Artist: Repúdio
Country: Portugal
Label: Rasga
Formats: Demo Tape
Year: 2025
Although the previously released demo tape and full-length album were both released through the revered Altare Productions label. This freshly released demo tape is was published under the supervision of the obscure Rasga label. But regardless whether that change of labels is a permanent one or not, it feels like Repúdio is a perfect match to the harsh and overall lo-fi stuff that has been on this rather new Portuguese label so far.
The ‘Linhagens Esquecidas’ demo tape from 2024 was a tough one, it sounded crude and thoroughly unpolished, yet the following ‘Transcrito De Cinza’ debut album pushed things even further into the monochromatic sound spectrum of Lo-Fi Black Metal. And guess what, this latest offering is even taking another few steps in that same direction. So, people who like their Black Metal more refined, multi-layered and, well, just listenable, should better look elsewhere.
With almost 35 minutes on the clock, ‘Silhouette Of Reins’ is quite a long demo and could as well be seen as another full-length. Yet, with only the first half of the songs (side A of the cassette tape) having actual song titles and with an even rawer than raw approach of playing, it might very well be just a demo which can be seen as a kind of preliminary salvo for a new album.
Either way, ‘Silhouette Of Reins’ follows the formula of its two predecessors, but it feels even more bare boned than before. With an overall further stripped down approach it has a structure that feels closer to Garage/Punkrock, but it is still the occasional ferocious pace and the harsh vocals that drags it firmly down into Black Metal territories. In a way, it fits very well into the current Portuguese Black Metal tradition with some obvious resemblances to Black Cilice, yet its even simpler musical frame gives it a bit of an own touch. To give an accurate idea of what direction Repúdio took with this new demo you’d best imagine how it would sound if you’d lock up Black Cilice in the same rehearsal room with Bone Awl: raw, primal energy in dead-simple songs that seem to work just perfectly in this rugged soundscape.
