Sarcófago was a Brazilian extreme metal band formed in 1985. They were fronted by Sepultura's original singer, Wagner Lamounier, and Geraldo Minelli.
The cover art of the band's debut album, I.N.R.I., is regarded as a great influence on black metal's corpse paint imagery.Moynihan, Michael & Søderlind, Didrik: Lords of Chaos: The Bloody Rise of the Satanic Metal Underground. Feral House 1998, p. 36. That record is also considered one of the "first wave" albums that helped shape the genre.
The band broke up in 2000, after releasing the Crust EP. Former members, minus Lamounier, played throughout Brazil in 2006 as Tributo ao Sarcófago (Tribute to Sarcófago). In 2009, rumors of the original I.N.R.I. line-up reuniting for a small, high-profile tour proved false. A reissue of their back catalogue is in the works, a joint effort between Cogumelo Records and American label Greyhaze.
History
Early years (1985–1988) Sarcófago (Portuguese for 'sarcophagus') was formed in 1985 in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Indebted to Finnish hardcore punk and early extreme metal groups such as Bathory, Celtic Frost, and Slayer, Archived at www.metalpesado.com.br. Sarcófago aimed to create the most aggressive music ever.Nemitz, 1994, p. 58. Wagner Lamounier, who parted acrimoniously from Sepultura in March 1985,Barcinski & Gomes, 1999, p. 28. was invited to join the band. Although Sepultura never recorded anything with Lamounier, he contributed the lyrics to the song "Antichrist" on their Bestial Devastation EP.Barcinski & Gomes, 1999, p. 31. Sarcófago's vinyl debut was on the Cogumelo Produções split album Warfare Noise I, released in 1986. Sarcófago contributed the tracks "Recrucify", "The Black Vomit", and "Satanas". Their music and lyrics were considered shocking at the time, which brought them considerable attention.Filho, 1992, p. 42. The band's line-up at that point consisted of "Butcher" (guitars), "Antichrist" (Lamounier; vocals), "Incubus" (Geraldo Minelli; bass) and "Leprous" (Armando Sampaio; drums).
With new drummer "D.D. Crazy" —hailed as a metal pioneer for his extensive use of blast beats on this albumRicardo, 2008, p. 55.— Sarcófago released I.N.R.I in July 1987. The band's attire on the cover —corpsepaint, leather jackets, and bullet belts— is considered the first definite statement of black metal's imagery and style.Schwarz & Strachan, 2005, p. 37. The music has been equally influential in the development of the genre."The First Wave", 2005, p. 42. Despite the record's legendary status, Lamounier was unsatisfied with the end results, complaining about the quality of the recording sessions and the band's inner strife. After the release of I.N.R.I., Sarcófago briefly disbanded. Lamounier moved to Uberlândia to study economics at the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU), while Butcher and his brother D.D. Crazy left the group. The latter played drums on Sextrash's 1990 debut, Sexual Carnage.
Rotting (1989–1990) When Rotting first came out, it stirred controversy due to its cover art — a grim reaper figure licking what appears to be Jesus Christ's face.Nemitz, 1994, p. 59. It was based upon a medieval painting. The cover artist, Kelson Frost, refused to paint a crown of thorns over the man's head, which would have identified him as the Christian messiah.
Rotting differs from the raw, hyper-speed black metal of I.N.R.I. Session drummer "Joker" brought different influences to the band, such as crossover thrash. Lamounier learned to play guitar and contributed many of the album's riffs. Rotting also marked their first change of aliases: the group's core duo renamed themselves "Wagner Antichrist" and "Gerald Incubus". Their image went through changes too. They dropped the arm and leg spikes because they made playing live difficult.Filho, 1992, p. 43.
Rotting was Sarcófago's first release to have international distribution, handled in Europe by British label Music for Nations, and by Maze/Kraze in America. Maze Records released a censored version of Rotting, blacking out the original cover and adding a sticker that read "Featuring the Original Lead Singer of Sepultura" without consulting the band. Infuriated, Sarcófago sued the label.
The Laws of Scourge (1991–1993) Next came The Laws of Scourge (1991), considered a "revolution" in the band's career. A combination of better musicianship, improved production values, and more sophisticated songwriting landed them into technical death metal territory. Sarcófago's new direction was partly influenced by new members, Fábio "Jhasko" (guitar) and Lúcio Olliver (drums),Gimenez, 1995, p. 54. and inspired by a newer extreme metal bands such as Godflesh, Paradise Lost, Bolt Thrower, Deicide, and Morbid Angel.Filho 1992, p. 44.
The Laws of Scourge became Sarcófago's best selling record, and responsible for their most extensive touring schedule to this date. Their tour included their first international dates: they visited South American countries such as Peru and Chile, and in Europe they played shows in Portugal and Spain. In Brazil, their most important show was to open for Texas crossover thrash band the Dirty Rotten Imbeciles in São Paulo.
Hate (1994–1996) Musically, Hate has a stripped-down, straightforward approach uses a drum machine, which sparked some controversy.Franzin, 1997, p. 16. Lamounier claimed to have no qualms about using this device, on the basis that most death metal drummers use trigger pads for recording purposes, which produces the same homogenized sound as a drum machine.
The band cut their hair short to protest the popularity of the masculine long hair due to the success of grunge in the early 1990s. Men sporting long hair has traditionally been associated with counterculture groups,Synnott, 1987, p. 381. and it is especially present in the metalhead subculture.Weinstein, 2000, p. 207. Lamounier declared,
In late 1995, Sarcófago released the Decade of Decay compilation, which featured demo versions of their early songs and rare backstage photographs. The band described the CD as a "gift" to fans.Franzin, 1997, p. 18.
The Worst (1996–2000) Sarcófago's fourth and final album, The Worst (1996), had the band slowing down relative to the speed-oriented Hate, and featured a better grasp of drum programming. Minelli and Lamounier considered this record a "summation" of their career.
The 2000 EP Crust was Sarcófago's final release. It was meant to be a preview of an upcoming album, but the band's core duo parted ways before recording.
Sarcófago Tribute tour (2006–2009) To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Warfare Noise split album, Cogumelo Records and Gerald Incubus organized a comeback show with Sarcófago in Belo Horizonte. Along with Minelli, the line-up for that event was Fábio Jhasko on guitars, Manu Joker, and Juarez "Tibanha" on vocals.Ricardo, 2008, p. 54. That performance was recorded and there were plans to release it on DVD. Lamounier opted out of this "Sarcófago Tribute", lacking desire to play professionally. However, Lamounier still pursues musical interests, playing in the crust punk band Commando Kaos.
In October 2007, Sarcófago flew to Santiago, Chile to play in the Black Shadows Festival, alongside Possessed.
In March 2009, Lamounier supposedly announced a Sarcófago reunion and a tour that would include appearances at the Wacken Open Air and Hole in the Sky festivals, as well as dates in London, New York, Los Angeles and Tokyo. He stated it would be the original I.N.R.I. line-up, but that this would be the only tour they would be doing and there would be no new material. A couple of days later, Lamounier exposed this news report as a hoax.
Gerard Minelli & The Laws playing Sarcòfago (2026) In 2026, bassist Gerard Minelli, along with the band The Laws (consisting of Pedro Nicolsky, Igor Podrão, César Pessoa, and Morto) and guest drummer Armando Sampaio, played several concerts in Europe and Latin America as Sarcòfago, where, according to booking agency Killtown Bookings, they primarily performed material from Satanic Lust, Warfare Noise, I.N.R.I., and Rotting.
Musical style and influences Sarcófago were an extreme metal band, and performed what is now considered thrash metal, death metal and black metal. Inspired by Venom and Hellhammer, Sarcófago's early lyrics were openly Satanic. These lyrics frequently employed curse words and crude, obscene scenarios, such as in the case of "Desecration of (the) Virgin", a blasphemous take on Mother Mary's virgin birth. The band's lyrics included a mixture of Portuguese and English. One of their English lyrics: "If you are a false don't entry", has been described as the catchphrase of cult black metal.
Whilst still polemical, by 1989's Rotting the band's stance on Christianity was more agnostic than Satanic. The original vinyl release came with a lengthy manifesto written by Lamounier, in which he criticized the alienating effect that Catholicism had on Brazilian society. The band also questioned the divine nature of Christ, declaring he was just a regular man who died for his ideas. On a less serious note the album featured "Sex, Drinks and Metal", a hedonistic ode to the headbanger lifestyle.
Their next album, The Laws of Scourge, continued their new-found focus on more "reality-based" themes, with lyrics generally covering such death-related topics as suicide and homicide. The band had trouble again with American censors, with the lyrics of the re-recorded version of "The Black Vomit" being forcibly omitted from the CD booklet as well as the entire "Prelude to Suicide" track.
Legacy and impact Sacrófago is commonly cited as influence on the emerging black metal genre, particularly among the Scandinavian portion of the so-called "second wave" of the genre. "It is sobering", claimed Terrorizer magazine, "to think of what wouldn't have happened had 'I.N.R.I.' not been released". Eduardio Rivadavia of AllMusic conferred the title of "the most extreme and inaccessible members of the first wave of Brazil's early death metal champions" on Sarcófago. He also noted elements of punk rock present in the band's sound, which according to him, was "at odds" within extreme metal at the time. He was quoted saying: "Though the country's metal scene was understandably small and close-knit at the time, from the very start Sarcófago were committed to doing things differently. [...] Even though this radical approach ultimately didn't spell a recipe for widespread success, it certainly made Sarcófago impossible to ignore."
Fenriz, drummer of Darkthrone, included a Sarcófago track ("Satanic Lust") in his The Best of Old-School Black Metal compilation, released by Peaceville Records.Sarcófago, 2004, track 2. Of Sarcófago's I.N.R.I., he said it was an "album" that "you buy or die". Euronymous, the deceased guitarist of Mayhem and erstwhile leader of the so-called "Inner Circle", traded correspondence with Lamounier in the early days of Norway's scene. In the Lords of Chaos book, Metalion (Slayer fanzine, ex-Head Not Found) stated that Euronymous was "obsessed with them because wore lots of spikes and corpsepaint. He said he wanted every band to be like this […]."Moynihan & Søderlind, 2003, p. 36. Satyricon covered Sarcófago's "I.N.R.I." on their Intermezzo II EP, also featured on the Tribute to Sarcófago album, released by Cogumelo Records in 2001.Satyricon, "I.N.R.I." Tribute to Sarcófago, Cogumelo Records, 2001. Key Gorgoroth members Infernus and King were also influenced by Sarcófago.
Notable black metal groups from neighbouring Finland were also affected by Sarcófago's early output. Beherit founder Nuclear Holocausto said Sarcófago was one of "the greatest influences" for the band; Mika Luttinen from Impaled Nazarene said that "nothing tops Slayer's Reign in Blood or Sarcofago's I.N.R.I., you know". Their version of "The Black Vomit" was included in Tribute to Sarcófago.Impaled Nazarene, "The Black Vomit". Tribute to Sarcófago, Cogumelo Records, 2001.