Concert Review

WWF has nothing on Napalm Death in concert

By Frank Correia
Staff Writer

It wasn't a pretty scene when Napalm Death, originator of "grindcore" metal, assaulted the Whisky stage last Thursday. A teenager with the face of Meatloaf and four times his width easily pushed himself to the edge of the pit while two bald moshers linked arms and brutally blindsided an unaware fan. Security launched fans from the stage while others somersaulted into the crowd like it was a WWF match. As always, survival is a key word for grindcore fans.
And it's the survival instinct that has allowed Napalm Death to continue their dissonant guitar attack through seven albums and numerous line-ups. Bassist Shane Embury, who joined six years after the group formed in 1981, is the closest thing to an original member. But the near capacity crowd didn't seem to mind as the revamped outfit showcased tracks from it's new release, Diatribes, in an hour long set that was as loud as it was brutal.
From the opening chord, the floor erupted into a cyclone of bodies. But, the initial excitement died down as Napalm plowed through new and unfamiliar songs like "Greed Killing" and the ill-chosen "Self Betrayal." But the Napalm boys found favor with their latest material when "Ripe for the Breaking" revitalized the pit, knocking bodies and beers into the chests of unsuspecting wallflowers.
"Barney, you're no longer a fat fuck," yelled one fan, stating an obvious improvement in vocalist Barney Greenway's appearance (at last year's Palace outing, Greenway had a gut to rival Homer Simpson's.) "You used to make fun of me for being fat, now you make fun of me for being skinny," he joked in a thick British accent, "make up your bloody mind."
This time, the thinner and much more energetic frontman had his growls down pat. Drummer Danny Herrera, buried behind a wall of drums, kept his rapid-fire snare at breakneck speed while bassist Embury provided adequate support on bass. The real glue in Napalm's arsenal, however, were guitarists Mitch Harris and Jesse Pintado. Pintado, former axe-man for L.A. grindcore gurus Terrorizer, had his own legion of fans who screamed for songs from his former band. The requests were easily forgotten when Napalm launched "Twist the Knife Slowly" from `94s Fear, Emptiness, Despair.
As an album, Fear widened Napalm's horizons, showing a slower and more dissonant side to the band. Diatribes continues that evolution but with more favorable results. Pintado and Harris' guitars delve into new dimensions of dissonance, rhythm and yes, even melody, giving the band a more cohesive album with standout tracks like "Glimpse Into Genocide" that whipped Thursday's crowd into a frenzy. The title track shows that Napalm can embrace new sounds without becoming soft.
Nevertheless, Napalm, either out of fear or respect for its fans, closed things out with "Scum," an older song that was written before any of the current members were even in the band. A four-song encore greeted the sweating crowd, all of which stood in the dark chanting the band's name with the enthusiasm of a charging brigade. As Greenway tossed a full water bottle into the crowd, dehydrated moshers fought over its contents as if it was the last liquid on earth. Covering the Dead Kennedy's "Nazi Punks Fuck Off," Napalm Death turned the Whiskey into a gladiator pit, proving that they're not only the originators of grindcore, but the premiere live act for dissonance and destruction.