Grindcore is an extreme fusion genre of heavy metal and hardcore punk that originated in the mid-1980s, drawing inspiration from abrasive-sounding musical styles, such as thrashcore, crust punk, hardcore punk, extreme metal, and industrial. Grindcore is considered a more noise-filled style of hardcore punk while using hardcore's trademark characteristics such as heavily distorted, down-tuned guitars, grinding overdriven bass, high-speed tempo, blast beats, and vocals which consist of growls, shouts and high-pitched shrieks. Early groups like Napalm Death are credited with laying the groundwork for the style. It is most prevalent today in North America and Europe, with popular contributors such as Brutal Truth and Nasum. Lyrical themes range from a primary focus on social and political concerns, to gory subject matter and black humor.
Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in Meriden, West Midlands in 1981. 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 as the replacement of one-time guitarist Bill Steer. Following Pintado's departure, the band reverted to a four-piece.
Scum is the debut studio album by English grindcore band Napalm Death, released on 1 July 1987 by Earache Records. The two sides of the record were recorded by two different lineups in sessions separated by about a year; the only musician in both incarnations was drummer Mick Harris. The two sides are very different, and the two taken together serve to bridge stylistic elements of heavy metal and punk rock. While the songs on the A-side are influenced heavily by hardcore punk and anarcho-punk, the vocals and lower-tuned electric guitars on the B-side anticipate subsequent developments in extreme metal. Loudwire put it in the list of the best 10 metal albums of 1987.
Mortification is an Australian Christian death metal band which was formed in 1987 as a heavy metal group, Lightforce, by mainstay Steve Rowe on bass guitar and vocals. By 1990, in the Melbourne suburb of Moorabbin, they were renamed as Mortification with the line-up of Rowe, Michael Carlisle on guitar and Jayson Sherlock on drums. Mortification has released fourteen studio albums, three compilation albums, three extended plays, six live discs, one demo album, one box set, and several videos on major record labels such as Nuclear Blast. As one of the earliest internationally successful Christian death metal bands from Australia, they served as an inspiration for later similar groups.
From Enslavement to Obliteration is the second studio album by English grindcore band Napalm Death, released in 1988. It is the final studio album with vocalist Lee Dorrian and guitarist Bill Steer, and the first to feature bassist Shane Embury, the band's longest-tenured member. A remastered version was released on 2 April 2012. Loudwire put it on the list of the 10 best metal albums of 1988.
Harmony Corruption is the third studio album by British grindcore band Napalm Death, released in 1990 on Earache Records.
Mentally Murdered is an EP by the English grindcore band Napalm Death, released in 1989. It was later included on the Harmony Corruption CD and the Death by Manipulation compilation album. On this EP the band's migration to death metal territory is more readily evident than on its previous album. It is the final studio recording with Bill Steer and Lee Dorrian, who simultaneously departed the band due to musical and personality differences.
Diatribes is the sixth studio album by English grindcore band Napalm Death, originally released in 1996 on Earache Records. It was released as double 10" vinyl, regular CD, special digipak CD with space for the Greed Killing EP and MC. In 2010, Earache issued a re-release of Diatribes in a box set that also included the Greed Killing EP and the live album Bootlegged in Japan.
The Code Is Red...Long Live the Code is Napalm Death's eleventh studio album and was recorded at Foel Studio, Llanfair Caerinion with producer Russ Russell. It was released on 25 April 2005. A music video for "Silence Is Deafening", directed by Roger Johansson, was released later that year.
Utopia Banished is the fourth studio album by the British grindcore band Napalm Death. The album was released in 1992 by Earache Records. It is the first album featuring Danny Herrera on drums following the departure of Mick Harris. Metal Hammer put it on the list of the 20 best metal album of 1992.
Order of the Leech is the tenth studio album by the British grindcore band Napalm Death, released in 2002 through Spitfire. Although credited in the line-up, Jesse Pintado never performed. The second guitar is actually Mitch Harris overdubbing, hence marking this album's lineup as today's lineup. "The Great Capitulator" is exactly 2:49. At the end of the song, a long silence follows from 2:50 to 9:56. At 9:57 a soundbite comes fading in of a fan speaking of his attitude to metal music, mentioning bands like Krabathor or Immortal. His speech is then translated in Czech. It is the last album in a trilogy to feature these kinds of soundbites, with the others being Leaders Not Followers EP and Enemy of the Music Business.
Leaders Not Followers: Part 2 is a cover album by British grindcore band Napalm Death, released in 2004 by Century Media. It contains covers of various hardcore punk and heavy metal songs. Although Jesse Pintado is credited for playing guitars, guitarist Mitch Harris revealed in an interview with The Metal Forge in 2005 that Pintado did not contribute to Leaders Not Followers: Part 2.
Noise for Music's Sake is a double-disc compilation by British band Napalm Death. It was released on 8 July 2003 on Earache Records. This album is a retrospective of the band's entire career. The first disc is a best-of compilation; the second disc contains rarities. The booklet includes 20 pages with interviews of band members Shane Embury and Mark "Barney" Greenway. It also includes a guide to all the songs from the second disc, and a complete "Family Tree" detailing every person who was ever in the band.
Fear, Emptiness, Despair is the fifth studio album by British grindcore band Napalm Death, released on 31 May 1994. Napalm Death's inclusion on the Mortal Kombat soundtrack brought significant exposure to the band and this album, alongside the fact that the band's label Earache had formed a partnership with Columbia Records which allowed the album to disseminate to a wider audience. RAW magazine listed Fear, Emptiness, Despair as one of the essential album of the 1990s.
Death by Manipulation is a compilation album of EPs by British band Napalm Death. It was released on 19 August 1991.
Bootlegged in Japan is a live album from British extreme metal band Napalm Death, released in June 1998 through Earache.
Punishment in Capitals is a live CD and DVD-release by the band Napalm Death. It was recorded at the London ULU on 12 April 2002 at a benefit gig for animal rights organization Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty. This is the last release with Jesse Pintado.
Helvete is an album by Swedish grindcore band Nasum, released in 2003. It received universal acclaim from critics.
Mitchell Harris is an American guitarist. He started his career in the Las Vegas, Nevada grindcore band Righteous Pigs. He did a side project with Mick Harris – then the drummer of grindcore band Napalm Death – called Defecation. Shortly thereafter, he left Righteous Pigs and permanently joined Napalm Death in 1989, firstly appearing on the Harmony Corruption album. He is still with them, playing guitar and back-up vocals.
All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest is a live album and concert film by the English rock band Cardiacs. It is their third live album, and was originally recorded in the afternoon in the Salisbury Arts Centre on 30 June 1990 with Napalm Death. It is the only Cardiacs album to feature guitarist Christian Hayes throughout. The album was released on VHS in 1992 and as a live album on 1 June 1995.
