NAPALM DEATH - "ENEMY OF THE MUSIC BUSINESS" (DREAMCATCHER)
NAPALM DEATH - "ENEMY OF THE MUSIC BUSINESS" (DREAMCATCHER)
There must have been a lot of frustration in the recent lives of mssrs Embury, Pintado, Harris, Greenway and Herrera. It all comes out in great, heaving waves of sonic bile on their latest disc, perhaps appropriately entitled "Enemy of the Music Business". It is probably the most intense album since their debut, which literally overflows with what seems a lot like anger. The hardcore, genuine kind. The album is riddled with blastbeats and seems a lot faster than I can recall Napalm Death having been in recent years.
However, that about sums up all positive things that there are to say about "Enemy of the Music Business". The result of all this anger and agression is that the songs sound very much alike, with the possible exception of the more memorable "Necessary Evil". There are no breaks between the tracks, and as such the album simply never relents. Then, after minutes of pause after the last song, there's some silly incantation/laughing bit of the kind we've had before and don't want more of.
It might be angry, it might be fast, and some may say it's their best album in years. Their songwriting clearly lacks something here, though.
RK
Written January 2001