When Words From The Exit Wound was released on Earache in 1998 my obsession with Napalm Death basically ended. I figured the band was on their way down and there was no salvation to bring the band back to the level they once were. Six years later I’m happy to admit I was wrong. Since their departure from Earache Records Napalm Death have been on the steady incline back to respectability getting better and stronger with each passing release, culminating with their latest full length offering The Code Is Red… Long Live The Code. Beginning to end this album is all about old school aggression that’ll get you off your barstool and into the pit in a state of barbaric fury, a far cry from the experi-metal Napalm Death material of the late 90s. Gone are the slow and melodic moments, there are no artsy experiments, just old school grind-thrash-death done by the founders and masters. Included on this release are three guest vocalists, each with entirely different styles from entirely different eras of music. First up is Hatebreed’s Jamey Jasta’s appearance on "Instruments Of Persuasion". While the first instinct of most people would be "Oh shit, I guess that means the song is gonna sound like that hardcore shit." Nope. This is straight ahead blasting Napalm Death throughout, and, thankfully Jamey’s role on the song is rather minor, basically just doing the chorus and never takes a lead in the vocals and more or less just hides in the back, where he belongs. The next guest is none other than legendary ex-Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra on the track "The Great And The Good". Jello takes an equally inactive role on the vocals on the first half of this track, yet another pure blasting grind track belting out with his trademark wail during the chorus, but the second half is all Jello as the music slows down to a more old school Dead Kennedys-friendly style. The final collaboration is with none other than Carcass-front man Jeff Walker making his return to extreme metal on "Pledge Yourself To You" whose vocals are oddly very low in the mix and hard to make out compared to the loud bellow of Barney Greenway. The track itself is a razorgrinding treat, however, though not quite what I was expecting. The remainder of the music is just pure old school blasting grind and is easily the band’s best work since 1990’s Harmony Corruption and an excellent follow-up to the solid Leaders Not Followers Part 2. This is the album grindcore purists have waited nearly 20 years for, and it’s well worth the wait. Highly recommended!

Written By: Teufel