Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism

The pioneering grindcore outfits 16th long-player and the follow-up to 2015s unrelenting Apex Predator - Easy Meat, the aptly titled Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism is a sonic cudgel swung with extreme prejudice into the face of the worst that humanity has to offer. Napalm Death is one of the few extreme metal acts to consistently eschew the generalized nihilism of the genre in favor of a more humanistic approach, at least lyrically. As hell-bent on exposing societys ills as it is removing the vertebrae from your neck, the generous 15-song set delivers a potent and whiplash-inducing barrage of death metal, hardcore, thrash, crust punk, and noise rock that bears down on its quarry with raptor-like acuity. Opener Fuck the Factoid, a two-and-a-half-minute exclamation point/blastbeat tutorial, and the like-minded Backlash Just Because set a relentless pace, but as the album progresses it becomes clear that the band have no intention of resting on their considerable grindcore laurels. Echoes of the discordant noise rock of Daughters and Swans add ambiance to the otherwise seismic Contagion and Belly Full of Spleen, both of which pair punishing riffage with clean post-rock exteriors. Elsewhere, the punchy Amoral flirts with grimy West Midlands-style NWOBHM, the blazing White Kross applies a hint of groove to its gnarly blend of punk-metal and post-hardcore, while the monastic early moments of Invigorating Clutch eventually give way to a tsunami of caustic, midtempo sludge. Nearly 40 years into their career, Napalm Death remain pugilists to the core, and its in the crucible of that apoplexy that they unearthed the sordidly splendid Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism. ~ James Christopher Monger

エクストリーム界の帝王が放つ16枚目のアルバムは、8ビートで迫る新味な"Amoral"などリフやリズム・パターンが練られ、ヴァリエーション豊かな攻撃力を発揮した意欲作。終盤を呪術的な歌声で飾るスロウ"A Bellyful Of Salt And Spleen"も貫禄の出来映えで、緩急溢れる作品の流れも聴きどころだ。
bounce (C)荒金良介