Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The granddaddy of them all -, August 23, 2000
I first bought this tape in 1988, when the most extreme thing myself or any of my friends were listening to was Dark Angel, Slayer or Ludichrist. Napalm Death opened a Pandora's box to to a whole new realm of speed with "Enslavement", a step up from the noise-heavy but still classic "Scum". They take a more metal direction with Bill Steer just starting to find his sound before moving on to Carcass after this album. Mick Harris drums like a controlled spaz in this one, accelerating the blender to dizzying speeds and Lee Dorrain, spewing out a caustic growl far removed from his doom/stoner efforts in Cathedral, lets you feel his pain with every strained yell and undecipherable lyric. Truly a work of art and a great intro to the fine art of grindcore, along with "Scum" and "Reek of Putrefaction" by Carcass. Experience the classic ND lineup at it's most hectic. . . .
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
We've got you where we want you...ROAR!, July 29, 2003
I notice a great deal of people complain about the lack of melody, harmony ect. Bear in mind, however that Grindcore, the genre of which Napalm Death are one of the major innovators is an entirely different animal than most. If you think everything should be in perfect unison and synchronicity, listen to Rush or something. Not knocking Geddy and the boys, just stating that this is different music with different goals than most (at the time it was, anyway). For the most part, Grindcore has a few bands that did something interesting with it, and a bunch of second rate clone bands. Napalm Death, along with Carcass, Terrorizer, Brutal Truth and Extreme Noise Terror are some of the more notable exceptions. The reason most people dislike these bands is that Grind is deliberately unsynchronized and off time. Also amazingly abrasive, sometimes to a greater degree than Black Metal and without the atmosphere. The lyrics on this cd are some of the most intelligent Metal lyrics I've ever read. Forget socially conscious, this is flat out Protest rock. The lyrics are essential to read as otherwise the vocals of Lee Dorian are completely indecipherable, although not without visceral entertainment value. I love this album, it makes me violently thrash about to lightning fast riffs, and actually use my brain at the same time. One major recurring theme is an intensely anti-mysogynist attitude and quite a few other ideas which one would not expect on one of the most extreme Metal albums ever. Mick Harris's drumming never fails to drop my jaw with the utter ferocity he exhibits. Production is fairly gruesome, but if you're listening to stuff like Napalm Death the odds are you won't be the slightest bit bothered by it. Raw, intelligent and totally necessary.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Total whirlwind insanity!!!, March 19, 2001
I got this when it came out back in '88 and it totally changed my musical perspective. I'd already heard Scum and the Peel Sessions 12", but this album took legendary Brummie noise merchants Napalm Death to a whole new level of deranged, superfast grindcore mayhem!!! This is probably as extreme as Napalm got, and, if you approach with an open mind, much noisy fun can be had. The lyrics are also excellent, something which too often gets overlooked when talking about this band. If you're a curious metal/punk fan looking for your first dose of Napalm, Scum or the new album, Enemy Of The Music Business, are probably better places to start, but if you're a committed noise/grindcore fan, you must own this album - so stop messing about and add it to your cart! The ultimate grindcore record. CHUFFED!!!
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