Raphael Gazal

Raphael Gazal — Brazilian guitarist — is part of Pastore, the band formed in 2007 around vocalist Mário Pastore. Pastore emerged after Delpht ended and represents the continuity of a path: musicians from São Paulo's power metal scene who, rather than stopping when the previous band folded, put together a new project. The Price for the Human Sins (2010) and The End of Our Flames (2012) are the group's two records. They are independently produced works, made in a scene that by then had affordable studios and digital distribution — a concrete change from the 1990s, when recording meant pressing CDs yourself and selling them by hand. The guitar follows the melodic power metal vocabulary: fast riffs, two-voice harmonies and solos built as melody. It is a style demanding constant technical precision, and Brazil has produced, across three decades, a remarkable number of guitarists able to execute it.