Napalm Death - The Code Is Red... Long Live The Code
Century Media
Punkish Death/Grind
15 songs (50:03)
Release year: 2005
Napalm Death, Century Media
Reviewed by Aaron
Major event

In order to find out how much you like this new Napalm Death album without even hearing it, you should keep in mind which of their three or so musical directions you liked.

If you liked the first age, what with the skuzzy, gritty grind riffage and random blasts of partially distorted, abrasive punk-thrash-death riffs and the invention of the blastbeat, then you’re in luck! Kind of, anyway.

You see, if you’re still holding out for that era, this is the closest Napalm Death with Barney Greenway will EVER get to that, unless you count Leaders Not Followers Pt. 2. If you’re still holding out for some real, pure grind from them, go and pick that up, and listen to only a few songs off of this, because otherwise you’ll be vastly disappointed. I’ll point out the songs this bunch would like at the end.

Now, if you’re a fan of the second era (lasting from 1990 with the release of Harmony Corruption and continuing until the 1999 release of Words From The Exit Wound), also known as the ‘death metal more than grind’ phase of Napalm Death, than you’re somewhat in luck as well, but to be honest, not so much as fans of the third era.

Fans of the third era (Enemy of the Music Buisness-Order of the Leech (which was a damned good album and should have got a higher score on this website)), the ‘return to form’ era, than go and buy this album right this instant. Y’see, this album, at it’s very core, is an amalgation of all three musical directions of Napalm Death. They managed, almost without any loss in quality, to blend all the music they’ve ever tried to play into one album.

That’s not saying that this album is without its flaws. A few of the songs suffer from a lack or immediate direction, or any direction, to be honest. Let’s take All Hail the Grey Dawn. It starts out with an irritating choppy riff, and segues into a groovy riff, then another choppy riff… it’s impossible to really headbang to this song because of this little problem. It’s obvious they tried to mix up the pace with slower sections in some of the problematic songs, but this really doesn’t do much but irritate me, except in Morale, a slow, almost doomy (this was not a typo) song that I absolutely love.

On the plus side, a lot of the other songs embrace the classic Napalm Death formula of playing really, really fast while Barney spews his scathing lyrics over a noisewall of drums and blazing guitar riffs, and these songs are usually the best on the album.

Anyway, this is a good album, and it shows Napalm Death trying to do new things with their sound. It may not be as good as Order Of The Leech, an 86 in my opinion, but it’s a damn fine album all the same, and one that I’ll be proud to display next to Diatribes and Fear Emptiness Despair.

Oh yeah, for the pure grind fans: you will LOVE Right You Are, Diplomatic Immunity, and Pay For The Privilege of Breathing.

One quick note: Barney’s vocals here are the best they’ve been in years.

Killing Songs :
Morale, Right You Are, Pay For The Privilege of Breathing, Striding Purposefully Backward, Vegetative State
Aaron quoted 78 / 100
Other albums by Napalm Death that we have reviewed:
Napalm Death - Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism reviewed by Goat and quoted 85 / 100
Napalm Death - Apex Predator - Easy Meat reviewed by Goat and quoted 83 / 100
Napalm Death - Utilitarian reviewed by Charles and quoted 95 / 100
Napalm Death - Inside the Torn Apart reviewed by Adam and quoted 71 / 100
Napalm Death - Diatribes reviewed by Goat and quoted 58 / 100
To see all 18 reviews click here
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