It’s clear that the Portuguese Metal scene is most famous for MOONSPELL, but what many people seems to don’t know is that Portugal is a land filled with many good names on any Metal genre one can think of. Then try something as ‘Portuguese Metal Scene’ on a internet search and see what you’re losing. And to be join to the legions of Lusitanian Metal, here is the newcomer REPUGNATOR with its first release, the EP “Foul Transfixion”. The quartet follows a form of Old School Death/Black Metal that was usual for the bands on the second half of the 80s, sharing some similarities with acts as SEPULTURA (on “Bestial Devastation” and “Morbid Visions” days), SARCÓFAGO, BLASPHEMY, BEHERIT and others on this trench. It’s abusively aggressive and nasty, full of energy and with contrasts between fast and slow tempos (in a classic sense). It’s very good, besides the band needs to sharpen its musical efforts in the future.

The recordings, mixing and mastering of the songs are signed by André Fernandes, with everything done at Tanoaria. It seems that they chose to emulate the sonorities of the past, being raw and putrid to give their music the right ambience. It’s obvious that things could be done in a better way, but’s not as bad as many could think. And the artwork of Maria Madalena (A.K.A. Nosfewatuwu) fits on the band’s musical concept, and the help of Pierre de Palmas (logo) and Marckus (layout) is a touch of darkened charm. Again: the quartet can evolve and expand its musical possibilities in the future (in reality, they must do it for the sake of their own music). But it doesn’t mean that what is shown on “Putrid Gates of Bone”, “Sprawling Piles of Disgust”, “Pyretic Smog of Degradation”, “Foul Transfixation” and “Visage of Rot” isn’t good (it’s the opposite, to be honest).

REPUGNATOR is welcome to the Metal scene, and I hope that “Foul Transfixion” is followed by a work that shows the band’s full potential.