Grind Beside The Seaside – Napalm Death In Dorset

I grew up in the middle of nowhere, the hamlet of Godmanstone famous for the smallest pub in England called The Smith’s Arms. With rock and metal music blaring from my old ghetto blaster, I used to pore over gig listings in magazines wishing one day a band I headbanged to in my bedroom would play somewhere nearby. Sadly, it was not to be.

Two decades later, Dorset’s Hourglass Promotions have made it their mission to bring proper rock and metal music to the county, specifically Weymouth, a sleepy, old-fashioned seaside resort more used to putting on Canon and Ball and Jethro. In the past year Hourglass have already hosted legendary death metal bands Sepultura and Morbid Angel, and tonight saw the visit of one of Britain’s finest and longest-serving grindcore acts, Napalm Death.

The Crow’s Nest, as the name suggests nestling in the top of the Pavilion, is rammed to capacity. On a windswept, very rainy night out, the walls are wet with sweat even before Londoners Ted Maul warm up the crowd with their brutal sonic assault on the senses. Swaggering frontman Solomon J. Lucifer Christ (!) stirs things up in amusing style. He can also roar with the best of them. Great stuff!

Now into its fourth decade, Napalm Death is a national institution. Although it now features no original members, the current line-up continues to push its quasi-anarchic mix of socially aware politics and total noise terror.

Opening with a double blast from 2009’s “Time Waits For No Slave”, “Downbeat Clique” and “Strong Arm”, it is a comical sight to see the portly form of wild-haired bassist Shane Embury and towering vocalizer Mark “Barney” Greenway jostling for space on the tiny stage. More than once they have to pause as Barney’s giant-toddler-having-a-tantrum stage moves send amp stacks, and occasionally other bandmates, flying in various directions. He stops to apologise in his likeable Brummie brogue to the audience, who help rebuild the sound equipment before the mayhem resumes.

The set mixes old material from classic albums such as “From Enslavement To Obliteration”, including “Unchalleged Hate”, “Mentally Murdered” and “Social Sterility”, with newer tracks including “The Code Is Red…” and “When All Is Said And Done”.

Despite being hailed as legends, ground-breakers and many other lofty titles lumped on them, it is obvious Napalm Death have never changed their principles and genuinely believe in what they do. Barney pauses between songs to make his feelings clear about politics and injustice with a sincerity that would shame more famous and wealthy musicians who lecture from gold-plated soapboxes.

With that in mind, their debut album, 1987’s raging attack on corporate greed, “Scum”, gets a good airing. The title track, “Life?”, “Control” and “M.A.D.” make up the majority of the set’s second half , ending with record-breaking 1.3 second blast of “You Suffer”. Their customary finale, The Dead Kennedys’ “Nazi Punks Fuck Off” causes a further outbreak of mosh appeal madness.

As the stage is squeezed into the corner of the room, it made sense to simply go straight to the encore after a brief pause for breath and a swig of drink. A two-song last stand of “Suffer The Children” and “Silence Is Deafening” leaves both band and punters dazed and exhausted in the airless confines, and everyone leaves gasping but grinning.

Check out a new track from their 14th studio album, “Utilitarian”here: