive, but i got tired of listening to those ones in about a week, unlike prophecy which has been in my rotation now for like a month and a half. prophecy is a mix of many types of music, its angry and crazy, it even has its soft and relaxing moments, it is EXTREMELY addictive!

i am glad soulfly(Max) did not give up after 3, and i hope they continue to make great music like this. because i get tired of listening to music that sounds the same as everything else. i highly recomend prophecy. it is such a great achievement, i think this is the first soulfly cd you should get. you will not be disapointed.

The reason I call it Action Metal is because most of the songs would go well in Terminator 4 soundtrack. This is stuff thats heavy, with continuous blazing guitar riffs. Soulfly's best album in my humble opinion.

The album opens up iwith Prophecy, which has a cool intro and bursts into a very cool song, the reasons this CD doesn't recieve the 5 stars are as follows:

Max doesn't sing the final song ''Wings.'' This sucks, I'd love to hear him actually singing (corey taylor tried it and it worked out perfect.)

Songs like ''Porrada'' and ''Moses'' which eventually are amazing, have extremely obnoxious and annoying introductions, which is a waste of 2 awesome songs.

The final reason is all this religious talk, Prophecies, Moses, ''I am MARS, God of WAR.'' It's kinda like John Butler Trio because the lyrics make you cringe but the music itself is completely awesome.

As a closing statement, I'd like nothing is more satisfying than blasting ''Defeat U'' as loud as your stereo player will go.