Napalm Death- Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism album review.

Napalm Death- Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism album review.

FFO: Creative, crushing hardcore punk with the brutality of extreme metal.

Napalm Death is an extreme music force that has consistently created and influenced so many bands and genres. Always political and with their fingers very clearly on the pulse sonically and topical. Album number 16 is a cracker and continues the vitriol that Apex Predator-Easy meat dropped from it's every pore. Except again and which is a very ND trait with some new variation and twists.

The drums are punishing, the bass lines dominate every track, the riffs peel your fucking skin back and vocally Barney hyperextends himself in new depths. The well-constructed wordplay in both song titles and lyrics are as magnificent as always. Rather than go thru every track and believe me every track fits well into the album as a coherent whole and it flows exceptionally well; this writer will cast my looking glass over the tracks I personally raise the volume from 8 to 11 every time. But this is definitely an album worth listening to from the opener to the end track.

Fuck the Factoid is a ripping opening, a flat-out rager with perfect intent-it simply doesn't piss about and reminds you of the brutality and sonic distress we expect from this classic band. Awesome and so memorable. The Curse of Being in Thrall is one pacey yet groovy rollercoaster of a track-simply nutso and with lovely throwbacks to both Japanese hardcore and Killing Joke/Swans equally. Now Joie de Ne Pas Vivre was epic in its absolute experimentation, a principle that ND holds very dear, this track exudes a scintillating mix of noise rock and black metal; this is one that deserves deep listening on headphones; this just gives and gives. Now I love this album massively, but every time my fave section of this release is tracks 6-9. These are some of my most loved Napalm Death tracks; they show me flickers of every achievement from every era of this group. It also shows how varied the band's influences are and how they integrate them in a unique way. Invigorating Clutch kicks this off with a fantastic and gloomy buildup in the introduction and the doomy greatness never lets up with strong Godflesh/Swans vibes and vocal perfection. Zero Gravitas Chamber then sneaks in and it's my favourite track of this release, the vocal and riff gymnastics are calculated and alarmingly satisfying. The most appealing part of the song is the various tempo changes and scathing vocal psychosis. Also as a huge anarcho-punk fan and with strong left/humanitarian political leanings; I worshipped the Food not Bombs lyrics. Fluxing of the Muscle reflects back to the more groovy Napalm Death era but adds a very crust like element combined with post-punk influence. The variety is just astounding tbh. Amoral bounces around to the chunky classic Killing Joke style and is addictively catchy, penetrating and emotive. 
Album closer A Belly Full of Salt and Spleen reminds me of Apex Predator-Easy Meat (the track, not the album) in that music should not just be purely fast or brutal, it needs to drip intricate atmosphere and be memorable. And you always need to start and end an album in soul-crushing style in this writers view. Hats off ND, you have not only released an album that is equally hostile, rasping and cynical but musically it shows a palette that is both deeply passionate and expressive. 

A perfect album that not only fits perfectly in their exceptional catalogue but is an absolute standout release for this band.

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