Getting into Napalm Death

[Shaky]

Can you tell him to hurry up with the new Carcass album, please? It's been 7 years already.

You can phrase it in a nice way, like.

[magval]

That's really cool, I like Jeff a lot, and you should mention that forever. I'll go one better than Shaky, can you tell him "Thrasher's Abbatoir" is the very best comeback song by a metal band ever, ta thanks.

[idunnosomename]

I should have stopped doing this by now, but on threads like what these are, I always like to mention that Jeff Walker is my cousin.

ask him when they're coming back to spotify because currently only Surgical Steel is there. they were there early last year then I suspect a new deal meant they disappeared

but i fucking love The Master Butcher's Apron and The Granulating Dark Satanic Mills. keep sticking the knife in the imperialist fash, Jeff

[Shaky]

^^
Nah, don't ask him about Spotify. It's in Earache's hands and the question seems to annoy the band when people ask on Facebook all the time.

[BeardFaceMan]

Yeah, I saw a pissed off post from Pitchshifter about that recently, Earache are keeping their albums off Spotify too and no one seems to know why theyre doing it.

[A Hat Like That]

I saw Napalm Death back in my first year at University. Last weekend of term, all the rock kids from my college went. The support band were from Wolverhampton or some such, but did songs about Columbine. "Awlwright, this ones called Trench. Coat. Mafia" in the blackest country drawl.

I saw the support band again about a year later. The guy introducing them wore a gas mask and was rendered completely incomprehensible.

Last anecdote. There's a bunch of ageing metallers who meet about once a month in my local. Just from snippets of conversation, I'm fairly sure at least one is an ex-member of Napalm Death. Which would make three famous people drinking in my local (him, Gary Shaw and Adrian Chiles).

[DoesNotFollow]

They're playing locally next month. Couldn't call myself a fan but I do enjoy a bit of the old bump 'n' GRIND now and again and wouldn't wanna miss the show as they're basically in my hometown. Also Eyehategod are supporting which double seals the deal.

[kngen]

^^
Nah, don't ask him about Spotify. It's in Earache's hands and the question seems to annoy the band when people ask on Facebook all the time.

Because Earache have royally ripped off almost every band they ever dealt with [nb]Citations: Conversations with members of Heresy, Carcass, Napalm Death, At the Gates, Iron Monkey, Municipal Waste to name just a few[/nb] - there are big, big names on that label that have never seen a penny from Dig despite multiple cheesy re-issues ('gatefold edition', 'splatter vinyl edition') of top sellers. The nadir was probably the cash-in reissues they released after Johnny Morrow, the singer of Iron Monkey, died unexpectedly. Prior to them releasing Our Problem, Earache bought IM a new backline for recording and touring, a cost I doubt even reached five figures  - and that was the only payment they ever saw, but Earache were happy to cash in on his death. Pretty sick, as detailed below.

What are your thoughts on Earache re-releasing the classic Iron Monkey albums? Rumour has it that you were not consulted about the plans to reissue the albums on vinyl...

I've never been informed of anything Earache has ever done and that includes these vinyl re-releases, that includes the bloody double-CD version of the albums, that includes t-shirts – fucking loads of stuff that they've coined-in on the back of this band. I don't think any of the band probably knew about it and if they did, I didn't hear about it anyway. I think they just go ahead and do it and deal with the consequences afterwards, but Earache are like that.

I just thought it was in bad taste to re-release the albums to coincide with things like Morrowfest and then say they're doing it in his memory because, and I think everyone needs to know this: when Johnny got really ill in Poland on that last tour, he had to go to the doctor there – that was the start of his kidney trouble and he was very, very ill. The doctor told him that he needed to fly home right away or he could die. So we called Earache and they refused to give us any money to fly him home because they didn't want to put any more money into the tour. And so we called the management and they basically said the same thing – "What do you want us to do about it?" Fuck you as well then. And in the end it was the band we were touring with – Propane, god bless their souls – who gave us money out of their band kitty to get him home and we had to play the last few weeks of the tour with no singer.

The point is, Earache didn't fly Johnny home when he could have died, then he did die and people want to honour his memory and Earache want to sell records off his name. To say it's in his memory when they didn't give a fuck about him when he was alive, I think that is in very bad taste.

That said, Earache will gladly sell you back the publishing rights to your stuff if sales are dipping - for a massive premium, of course. Probably why they keep things off Spotify. More leverage on their side if the music is completely unavailable apart from through them.

[idunnosomename]

i guess these smaller labels would argue they need to monetise what they've got or they wouldn't exist.

Remember in the 00s it was all about downloading depriving artists of revenue and now we have streaming and they still dont make any money it doesnt matter anymore

Capitalism eh

[alan nagsworth]

Wow fuck me that is absolutely tragic, obscene and saddening. Greaves has my respect if only for not swearing cunting murder on Earache after that debacle. That is some decorum. Also, Iron Monkey fucking rules.

[kngen]

i guess these smaller labels would argue they need to monetise what they've got or they wouldn't exist.

Dig is definitely a millionaire, and off the backs of people that still work crappy jobs when they're not on tour. If he was to make money off Spotify, it wouldn't be going anywhere near the artists.

[kngen]

Wow fuck me that is absolutely tragic, obscene and saddening. Greaves has my respect if only for not swearing cunting murder on Earache after that debacle. That is some decorum.

Oh believe me, there is a lot more bad feeling towards Digby behind closed doors. I can't go into a huge amount of detail but there were legal manoeuvres being discussed among the major players at one point (I don't know if there is a UK version of a class action, but it was along those lines), but they never really came to fruition. It's weird - Earache has a kind of exalted status so that no-one really wants to be seen as the ones to take them down. Even in Choosing Death, it talks about how pissed off Lee Dorian and Cathedral were with them basically paying them no money - which was caught on a Japanese tour video - but they still did another three albums with them. Bizarre.

Even a band that I'm really good friends with signed with them, even when myself and countless others told them not to, long after the Iron Monkey debacle. They were incredibly lucky as the person who signed them somehow forgot to get them to sign a publishing deal, too (and was promptly sacked soon after), so they were able to jump ship when things inevitably went sour and they had fulfilled their contractual obligation, but still owning their own music. They even got royalties! (An Earache royalty check - out in the wild! Incredible!)

Also, Iron Monkey fucking rules.

Damn straight they do!

[idunnosomename]

god i love snooping on companies house. makes me feel like a master sleuth hacker

https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/02781569/officers

Bolt Thrower are weirdly litigious on any bootleg merch that appears on eBay. I wonder if this is down to earache? probably not since they changed to metal blade? but still, a conundrum that has been troubling me recently. My Bolt Thrower patch is the pride of my concert jacket, as I managed to get it through a trading site for not very much money

[kngen]

god i love snooping on companies house. makes me feel like a master sleuth hacker

https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/02781569/officers

Bolt Thrower are weirdly litigious on any bootleg merch that appears on eBay. I wonder if this is down to earache? probably not since they changed to metal blade? but still, a conundrum that has been troubling me recently. My Bolt Thrower patch is the pride of my concert jacket, as I managed to get it through a trading site for not very much money

It's probably Metal Blade trying to shutdown Earache's bootleg merch - ha!

[Shaky]

Christ, I knew Earache were a bit rum but that's some awful shit right there. And only the tip of the iceberg, by the sounds of it.

[boki]

So, Napalm have dropped a new single and it's simultaneously a stylistic departure whilst also being as true to the band's earliest influences (Killing Joke in particular) that they've ever been. It's almost as if Justin Broadrick never left.

[Shaky]

Oof, that's quite surprising actually. I rather like it but I bet it's going to piss a lot of the hardcore grind fans off.

[idunnosomename]

tour setlist debuted last night along with new single

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/napalm-death/2020/kulttempel-oberhausen-germany-6b98d68a.html

[Dewt]

Oof, that's quite surprising actually. I rather like it but I bet it's going to piss a lot of the hardcore grind fans off.

Aren't they mostly 50 years old and should know better?

Good bit of fun, that track.

[kngen]

Aren't they mostly 50 years old and should know better?

The 50 year old ones probably do. Fans of grindcore (esp. tech stuff with triggered drums) in their 20s to 30s are the most annoyingly myopic 'on the spectrum' subculture I've ever encountered.

Play them stuff like Siege or Assuck , and they go: 'Eugh. Sounds like punk!' because the drums aren't quantized and the lyrics aren't about having sex with a corpse. Then they get girlfriends and start listening to stuff like Maroon 5. Every single one of them.[nb]Ok, that's not true. But a surprisngly high amount, IME[/nb]

[Dewt]

I guess I'd align myself with the 50 year old ones. Or just not dedicate myself to being a genre fan because I'm not an idiot.

[DoesNotFollow]

Seeing them tomorrow eve with E.H.G., Misery Index etc. A bunch of gig pals and of course other local metallers/punks are coming out of the woodwork so feels like a bit of party! Even tried to help a lad with his mum today who were hanging around the venue trying to secure the ticket they ordered but didn't get in the post. Turns out it's all fine, they'll have his name on the door.

[king_tubby]

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR

That was fucking ACE. I am in no way a proper Napalm Death fan, but for them to play not one but two songs I recognised from taping them off Peel in the early 90s brought a smile to my face. Also good to see band do proper left wing rabble rousing between songs and not be shit.

[alan nagsworth]

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR

That was fucking ACE. I am in no way a proper Napalm Death fan, but for them to play not one but two songs I recognised from taping them off Peel in the early 90s brought a smile to my face. Also good to see band do proper left wing rabble rousing between songs and not be shit.

Haha, Barney was belting out that chat between songs when I saw them a couple years ago and it was charming, yes. I'm from the West Midlands so I am no stranger to the Brummie accent but hearing it in that context, albeit a little daft-sounding, still coaxed a big proud smile out of me.

When I saw them play it was bizarrely at Bangface Weekender which is fucking brimming with glowsticks and inflatables. Standing there watching one of the country's most revered veteran extreme metal bands play a blinder of a set at a rave festival with around 50 inflatable skeletons being hurled around like limp cadavers was quite an unforgettable experience - heavy and absolutely hilarious in equal measure.

[Noodle Lizard]

I last saw them with Melvins and Melt Banana supporting. We were standing around before the show trying to figure out if we had time for a curry, so I stopped the first bloke I saw coming from the venue and asked if he knew when Melt Banana were on. Of course as soon as I stopped him I realized it was Barney, for fuck's sake, but he graciously took the time to "mentally work it out", gave us our answer and said "you don't want to miss 'em!" Seemed lovely. A couple of hours later, that same mild-mannered Brummie aggressively yelled at us for the best part of 90 minutes - but that was part of the show, to be fair.

They're about one of the few proper British extreme acts who tour the US anymore, too. They seem to headline here at least once per year, so they must have a pretty sizeable following. I know My Dying Bride haven't played here in decades because it's not financially viable, and I've only seen Paradise Lost or Godflesh as support acts (for Devin Townsend and Triptykon, respectively). For nostalgia's sake, I still go and see Cradle of Filth whenever they come around, even though their shows are uniquely awful and they pick absolutely horrible support acts.

[magval]

My Dying Bride signed to Nuclear Blast for their latest - might be a chance of seeing them in the US this go-around.

If Cradle are shit nowadays it's only because their current drummer can't stop throwing showwoffy splash flourishes into other, better drummers' tracks.

[Famous Mortimer]

I last saw them with Melvins and Melt Banana supporting. We were standing around before the show trying to figure out if we had time for a curry, so I stopped the first bloke I saw coming from the venue and asked if he knew when Melt Banana were on. Of course as soon as I stopped him I realized it was Barney, for fuck's sake, but he graciously took the time to "mentally work it out", gave us our answer and said "you don't want to miss 'em!" Seemed lovely. A couple of hours later, that same mild-mannered Brummie aggressively yelled at us for the best part of 90 minutes - but that was part of the show, to be fair.

They're about one of the few proper British extreme acts who tour the US anymore, too. They seem to headline here at least once per year, so they must have a pretty sizeable following. I know My Dying Bride haven't played here in decades because it's not financially viable, and I've only seen Paradise Lost or Godflesh as support acts (for Devin Townsend and Triptykon, respectively). For nostalgia's sake, I still go and see Cradle of Filth whenever they come around, even though their shows are uniquely awful and they pick absolutely horrible support acts.

Aye, they're even playing my backwater soon. Shit, I need to figure out when that is and get a ticket.

[Noodle Lizard]

My Dying Bride signed to Nuclear Blast for their latest - might be a chance of seeing them in the US this go-around.

Fingers crossed, although it would probably mean turning up as a support act for Cradle or whoever rather than headlining. But they're a fantastic live band, and I know they've got their fans here. Latin Americans especially seem to love them.

If Cradle are shit nowadays it's only because their current drummer can't stop throwing showwoffy splash flourishes into other, better drummers' tracks.

Pretty much. As far as I understand, their drummer (Martin "HIT ALL OF THE THINGS ALL OF THE TIME" Škaroupka) was formerly a fan of theirs in the 90s, so it's not like he's not engaged with the older material, but Christ if their drumming hasn't been boring as fuck since. It doesn't help that they haven't really turned out a single good song in about 10 years either.

[idunnosomename]

it was a great show but the beer at electric brixton was shit considering how long you get stuck in there!! but great show. really put effort into the setlist I thought, all over the place. and nothing beats a rousing nazi punks fuck off.

ps new Carcass 7th August

[Noodle Lizard]

I'm not sure it's worth starting another thread, so let this be the thread for British metal for now:

My Dying Bride have a new one coming out in a couple of weeks. It's been a while, on account of Aaron's daughter having cancer, so I can only imagine how that ordeal might influence their already miserable lyrics. I like the new single, despite the awful and often unintentionally funny video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1DI7447ia0

I hear people were concerned about them switching over from Peaceville to Nuclear Blast, but they've never put out a bad album really and I don't expect them to start now. The worst they could be accused of is perhaps treading water a bit since For Lies I Sire. I still think Turn Loose The Swans and The Angel And The Dark River are quintessential doom-death albums, and Northern England should be prouder of their legacy in that regard (Northern England also produced Anathema and Paradise Lost, lest we forget). Personally, I think Songs of Darkness, Words of Light and The Dreadful Hours are MDB's best, if only for the fact that they seem to encompass all of what MDB are best at.