Fear, Emptiness, Despair

Fear, Emptiness, Despair
Studio album by Napalm Death
Released 31 May 1994 (1994-05-31)
Recorded October 1993 (1993-10)–November 1993 (1993-11) at Parr St. Studios, Liverpool, England and November 1993 (1993-11)–December 1993 (1993-12) at Jacob Studios, Surrey, England
Genre Grindcore, death metal[1]
Length 45:38
Label Earache, Columbia
Producer Pete Coleman, Napalm Death
Napalm Death chronology
Nazi Punks Fuck Off
(1993)		 Fear, Emptiness, Despair
(1994)		 Greed Killing
(1995)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
MetalReviews86/100[2]

Fear, Emptiness, Despair is the fifth studio album by British grindcore band Napalm Death, released on 31 May 1994. Napalm Death's inclusion on the Mortal Kombat soundtrack brought significant exposure to the band and this album, alongside the fact that the band's label Earache had formed a partnership with Columbia Records which allowed the album to disseminate to a wider audience.[3] RAW magazine listed Fear, Emptiness, Despair as one of the essential album of the 1990s.

In a 2017 interview, bassist Shane Embury listed the album as his least favourite of Napalm Death's discography, citing the division between the vocalist Barney Greenway and the remainder of the band, and the high corporate influence over the band during the album's production as factors that undermined the final result.[4]

Musical style

Originally titled Under Rule,[5] the album represented a stylistic transition for Napalm Death.[6] Fear, Emptiness, Despair maintaned the complex music structures of their previous albums Utopia Banished and Harmony Corruption,[1] but there was a greater emphasis placed on incorporating elements of groove into the band's style, resulting in a wider use of mid-paced music.[7] Bassist Shane Embury claims that Helmet and their album Strap It On, influenced the band's style, as they did for many other heavy metal band during the 1990s.[8]

Reception

In its first week of release Fear, Emptiness, Despair reached #22 in Billboard's Heatseekers chart.[9] The inclusion of "Twist the Knife (Slowly)" in the Mortal Kombat soundtrack brought the band further acclaim.[10] The soundtrack scored a Top 10 position on the Billboard 200 chart,[11] and went platinum in less than a year.[12] In the August 1995 edition of RAW Fear, Emptiness, Despair was featured in the magazine's 90 essential albums of the nineties.[13]

Track listing

No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Twist the Knife (Slowly)"Shane EmburyMitch Harris2:52
2."Hung"Embury, Mark GreenwayHarris, Embury3:49
3."Remain Nameless"EmburyJesse Pintado3:33
4."Plague Rages"EmburyEmbury3:51
5."More than Meets the Eye"GreenwayEmbury3:55
6."Primed Time"GreenwayHarris, Embury3:28
7."State of Mind"EmburyEmbury3:32
8."Armageddon X 7"GreenwayHarris3:16
9."Retching on the Dirt"GreenwayEmbury, Harris2:59
10."Fasting on Deception"EmburyPintado3:48
11."Throwaway"GreenwayPintado3:42
Digipak CD bonus tracks
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
12."Truth Drug"GreenwayEmbury3:51
13."Living in Denial"EmburyPintado3:02

Personnel

Napalm Death

Production personnel

Chart positions

Chart (1994) Peak position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[14] 78

References

  1. 1 2 3 Birchmeier, Jason. "( Fear Emptiness Despair > Overview )". Allmusic. Retrieved 13 October 2008.
  2. ↑ Goat. "Napalm Death - Fear, Emptiness, Despair". MetalReviews. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  3. ↑ https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2017/12/13/rank-defile-shane-embury-orders-napalm-deaths-albums-worst-best/
  4. ↑ https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2017/12/13/rank-defile-shane-embury-orders-napalm-deaths-albums-worst-best/
  5. ↑ "NAPALM DEATH". Earache Records. Retrieved 13 October 2008.
  6. ↑ "Decibrity Playlist: Shane Embury (Napalm Death)". Decibel Magazine. 2012-02-23. Retrieved 2017-06-24. External link in |publisher= (help)
  7. ↑ Mudrian, Albert (2004). Choosing Death: the Improbable History of Death Metal and Grincore. Los Angeles, CA: Feral House. Page 194.
  8. ↑ "Decibrity Playlist: Shane Embury (Napalm Death)". Decibel Magazine. 2012-02-23. Retrieved 2017-06-24. External link in |publisher= (help)
  9. ↑ Billboard's Heatseekers Album Chart. Billboard, June 18 1994. Page 20.
  10. ↑ "Artists :: NAPALM DEATH". MusicMight. Archived from the original on 24 November 2009. Retrieved 14 October 2008.
  11. ↑ "Top Music Charts - Hot 100 - Billboard 200 - Music Genre Sales". Billboard. Retrieved 14 October 2008.
  12. ↑ "Search Results for Mortal Kombat". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
  13. ↑ "RAW's 90 Essential Albums For The 90s". RAW. August 1995. Retrieved June 24, 2017.
  14. ↑ "Napalm Death - Fear, Emptiness, Despair". Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Germany. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
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