NAPALM DEATH Gig review
Support: Flowers Of Flesh And Blood / The Atrocity Exhibit
London Underworld – Friday 16th December 2011

By Yiannis (John) Stefanis

Twenty one years ago, and still at a fairly impressionable age, the author of this review was first introduced to the works of the Birmingham-based noisemakers Napalm Death through their third studio album “Harmony Corruption”. The band subsequently became one of my favourites and is still is among those, topping my list. Having recently finished recording their fifteenth album, entitled “Utilitarian”, Napalm Death decided to celebrate its impending release by performing a show at the London Underworld and, in the knowledge that a new composition was to be performed on the night, together with the fact that an interview with frontman Mark “Barney” Greenway was being arranged, led the fairly excited author of this review to the very heart of London on the afternoon of the 16th of December.

Following a very enjoyable chat with Barney, the contents of which will very soon become available to you, I decided to leave the offices of the band’s label Century Media and head off towards the venue and, by the time I arrived there and had sorted out a few necessary things, the first opening act of the night, the Birmingham-based grinders The Atrocity Exhibit were already on stage. Even though I am fairly attracted to extreme music of all shapes and forms I found, having listened to three of their compositions, that there was nothing really exciting about them. Having retired to the back of the venue, I heard the catchy Hardcore Punk tunes of the second opening act, Flowers Of Flesh And Blood, whereupon I moved forwards to see if the visual aspect of their show was as impressive and I was not disappointed! Sporting long dreadlocks and moving like Agnostic Front’s Roger Miret, frontman Keefer led his troops into battle with unbelievable vigour, introducing the audience to the tunes of their recently released debut effort “War Poetry” – tunes that even Barney seemed to enjoy while standing at the side of the stage.

By the time Napalm Death came on and the very first notes of “Downbeat Clique” were performed, the crowd was pretty warmed up and in high spirits! The stage of the Underworld was arranged in a stagediving-friendly way, with both Mitch Harris (guitars) and Shane Embury (bass) cleverly positioning their microphone stands and guitar pedals as far away from the very front as possible – a clever move, since quite a few people decided to ‘pay it a visit’ during songs like “Strong Arm” and “Unchallenged Hate”. Being in a truly great mood, Barney paced the stage with the passion and energy of a man half his age and ensured that all the right political and social messages were being conveyed to the crowd every time a new song was being introduced. Tonight’s set list was equally divided between old and new compositions with “From Enslavement To Obliteration” material being provided with preferential treatment – something that nobody from the crowd seemed to have issues with. A cover of Cryptic Slaughter’s classic opus “Lowlife” received a very warm welcome and the same can be said about “Quarantined”, a composition from the band’s upcoming studio effort which proved to all of us that Napalm Death, era 2011/2012, are as dynamic and aggressive as they have ever been! Following a few more ‘delightful’ Napalm Death modern classics, such as “On The Brink Of Extinction”, the band performed the second cover of the night -Siege’s “Conform” before a very dynamic old-school section, including, amongst others, “Scum”, “Life”, “Control” and “You Suffer” leading to increased frenzy in the stage and the pit areas. I have not yet been to a Napalm Death show where the Dead Kennedy’s classic opus “Nazi Punks Fuck Off” has not been performed and tonight was no exception, with the band leaving the stage straight after, only to return less than a minute later for a strongly demanded encore. The first song performed was my all-time favourite “Suffer The Children”, the performance of which I celebrated through the ancient tradition of stage diving and the band decided to finish off with an explosive rendition of the quite delightful “Silence Is Deafening”.

The one thought that was going through my mind both during and after the gig was that, apart from the much welcomed wisdom and unwelcome hair loss that comes with age, nothing else has really changed in my attitude to the band! Napalm Death continue as one of the loudest and most honestly aggressive and hardworking bands in the music business and I continue to be as committed to them and fascinated by their antics as I was twenty one years ago! Attending a Napalm Death show can only be described, in my humble opinion, as a religious experience – one that I plan on repeating the moment the next London dates following the release of “Utilitarian” are announced. I suggest that you do the same!

Set List
……….
……….

1. Downbeat Clique
2. Strong Arm
3. Unchallenged Hate
4. Continuing War On Stupidity
5. Next On The List
6. When All Is Said And Done
7. Lucid Fairytale
8. Social Sterility
9. Life And Limb
10. Lowlife (Cryptic Slaughter cover)
11. Quarantined
12. The Code Is Red…Long Live The Code
13. Mentally Murdered
14. On The Brink Of Extinction
15. Conform (Siege cover)
16. Scum
17. Life?
18. Control
19. Mad
20. You Suffer
21. Nazi Punks Fuck Off

Encore:
……………….
……………….

22. Suffer The Children
23. Silence Is Deafening

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