Of all the early so-called "proto-grind" bands, Repulsion were definitely the most metal-influenced. Other bands that inspired the genre (such as Siege, Larm, Cryptic Slaughter, and early D.R.I.) were, for the most part, political hardcore bands that played much faster than most of their contemporaries. However, though they do have some punk-ish (there's a fairly obvious Discharge influence in some songs) parts, Repulsion's biggest influences came more from thrash metal than hardcore.

I believe I read somewhere that most of this was written in 1984 , and it's extremely chaotic for the time. The guitarist belts out killer thrash riff after killer thrash riff, the drummer blasts away, the bassist makes the most unholy sound his instrument can possibly make (his tone was obviously a huge influence on early Napalm Death and Brutal Truth), and the vocalist screams the brutal gore lyrics until his throat is red and sore. Speaking of which, these are probably some of the first horror/gore-oriented lyrics on a metal record ever, if indeed this was written or recorded in 1984.

So, in case you haven't figured it out yet, this is an absolutely classic album that needs to be in your collection if you like death, thrash, or goregrind. Relapse reissued it in the early 90s, but for some reason it is now out of print again (which is really strange, since they still sell Repulsion shirts). It may be a bit hard to find nowadays, but it is well worth tracking down, as it is a very important part of grind and extreme metal history. Oh yeah, and it rocks too. Get it.

Review by Mark Pennington

Review date: 08/2001

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