Hailing from the West Midlands, UK, Napalm Death helped establish the sound of grindcore in the late 80s, combining bludgeoning thrash/death metal with hardcore punk to create their uniquely brutal sonic assault, helping to influence the next generation of heavy music.
The band began in 1981, initially inspired by the anarcho-punk movement of bands such as Crass. As the decade progressed, they began incorporating more hardcore, post punk and thrash metal elements, before eventually finding the extreme sound of their 1987 debut, “Scum.” The more extreme direction of the band prompted a number of members to leave, including Justin Broadrick, who would later go on to find fame with Godflesh and Jesu. The album was a critical success, building reputation for their incendiary live performances and radio sessions, gaining significant support from BBC Radio One DJ, John Peel.
The band solidified their lineup by 1989, featuring vocalist Mark “Barney” Greenway, bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch Harris and drummer Danny Herrera. In 1990, they released “Harmony Corruption,” which moved towards a more conventional sound. However, the end result did not satisfy the members, returning with an all-out grindcore assault with the EP, “Mass-Appeal Madness.” Their 1994 “Fear, Emptiness, Despair” earned Napalm Death their biggest success yet, surprisingly entering the the top ten of the US charts, after being featured on the soundtrack for the film “Mortal Kombat.”
Napalm Death continued to release critical acclaimed albums, including 1995’s “Diatribes” and 1999’s “Words from the Exit Wound.” They returned to their early sound in the new millennium, with “Enemy of the Music Business,” in 2001. With an astonishing thirty years at the forefront of extreme music, they continued to release high quality albums, celebrating their 15th album, “Utilitarian” in 2012.
Myles Smith
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