Encefalo
Slave Of Pain

December 2012
Released: 2012, Indie
Rating: 3.0/5
Reviewer: JP

Brazilian Metal is primarily known for it’s high quality Power Metal (Angra, Viper, Almah, Neverland, Hangar, Hibria, Soulspell, Infinity etc) and of course Sepultura. This month I’m taking a look at three very different bands from deep in the Brazilian Metal underground, Encefalo, Necropsya and Sacrificed. Please feel free to check out the other two reviews in this mini-feature.



I must admit, I enjoy an album that starts with the sounds of war; machine guns, explosions and so forth, it sets a nice tone for the music to come. SLAVE OF PAIN is the independent debut of this young quartet from the massive city of Forteleza, a city with a strong Metal scene in the North East of Brazil. Encefalo means ‘Brain’ in English and they have put some thought and energy into their first artistic creation. The 12-track disc is well presented with a nice cover, pictures, lyrics and the obligatory shot of the band standing in an industrial area or factory.



Encefalo is a good slab of Death/Thrash but it lacks some originality. The energy and aggression are there and the songwriting is adequate, showing lots of potential. The individual performances of each member are good, especially the drummer, who is very busy with lots of fills. The vocals are the standard death/thrash roar, and again good energy, intensity and passion but not the most unique presentation. The pace is pretty fast and the production and guitar tone are decent. Encefalo have most of the elements in place, but just need to find an identity and distinguish themselves with some better song-writing.



Encefalo is probably the weakest band in this trilogy of reviews. It’s not to suggest that they are poor but they don’t stand out as much in comparison to the others. This young band shows some good potential with SLAVES OF PAIN and I would recommend this album for die-hard Metal of the deep underground and collectors of Brazilian Metal.