Napalm Death / Insect Warfare

What we have here is easily a cash grab of sorts by Earache. Really, I'm not even sure there needs to be much more said about the album than that. I found this split for a dollar and some change at a local record store and, since it had been so long since I've purchased wax, I figured I'd give it a go. Afterall, I adore Insect Warfare and Napalm Death is the entire reason I'm into extreme metal. A combination of the two seemed novel, right? Like, let's take two tracks from Napalm Death's debut and then two tracks from Insect Warfare's only album to chronicle the genre of grindcore! That's not a terrible idea - but I think I would have much liked to hear new stuff from both bands - or maybe Napalm Death covers of Insect Warfare and vice versa? Now that'd be a tight split and definitely worth seeking out.

But, as it is, the album is divided into two parts - Napalm Death's "rough cuts" from Scum and Insect Warfare's pre-mastered tracks from World Extermination. We all know Napalm Death's classics - "Scum" and "Control" are the entire foundation of the genre - a groundbreaking and entirely new sound to punk and metal. Taking all of the aggression of hardcore and punk with the sheer violence and unmatched sonic fury of metal, Napalm Death single-handedly created some of the heaviest and most badass music of the 80s. Scum is right up there with Realm of Chaos for my all time favorite albums, and had a massive influence on my aesthetic choice, my drumming style, and hell, even my politics. "Control" is the more grounded of the two, having a much more hardcore sound than a fully realized metallic one - and it packs about three or four brutal riffs within it's extremely short length. "Scum" needs no introduction, but that opening riff, the slow plodding power chords with drum fills beneath it, is one of the most intimidating openers ever. Right when the riff comes to a screeching halt, you're ready for violence - and then man, does that pay off. When that grind kicks in, it's pure, unfiltered aggression. Classic for a reason.

Insect Warfare, on the other hand, are considered by some to be one of, if not the best, current grindcore band. Unlike a lot of other big names or modern grinders, there actually isn't a lot of outside influences. They don't have a weird noise/screamo side, they don't have death metal influences, they don't have goregrind influences - they just play straight up grindcore. It's pretty sweet to hear those hardcore riffs run through metallic sounds, and honestly, Earache couldn't have picked two better songs off of the album. "Necessary Death" and "Manipulator" are intense, ferocious, and feature just incredibly violent explosive moments and some of Insect Warfare's harshest vocal deliveries. Seeing as both songs fun a little under two minutes, there's not a ton to say other than the fact that every single riff is well placed and really does kick ass.

So, the low score isn't because the music is bad - it obviously isn't - it's some of my favorite stuff of all time mixed with some of my favorite stuff currently. It's just that I have a really hard time figuring out who this is for. I could see this handed out at a concert - or if you preordered something, but as a standalone release, it just comes off as capitalizing off of a recent trend towards grind, just a year or two late. It's that cash grabbing action and attitude that would leave both Insect Warfare's and Napalm Death's heads spinning.