NAPALM DEATH — Harmony Corruption (review)

NAPALM DEATH — Harmony Corruption album cover

Album · 1990 · Death Metal

4/5 · 2011-04-08
UMUR

"Harmony Corruption" is the 3rd full-length studio album by UK death metal/ grindcore act Napalm Death. The album was released in July 1990 by Earache Records. Since the release of the band´s 2nd full-length studio album "From Enslavement to Obliteration (1988)" quite a few things had happened. The band released a couple of EPs ( Most notably the "Mentally Murdered (1989)" EP which is featured as bonus tracks on many CD versions of "Harmony Corruption"), a split with S.O.B. and "The Peel Sessions (1989)" compilation album, but also the lineup had changed quite a lot. The only founding member left in the band on "Harmony Corruption" is drummer Mick Harris. Guitarist Bill Steer left the band to concentrate on Carcass and lead vocalist Lee Dorrian left and soon after his departure founded doom metal act Cathedral. They are replaced here by American guitarist Mitch Harris (Defecation, Righteous Pigs) and new lead vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway (Benediction). Shane Embury plays the bass and second guitarist is Jesse Pintado who joined the band for the recording of the "Mentally Murdered" EP.

This new lineup went to Morrisound Recording in Tampa, Florida and recorded "Harmony Corruption" with producer Scott Burns. While still rooted in grindcore the music on "Harmony Corruption" is quite the departure from the band´s earlier grindcore sound. It´s obvious that Napalm Death felt inspired by the, at the time, new death metal movement and "Harmony Corruption" is probably the closest Napalm Death ever came to recording a "regular" death metal album. This is also helped on its way by the very brutal and quite characteristic Scott Burns production. Mark "Barney" Greenway´s vocal delivery is brutal yet fully decipherable and while it was always obvious that Napalm Death wrote clever social/ political/ personal issue lyrics it´s on "Harmony Corruption" that you are actually able to decipher what is being said. There´s no better example than the "save the earth" anthem "Unfit Earth" ( which on a sidenote features backing vocals by John Tardy (Obituary) and Glen Benton (Deicide)).

The tracks take a while to tell apart, but upon closer examination they are actually quite varied. At least structurally. Most tracks feature both blast beats, fast paced parts and groove based heavier mid-paced parts. The variation isn´t that great between tracks though, but really! It´s a minor issue when the album is only 35:47 minutes long and if you´ve just come to get your mind blasted and your body violated, "Harmony Corruption" will fully meet your expectations. The fact that the band are able to deliver their aggressive music with equal amounts of attitude and clever lyrics is not a minus in my book either.

"Harmony Corruption" is actually quite the odd album out in Napalm Death´s discography but from start to finish it´s still unmistakably the sound of Napalm Death. Fans of the band´s earlier releases may have been shocked by the band´s new sound but personally this was when I started getting really interested in the band. This one is a death metal "classic" and fully deserves a 4 star rating.