Napalm Death
Greed Killing

THE REVIEW

They are the universally recognized godfathers of Grindcore; born in the early eighties as a Hardcore-Punk band, taking the Crass and especially the Discharge as references, they are still, after more than three decades, the undisputed leaders when it comes to extremism and sonic ferocity.

This is an EP released at the end of 1995 that served as a forerunner to the subsequent full-length album "Diatribes" published in the early months of 1996; a handful of tracks, once again produced by Colin Richardson, that together create a leaden wall, at times sinister, drawing near to industrial moods, with a sound that has become less chaotic, much more calculated but no less powerful and belligerent.

The title track opens the work; a track that lasts just over three minutes which could almost be described as commercial (a term to be taken with the right caution as we are still talking about Napalm Death). The execution speed is much more restrained compared to their first works, with Barney's psychotic screams setting the standard as always; Jesse's (R.I.P.) and Mitch's saturated guitars are a feature of all the tracks, supported by Danny's incredible drumming, for me one of the best drummers in all of extreme Metal.

In fact, in the first part of the third track, "Self Betrayal," Barney's voice becomes clean and understandable as never before in the group's history; a truce that lasts a handful of minutes and seeks to be an attempt by the guys to broaden their musical scope. "Antibody" comes to set things straight: it returns to Grind-Death paths and the deadly execution speed reminds us once again that Napalm are the unsurpassable masters and when they push the accelerator, they fear no rivals. We quickly reach the last track "Plague Rages," recorded live at one of their concerts: another atypical track, taken from that "Fear, Emptiness, Despair" which saw them for the first time slow down and incorporate Industrial Metal into their sound; a track that annihilates and shatters you with an apocalyptic finale where all the instruments are tormented, creating a monstrous and insurmountable sound wall.

Ad Maiora.