Napalm Death - "Enemy Of The Music Business Plus Leaders Not Followers" CD

Fine return to form from grind legends...

Combining the band's 2000 album and attendant EP of classic covers, this 57-minute disc opens with the corrosive "Taste The Poison", which signaled a welcome return to form from the Birmingham-based grindcore legends. 

The tracks to follow prove equally worthy, being extreme clots of aggressive post-metal noise & grindcore. "Vermin" captures the unbridled spirit of Napalm's punk/metal roots, being an ultra-speed-fueled ride, complete with clearly-mixed instruments and Barney Greenway's primal, gutteral vocals. "Volume Of Neglect" features a seriously amazing blur of bass-heavy drums and guitar that rivals the band's earliest work. I could go on, and sure, each song is pretty similar, but that's the beauty of Napalm Death. Discount their shaky death metal period, and the countless lineup changes, and you have one of the most stalwart of their crossover breed. "Enemy of The Music Business" is a solid and exemplary work from the band, and offers crunchy clots of abundantly aggressive metal/punk/grindcore noise that just doesn't relent. 

"Leaders Not Followers" is an EP of covers, including works by Napalm influences like Raw Power, Repulsion, Death, and Dead Kennedys. It's refreshing to hear the band making pretty reverential and faithful covers of their heroes -- yet still maintaining that inimitable Napalm blend of blur and bluster. I wasn't familiar much with most of these underground classics, but the cover of the DK's "Nazi Punks Fuck Off" is just classic. 

Secret Records

Napalm Death site

Black Breath - "Razor To Oblivion" CDEP

From Seattle comes this new band's debut 4-song EP. It may be short (there's little more than 13 minutes here), but Black Breath don't need any more to prove they are the real thing. This is intense, raw and potent hardcore/metal mayhem with nods to classic British crust punk as well as American death/thrash. The title track features a galloping tempo alongside thick, downtuned guitar riffage and dense, scratchy-throated vocal assaults. "Beneath The Crust" shows more of an immediate, in-your-face mentality, with searing vocals and guitars that slash-and-burn like Slayer meets the Melvins. It's a sick and lovely sound, indeed, with equal doses of out-of-control punk/noise mayhem and tight metallic aggression. "Murder", the final track, lets up a bit on the speed, but remains a 2+ minute lethal injection of evil metal mania. Absolutely smoking stuff. Looking forwards to that full-lengther, boys! (Hot Mass/Southern Lord)

Black Breathspace

Hellbastard - "Eco-War" CDEP + "The Need To Kill" CD

A brief 21-minute selection of tracks not included on their recent full-lengther, "Eco-War" features some fairly heavy and dense punk/metal "crust" from these Earache Records refugees. "Woe, The People" is classic metal with some doomy, sludgy overtones. It's low, dirty, and almost sloppy sounding, though the riffage is righteous and spot-on. "Massacre" is a more punk-oriented cut, with a rollicking chorus and speedier tempo. The final track here, a faithful cover of Slayer's "Die By The Sword" is evidence of some of these boys' inspirations, before a nonsense track ("Kick The Geordie") closes it all out.

The full album, "The Need To Kill" is similarly full of traditional thrash assaults with some punk accents. Also notable are the interludes, which, in the case of "My Best Friend Misanthropy", break up the crash & burn tempos with whispery atmospheres and sound-poetry. "Justly Executed" is classic, old-school thrash-punk crossover, complete with lengthy solo. Think early Slayer and you'll be right there. Good, solid, mosh-ready tunes that won't offend or shock anyone in this day and age, but nonetheless remain steady and headstrong. Nice work, guys. (Selfmadegod Records)

Hellbastard site

Hellbastardspace