:: Unwinding Napalm Death and Rob Zombie ::

Savaiz Bukhari

Napalm Death - Smear Campaign

“Unquestionably the most influential band in extreme music’s ferocious history.”

Albert Mudrian, author of Choosing Death: The Improbable History Of Death Metal & Grindcore

The above remark was written in recognition of the pioneering contribution made by grind-core originators ‘Napalm Death’ (f. 1982, in Meriden Village near Birmingham, UK) who’s latest studio offering (their 13th), is called Smear Campaign. The 18-track monstrosity is yet another attempt by the trendsetting veterans of the British Death Metal Scene to push further the limits of extreme music as well as their own envelope for progression of anti-religious, anti-moral behaviours and its potential positive impacts??

The album kicks off with the most vicious intro titled Weltschmerz which features morbidly atmospheric guest vocals by female vocalist Anneke Van Giersbergen of ‘The Gathering’, who also does the same (in more elaborate fashion) for the song In Deference, later on in the album. After the intro the band immediately launches into Sink Fast, Let Go which is sung by Mitch Harris (the band’s lead guitarist since 1990) while the chorus comprising the name of the song is ‘growled’ by Mark ‘Barney’ Greenway (the band’s vocalist since 1989). Next up is an even more vicious track: Fatalist. It is a vociferously anti-war and midway contains possibly one of the finest guitar hooks in the entire album. Puritan Punishment Beating is a well-composed number and is severely ‘religion-rejecting’ in its lyrics. The mid-song guitar ‘progression’ is an interesting component, while the rhythmic-guitar riffs accompanied by explosive drumming by Danny Herrara (the band’s drummer since 1991) add weight to the song’s ending. When All is Said and Done is the only song in the album the band deemed fit to make a video for. The video shows alternate clippings of the band playing in a rundown room and propaganda clips of war, death, tragedy, despair and religious/political indoctrination being ‘etched’ into the memory of an ‘unwilling’ youth who after receiving this ‘unnatural’ message shows his ‘appreciation’ by breaking the ‘tools of indoctrination’ represented by a TV monitor (Media) & gadgets rack (Technology). The ensuing song Freedom is the Wage of Sin is the inscription of the sickle-like implement held by the subliminally masonry ‘warrior’ on the album cover. The concept of the song is that breaking religious norms provides freedom which is a result of the sins thus committed. Short-Lived is very ‘industrial’ in its arrangement with Barney sounding huskier than ever. The trademark angular guitar breaks complete the ‘ND-ification’ of the track. Identity Crisis is yet another pounding number bemoaning the ‘conventional’ mislabeling of the ‘identities’ of the various ‘characters’ on the present international scene.

Shattered Existence is alluding to the ‘broken’ nature of human spirits under the influence of tyrannical forces of religious (extremism) and political autocratic rule. The next two songs Eyes Right Out and Warped Beyond Logic also convey a message of independence from all forms of ‘propaganda’ allowing individual freedom ‘for all’. The second of the two also touches on the topic of war thrust upon the ‘unwilling’ by ‘logic’ that is warped beyond logic. The interesting guitar-drum altercations characterize the song Rabid Wolves (For Christ). The following song Deaf & Dumbstruck possibly points to the intelligently designed plans for global war-mongering cleverly disguised behind the apparently ‘deaf & dumbstruck’ ideas and leading figure-heads.

Persona Non Grata is the penultimate track of the ‘originally released’ studio album while the title track round of the album designed as a Smear Campaign against the forces of Religious Right and Politically motivated wars in the name of religion. The ‘second’ edition of the album however contains to ‘bonus’ tracks. Call That an Option? Is about the famous President George W. Bush line ‘YOU ARE EITHER WITH US OR AGAINST US’ which if you read the way it is written seems to suggest that one can either be supportive of US policy or be opposed to it. The final ‘bonus’ track titled Atheist Runt is a grinding, brooding number where the vocalist abandons his grunts & growls and sings the majority of the song in the more traditional clean vocals. He sings in a tone which seems a kin to religious chanting and comes off awesomely.

Rob Zombie -Sinister Urge

Why don’t you ask me what it feels like to be a freak?

– Rob asks before launching into the nihilistic-horror-praise-poem Demon Speeding

The shock-industrial-goth artist Rob Zombie presents yet another horror-theme (his favorite theme) album this time titled Sinister Urge. The album is divided into 11 tracks that revolve around the same central idea of death-rock-sin-macabre. The music as always is decidedly of the industrial-techno-metal genre.

The first track Sinner Inc. is merely an intro with minimalist lyrics and music. It is merely an introduction to the world of self-confessed sinners who are doomed to a fate worse-than-death. The vocals are delivered in a movie-dialogue like. This is followed by the violin-mimicking synthesizer driven Demon Speeding. The next song Dead Girl Superstar is a tribute to the female-goth culture-enthusiast. Interspersed with tongue-in-cheek samples of actual movie-dialogue this is one of those hidden gems we pass over in order to ‘skip’ to the major hits. The fourth number Never Gonna Stop is probably known to most WWE (Professional Wrestling to the uninitiated) fans as the ‘former’ theme music for the wrestling alias of Adam Coupland (Edge). Iron Head features guest vocals by the inimitable Ozzie Osbourne and is unmistaken ably a ‘pure’ Devil-worshiping song. This song is for ‘head-bangers’ as opposed to ‘moshers’ which are the majority audience at all Zombie concerts.

The ‘funky’ side of Rob shines through in the relatively ‘easy-listening’ Go To California. The trumpet effects, ‘swinging’ vocals and the hippie atmosphere make this song stand out among all the other ‘hardcore’ numbers. The ‘hard drug/sex’ admiring Feel So Numb thanks the numbing effects of narcotics that make one feel good and removed from all the troubles of ‘reality’ if only for a while. The mid-album instrumental titled Transylvania Transmission Pt. 1 also features ‘lack of tempo’ and sampled vocal bytes from movie dialogue ‘selected to choice’. The bass-driven sound Bring Her Down To Crippletown is focused on the topic of people shielded from outside world by their social status &/or privileged upbringing and its consequences on the rest of their lives. The very techno clamor of Scum of the Earth suits perfectly well with its animated video featuring warring fictional characters through times immemorial. The final number Houses of 1000 Corpses is also the title track for Rob Zombie’s own written/directed/produced motion picture of the same name. Mock news-casts announce the scene of the most heinous murder/rape/necrophilia crimes caused by the most demented of minds. The song itself is sprinkled with countless screams of unknown female victims and giggles of their witch-like tormentors. In a twisted way this song comments on the state of murderous crime committed in our society today.