Repugnator is, almost like the name suggests, a Black/Death Metal hybrid, one that can trace its origins to Portugal where all four members of the band reside. They have been playing together for the last two years, and have, as of this year, released their first album – A 5-track EP carrying the name Foul Transfixation.

Now, despite how relatively new the band is, their name screams old-school Death Metal to me – Other acts such as Obituary, Napalm Death and Nunslaughter all immediately came to mind as I first laid my eyes on the cover of the album. And while I will like to claim that I was not too far off (the Obituary-inspiration seems particularly evident – But then again I am quite the fan of that band, so I might just be plain old biased), the Black Metal parts of the record I was utterly unprepared for.

Overall Repugnator came out of the bat swinging and did a decent effort in keeping the momentum going – The music is fast-paced, the riffs are simple as well as clearly aimed at a live performance and the drums are relentless. All of which is seeped through a filter of raw aggression, distortion of the instruments and a high-pitched, roaring growl.

Definitely a band I can see kicking off a festival with minimal effort, and I certainly do not regret listening to their seventeen minute debut (all caards on the table, I even gave it more than one spin).

Sadly however, for me, this specific mixture of genres seems to be a very oversaturated market, and one where it is rather difficult to make yourself considerably noticeable – Hence I already began mixing up Repugnator with other bands of the same genre shortly after sitting down to write this little scribble of mine. Nevertheless, as good an excuse as any to spin Foul Transfixation for a fifth time.

https://repugnator.bandcamp.com/track/foul-transfixation