Napalm Death - Time Waits For No Slave
It's quite difficult to believe that this band has been around since 1982. They started as a punk rock band, which then became extreme grindcore and now are currently playing grindcore/death metal. This newer sound fits the band better. They've also gone through several lineup changes since their origin. On this new release, they feature Mark "Barney" Greenway on vocals, Mitch Harris on guitars/vocals, Shane Embury on bass/vocals and Danny Herrera on drums.
The time signatures (tempos) on the music are all over the place. Some tracks start out with a groove style on guitars. Then, there are riffs that are heavily tremolo picked. In addition, a harmonic riff is also exhibited. Also, on some tracks there are a few cliche type of rhythms. However, some guitar riffs are very unique and catchy. There is only one guitar solo on this entire album. They really should've kept it out because Mitch does a better job on rhythm only. He did the writing on the bulk of the compositions. Shane wrote some of songs too though. There are 14 tracks which clocks in at almost 51 minutes in length.
For the overall sound, each instrument/vocals you can hear very clearly. Everything was mixed well. The guitar is thick, the drums blasting, the vocal outputs are mostly hoarse though some are screams and also some very little clean voice. The playing here shows that this band still has talent. They have not slacked off at all. They still know how to create intense/extreme music. Their age haven't gotten in the way of that whatsoever. They're still putting out quality material.
The lyrics feature topics such as political unrest, hate, aggression, and social issues. "Barney" wrote most of the songs. Though Shane wrote a couple and Mitch on one track. The lyrical content is rather interesting. They're not about death, dying, gore or anything else that's mindless. These words are actually intelligent. There is much admiration that I have for the songs. There are no covers on this album at all. All of the tracks are brand new.
In conclusion, "Time Waits For No Slave" is one hell of a solid release. Not every track was entirely innovative though. As I mentioned previously, there were some guitar riffs that were a bit cliche. But overall, Napalm Death composed some new awesome songs. 'Harmony Corruption' remains to be my favorite release of theirs however. If you're into grindcore/death metal, then do yourself a favor and pick this release up!
The time signatures (tempos) on the music are all over the place. Some tracks start out with a groove style on guitars. Then, there are riffs that are heavily tremolo picked. In addition, a harmonic riff is also exhibited. Also, on some tracks there are a few cliche type of rhythms. However, some guitar riffs are very unique and catchy. There is only one guitar solo on this entire album. They really should've kept it out because Mitch does a better job on rhythm only. He did the writing on the bulk of the compositions. Shane wrote some of songs too though. There are 14 tracks which clocks in at almost 51 minutes in length.
For the overall sound, each instrument/vocals you can hear very clearly. Everything was mixed well. The guitar is thick, the drums blasting, the vocal outputs are mostly hoarse though some are screams and also some very little clean voice. The playing here shows that this band still has talent. They have not slacked off at all. They still know how to create intense/extreme music. Their age haven't gotten in the way of that whatsoever. They're still putting out quality material.
The lyrics feature topics such as political unrest, hate, aggression, and social issues. "Barney" wrote most of the songs. Though Shane wrote a couple and Mitch on one track. The lyrical content is rather interesting. They're not about death, dying, gore or anything else that's mindless. These words are actually intelligent. There is much admiration that I have for the songs. There are no covers on this album at all. All of the tracks are brand new.
In conclusion, "Time Waits For No Slave" is one hell of a solid release. Not every track was entirely innovative though. As I mentioned previously, there were some guitar riffs that were a bit cliche. But overall, Napalm Death composed some new awesome songs. 'Harmony Corruption' remains to be my favorite release of theirs however. If you're into grindcore/death metal, then do yourself a favor and pick this release up!