Napalm Death
Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in Meriden, West Midlands in 1981.[1] None of the band's original members have been in the group since 1986, but since Utopia Banished (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch Harris, drummer Danny Herrera and lead vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway has remained consistent through most of the band's career. From 1989 to 2004, Napalm Death were a five-piece band after they added Jesse Pintado and Mitch Harris as replacements for guitarist Bill Steer. Following Pintado's departure, the band reverted to a four-piece.
Napalm Death
Meriden, West Midlands, England
1981–present
- Shane Embury
- Barney Greenway
- Mitch Harris
- Danny Herrera
- Nicholas Bullen
- Miles Ratledge
- Simon Oppenheimer
- Stephen Beddows
- Graham Robertson
- Daryl Fedeski
- Finbar Quinn
- Marrian Williams
- Damian Errington
- Justin Broadrick
- Peter Shaw
- Mick Harris
- Jim Whitely
- Frank Healy
- Bill Steer
- Lee Dorrian
- Jesse Pintado
- Phil Vane
The band is credited as pioneers of the grindcore genre by incorporating elements of crust punk and death metal, using a noise-filled sound that uses distorted, down-tuned guitars, grinding overdrive bass, high-speed tempo, blast beats, vocals that consist of incomprehensible growls or high-pitched shrieks, extremely short songs, and sociopolitical lyrics. The band's debut album Scum, released in 1987 by Earache Records, proved substantially influential throughout the global metal community.[2] According to the Guinness World Records, their song "You Suffer" is the shortest song ever recorded, at 1.316 seconds long.
Napalm Death have released sixteen studio albums, and are listed by Nielsen SoundScan as the seventh-best-selling death metal band in the United States.[3] According to former vocalist Lee Dorrian, Scum and From Enslavement to Obliteration (1988) have sold a combined total of 400,000 copies worldwide.[4]
History[edit]
Early history (1981–1986)[edit]
Napalm Death were formed in the village of Meriden near Coventry, in the United Kingdom, in May 1981 by Nic Bullen and Miles Ratledge while the duo were still in their early teenage years. The duo had been playing in amateur bands since 1980 as an extension of their fanzine writing, and went through a number of names (including "Civil Defence", "The Mess", "Evasion", "Undead Hatred" and "Sonic Noise") before choosing Napalm Death in mid 1981. The band were initially inspired by the early wave of punk bands, particularly the anarcho-punk movement (a subgenre of punk music focused on anarchist politics), and associated groups such as Crass.
The first stable line-up of the group consisted of Nicholas Bullen on bass and lead vocals, Simon Oppenheimer on guitars, and Miles Ratledge on drums, and lasted from December 1981 to January 1982. Graham Robertson joined on bass in January 1982. Simon Oppenheimer left the group in August 1982 and was replaced by Darryl Fedeski who left the group in October 1982: at this point, Graham Robertson began to play guitar and Finbarr Quinn (ex-Curfew) joined on bass and backing vocals.
The group played concerts throughout 1982 (playing their first concert on 25 July 1982 at Atherstone Miners Club) and 1983 (sharing billing with anarcho-punk groups such as Amebix, The Apostles and Antisect), and made four demo recordings in 1982 and 1983, one of which contributed their first released recording to the Bullshit Detector Volume 3 compilation released by Crass Records in 1984.
Political views[edit]
The band espouse anarchism,[32] humanism,[33] socialism[34] and animal rights.[35]
Napalm Death congratulated the president of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, a fan of the band, on their Facebook fan page;[36] however, after the Bali Nine and the Lindsay Sandiford case, he came under fire from the band, as well as many others within the metal scene, after their appeals for clemency were ignored.[37]
Society and culture[edit]
Skins[edit]
In the E4 teen comedy-drama Skins, the seasons 5-6 character Rich Hardbeck (Alex Arnold) is a metalhead whose self-proclaimed favourite band is Napalm Death. In the show's fifth season finale, a special appearance from Napalm Death's Mark "Barney" Greenway featured a scene in which he and Rich have a heart-to-heart. Regarding the band's appearance, Barney stated,
