Napalm Death - Smear Campaign
- Released: September - 2006
- Label: Century Media
- Rating:
Napalm Death has been an active band since 1981. Originally formed as a Crass-style punk band, they eventually took the British hardcore sound (ala Discharge and others) and created one of the fastest, most extreme sounds ever. What they created was called grindcore, and 25 years later the band is still on the cutting edge of extreme music.
There have been a lot of line up changes in the quarter of a century that Napalm Death has existed. There wasn’t an original member in the band by the time their first LP, Scum, came out in 1987. The current lineup has been fairly solid since the early 90’s, and the only recent change was the departure of Jessie Pintado a few years ago (RIP). After the lineup change, they opted to remain a four piece.
Smear Campaign marks the second studio album the band has done as a four piece and the second album the band has put out for Century Media. It is the best grindcore album they have done since Utopia Banished. Napalm Death did invent grindcore, but a lot of the albums that they put out in the mid 90’s were basically death metal. Since Enemy of the Music Business was released, the albums have been more and more grind-infused. Smear Campaign is the epitome of grindcore – tons of blast beats, scathing vocals, and a pace and feel that draws more from punk and british hardcore than it does from metal.
The sound on Smear Campaign spans the entire career of Napalm Death. There are tracks that would be at home on Utopia Banished or From Enslavement to Obliteration, yet they do not sound dated or really even retro. The sound is timeless. While they are faster and their songwriting abilities have increased tenfold since the old days, they have never lost that dirty crust element that has been a hallmark of not only Napalm Death, but of the grindcore scene in general.
For years Napalm Death opened each new album with an intro, and Smear Campaign follows that tradition. The previous ones were generally a nice way to get things going and build up the listener to the level of intensity that he or she needed to be at before all hell broke loose and the first song started. “Weltschmerz” is no different, with a minute and twenty seven seconds of an ominous guitar line and assorted other sounds that come to a head with Anneke Van Giersbergen adding an eerie female vocal sound to the background. The band immediately goes for the throat as “Sink Fast, Lets Go” explodes into machine gun blast beats and furious guitars. The vocals are as extreme as ever, with liberal use of high screams mixed in with the trademark Greenway guttoral assault. The album continues on at a breakneck pace with the occasional fast paced breakdown and hooks that Napalm death is known for thrown in. “When All is Said and Done” slows down just a hair and is one of the catchier songs on the album, with less in the way of blastbeats and mind-numbing speed but brutal nonetheless. From there the onslaught continues at a furious pace.
There are only a few more places where the band changes things up. One is on “In Deference” where Anneke Van Giersbergen makes another appearance with a vocal delivery that while melodic and almost haunting, mixes very well with Barney’s growls and screams. The other is on the album-closer “Smear Campaign” which incorporates a slow-paced, almost doomy sound with some clean vocals. The remaining tracks, however, rarely slow down.
5 stars is a strong score, but one that Smear Campaign deserves. The album is a culmination of a quarter of a century worth of development and innovation. Fans of any era of Napalm Death will be able to identify with this album and the political message is as strong and in your face as ever. How can a band not get 5 stars for an album that is the very definition of grindcore? It captures the intensity of their furious live shows while combining the best elements of their discography. Someone go dust off the crown, because the fathers of grindcore are ready to take their place on the throne for all time. Long live the kings of grind!
Jason “CJSIXER” Wenderoth | 09/06/2006