NAPALM DEATH “Order Of The Leech” + “Leaders Not Followers” /CD/

The first re-release of the fourth full-length studio album by legendary British Death Metal/Grindcore band.
Along the way Napalm Death started to receive flak from their original fan base which consisted of mainly Crust Punks and Hardcore Punks that were fans of their original Grindcore sound. Unflinching from the flak, Napalm Death said to hell with those cries and went back in the following year and released a compilation called "Death By Manipulation" which showed an even more Floridian Death Metal influence than before, which sadly was whirlwind drummer Mick Harris's last output with the band due to musical differences and stress from the road. Napalm Death kept pushing forward and with their fourth album "Utopia Banished". This album proved to be their biggest success, peaking at number 58 on the UK chart.
The album features samples of dialogue from the movies “They Live” and “Full Metal Jacket”. It is the first album featuring Danny Herrera on drums following the departure of Mick Harris.
“Utopia Banished” has been remastered specially for this release and includes four bonus tracks recorded during the same period! Reissue pressed on black vinyl limited to 800 copies, with printed inner sleeve.
Earache Records, 1992/2012 (MOSH053LP1). Made in UK. Pressed in France.


Tracklist:

Side A
1. Discordance 01:26
2. I Abstain 03:30
3. Dementia Access 02:28
4. Christening Of The Blind 03:21
5. The World Keeps Turning 02:55
6. Idiosyncratic 02:36
7. Aryanisms 03:08
8. Cause And Effect (Pt. II) 02:08

Side B
9. Judicial Slime 02:37
10. Distorting The Medium 01:57
11. Got Time To Kill 02:28
12. Upward And Uninterested 02:07
13. Exile 02:00
14. Awake (To A Life Of Misery) 02:05
15. Contemptuous 04:22
Bonus Tracks:
16. One And The Same 01:51
17. Sick And Tired 01:27
18. Malignant Trait 02:20
19. Killing With Kindness 02:02

Total playing time: 46:48 min.

The third full-length album by the legendary British Death Metal band.
During the two-year interim separating "Harmony Corruption" from Napalm Death's previous album, the band totally revamped its line-up and its sound as well, moving toward the more expansive horizons of standard Death Metal. This move inspired quite a bit of debate among fans. It is the first Napalm Death album to feature Mark "Barney" Greenway as the vocalist and Mitch Harris and Jesse Pintado as guitarists, and the last with Mick Harris on drums.
Napalm Death had been, and will always be, the definitive Grindcore band, as exemplified by "Scum" (1987) and "From Enslavement To Obliteration" (1988), the two albums that practically alone defined an entire new style of Extreme Metal. However, the Napalm Death of those two albums is not the Napalm Death of "Harmony Corruption", not in membership nor sound. The band's vocalist, Lee Dorian, split (to join Cathedral), as did guitarist Bill Steer (Carcass), leaving only the band's rhythm section: bassist Shane Embury and drummer Mick Harris. Barney Greenway (formerly of Benediction) takes over for Dorian, while both Jesse Pintado (Terrorizer) and Mitch Harris (Righteous Pigs) take over for Steer. The addition of Pintado and Harris particularly opened up a new realm of possibilities for Napalm Death, and the band indeed stretches out musically. John Tardy, vocalist of Obituary, and Glen Benton, vocalist of Deicide, provide backing vocals on the track "Unfit Earth" in the later sections.
Whereas the sound of "Scum" and "Enslavement" had been characterized by one- or two-minute Grindcore blasts, the sound of "Harmony Corruption" is more expansive. The songs range from two minutes to over five, and Pintado and Harris often interweave their guitar playing into a dense, dizzying wall of sound that never quite relents until the album reaches its final conclusion. The guitar playing is varied and intricate here; you can hear the distinction between Pintado and Harris as they bob and weave around one another. This is much different from Steer's playing, which had been essentially a frenzied, distorted blur. Furthermore, the band performs full-fledged songs here, not start-stop eruptions of noise. A song like "Suffer the Children" would have been incredibly out of place on "Enslavement".
In fact, most of the songs here would have been out of place there - these are straightforward Death Metal songs, not Grindcore blasts. Scott Burns makes this all the more apparent with his crystal-clear production. The resounding question, though, is whether or not all this is good or bad. Napalm Death play like a tight, muscular Death Metal band on "Harmony Corruption" (best highlighted by the aforementioned "Suffer the Children"), which puts them within the norm for the first time and puts them much at odds with their former selves. Whether or not you favor a Death Metal style to a Grindcore one is a question worth asking, but the underlying fact of the matter is that Napalm Death are a new band here, one that plays powerful, albeit relatively straightforward, Death Metal. But only for this album. Their next album, "Utopia Banished" (1992), would spiral them off into a more experimental hybrid of Grindcore and Death Metal, which is where they'd remain for years afterward - out there, somewhere in between. All considered, "Harmony Corruption" is a bit of a novel album for the band, though one that's not especially remarkable in the big picture.
This is one hell of an album. From the great vocals of Barney and the brilliant drums from Mick, "Harmony Corruption" is a great Death Metal record with a strong lyrical message and fierce instrumentation. If you are a fan of Death Metal or even Grindcore then this album highly recommended for you! One of the finest albums in Napalm Death's career!!
Earache Records Ltd./Soyuz Music, 1990/2002 (MOSH 19CD). Made in Russia.


Tracklist:
1. Vision Conquest 2:41 
2. If The Truth Be Known 4:11 
3. Inner Incineration 2:56 
4. Malicious Intent 3:26 
5. Unfit Earth 5:03 
6. Circle Of Hypocrisy 3:11 
7. The Chains That Bind Us 4:07 
8. Mind Snare 3:41 
9. Extremity Retained 2:01 
10. Suffer The Children 1:46 
Bonus Track:
11. Hiding Behind 5:13
Total playing time: 41:02 min.

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The twelfth full-length album by the legendary British Grindcore/Death Metal band.
When Napalm Death first hit the scene in the '80s, plenty of detractors must have thought that their brand of Extreme Metal was just a passing fad, and would soon go away. Now, 20 years later, guess who's having the last laugh (especially since the band has long been considered one of the first-ever Grindcore bands, and easily one of the most influential/copied Metal bands of the era)? And despite 2006's "Smear Campaign" being the band's umpteenth release, the band's assault-on-your-senses approach is still very much intact - particularly evident by singer Mark "Barney" Greenway, who still lives to scream his head off at every given opportunity (especially on such tracks as "Sink Fast, Let Go" and "Freedom Is the Wage of Sin"). Some artists enjoy reinventing themselves with each and every release. Not Napalm Death, which is reassuring in a way (you know exactly what lies therein with each successive brutal release) - and "Smear Campaign" certainly doesn't disappoint.
“Smear Campaign” shows Napalm Death from their probably most political side, attacking the re-born evangelic Christians in the US and all that falseness and fanaticism that comes with it. With “Smear Campaign” Napalm musically kept pretty much on track with “The Code is Red… Long Live the Code”, maybe a little bit more chunky Crust parts here, also production-wise this album is top notch and Grindcore hasn’t sounded better up until this stunning album. Just listen to “When All Is Said and Done” and you will immediately agree! The list of great albums Napalm Death created in their career so far is really impressive and hopefully will continue for many years to come. In my opinion they will always be leaders, not followers!!
Album features a guest appearance by Anneke van Giersbergen, ex-vocalist for the Dutch Rock band The Gathering.
Century Media Records Ltd., 2006 (77687-2). Made in Germany. First press.


Tracklist:
1. Weltschmerz 1:28
2. Sink Fast, Let Go 3:23
3. Fatalist 2:52
4. Puritanical Punishment Beating 3:26
5. When All Is Said And Done 3:02
6. Freedom Is The Wage Of Sin 3:09
7. In Deference 3:15
8. Short-Lived 3:06
9. Identity Crisis 2:44
10. Shattered Existence 3:12
11. Eyes Right Out 3:12
12. Warped Beyond Logic 2:01
13. Rabid Wolves (For Christ) 1:25
14. Deaf And Dumbstruck (Intelligent Design) 2:46
15. Persona Non Grata 2:47
16. Smear Campaign 3:21
Total playing time: 45:11 min.


Samples: http://www.last.fm

The twelfth full-length album by the legendary British Grindcore/Death Metal band.
When Napalm Death first hit the scene in the '80s, plenty of detractors must have thought that their brand of Extreme Metal was just a passing fad, and would soon go away. Now, 20 years later, guess who's having the last laugh (especially since the band has long been considered one of the first-ever Grindcore bands, and easily one of the most influential/copied Metal bands of the era)? And despite 2006's "Smear Campaign" being the band's umpteenth release, the band's assault-on-your-senses approach is still very much intact - particularly evident by singer Mark "Barney" Greenway, who still lives to scream his head off at every given opportunity (especially on such tracks as "Sink Fast, Let Go" and "Freedom Is the Wage of Sin"). Some artists enjoy reinventing themselves with each and every release. Not Napalm Death, which is reassuring in a way (you know exactly what lies therein with each successive brutal release) - and "Smear Campaign" certainly doesn't disappoint.
“Smear Campaign” shows Napalm Death from their probably most political side, attacking the re-born evangelic Christians in the US and all that falseness and fanaticism that comes with it. With “Smear Campaign” Napalm musically kept pretty much on track with “The Code is Red… Long Live the Code”, maybe a little bit more chunky Crust parts here, also production-wise this album is top notch and Grindcore hasn’t sounded better up until this stunning album. Just listen to “When All Is Said and Done” and you will immediately agree! The list of great albums Napalm Death created in their career so far is really impressive and hopefully will continue for many years to come. In my opinion they will always be leaders, not followers!!
Album features a guest appearance by Anneke van Giersbergen, ex-vocalist for the Dutch Rock band The Gathering.
Century Media Records Ltd./Punishment 18 Records, 2006/2020 (P18R 161). Made in Italy.


Tracklist:
1. Weltschmerz 1:28
2. Sink Fast, Let Go 3:23
3. Fatalist 2:52
4. Puritanical Punishment Beating 3:26
5. When All Is Said And Done 3:02
6. Freedom Is The Wage Of Sin 3:09
7. In Deference 3:15
8. Short-Lived 3:06
9. Identity Crisis 2:44
10. Shattered Existence 3:12
11. Eyes Right Out 3:12
12. Warped Beyond Logic 2:01
13. Rabid Wolves (For Christ) 1:25
14. Deaf And Dumbstruck (Intelligent Design) 2:46
15. Persona Non Grata 2:47
16. Smear Campaign 3:21
Total playing time: 45:11 min.

For the first time on Picture Disc, the sixteenth full-length studio album by legendary British Death Metal/Grindcore band.
It is the band's first full-length studio album since 2015's "Apex Predator – Easy Meat", making it their longest gap between albums.
According to vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway, "The phrase sticking in my mind when I started thinking about the lyrical direction for this album was “the other”. You could recognize at the time that there was a rapidly growing fear and paranoia being generated about everybody, from migrating people to people with fluid sexuality, and this was starting to manifest itself in very antagonistic reactions that you felt were almost verging on violence. Not everybody resorts to such reactions, of course, but even the basic lack of understanding can become toxic over time. I’m not saying that this is an entirely new phenomenon, but it has been stoked in recent history by some particularly attack-minded people in more political circles and, as ever, I felt that it would be the natural antidote to endorse basic humanity and solidarity with all. The artwork specifically uses a white dove as a centrepiece, which of course is a commonly recognized symbol of peace and cooperation. The dove has been mauled very violently by a sterilizing hand, and in death appears particularly broken and bloodied. However, through the violence you can see an equality symbol in blood on the chest of the dove, which perhaps demonstrates – visually at least – that equality cuts through in the end. A positive amidst many negatives then, much like the album title itself being a bit of an oxymoron – the celebration of humanity even in the mangling jaws of negativity".
Metal Hammer named it the second-best Metal album of 2020.
Limited to 1000 copies, Picture Disc includes bonus track “Air's Turned Foul In Here”.
Century Media Records, Ltd./Animate Records, 2020/2023 (AR 123). Made in Germany.


Tracklist:

Side A
1. Fuck The Factoid 2:27
2. Backlash Just Because 2:56
3. That Curse Of Being In Thrall 3:36
4. Contagion 4:05
5. Joie De Ne Pas Vivre 2:28
6. Invigorating Clutch 4:05
7. Zero Gravitas Chamber 4:03

Side B
8. Fluxing Of The Muscle 4:33
9. Amoral 3:05
10. Throes Of Joy In The Jaws Of Defeatism 2:55
11. Acting In Gouged Faith 3:37
12. Air's Turned Foul In Here 2:59
13. A Bellyful Of Salt And Spleen 4:36

Total playing time: 45:25 min.



Samples: https://centurymedia.bandcamp.com