Smear Campaign (album)

Smear Campaign
Studio album by
Napalm Death
Released15 September 2006 (2006-09-15)
Recorded18–27 May 2006 and 3–10 June 2006
StudioFoel Studios, Llanfair Caereinion
Genre
Length45:09
54:34 (vinyl and digipak CD)
LabelCentury Media
ProducerRuss Russell
Napalm Death chronology
The Code Is Red...Long Live the Code
(2005) 		Smear Campaign
(2006) 		Time Waits for No Slave
(2009)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Blabbermouth9.5/10[2]
Chronicles of Chaos9/10[3]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal9/10[4]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[5]
The Metal Forge9/10[6]
Sea of Tranquility[7]

Smear Campaign is the twelfth studio album by grindcore band Napalm Death. It was recorded with producer Russ Russell at Foel Studios, Wales, and was released on 15 September 2006. It was released as a regular CD, and as a digipak edition featuring two bonus tracks and a sticker of the cover artwork. Differently coloured versions of the cover art exist.

Shortly before the release, Barney Greenway mentioned that the album features a guest appearance by Anneke van Giersbergen, ex-vocalist for the Dutch rock band The Gathering, saying, "[She] has offered up a few parts to a track, which I've yet to hear. But before some people recoil in horror about Napalm going operatic rock or whatever, this was done for good effect and relevance to the track. It will work. It will rock. I'm sure. And we're grateful to Anneke (who is an awesome vocalist in her own right) in advance for giving it a stab."[8]

Smear Campaign is a concept album criticising religion in general.[9]

Track listing

No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Weltschmerz"GreenwayHarris1:27
2."Sink Fast, Let Go"GreenwayMitch Harris3:22
3."Fatalist"GreenwayEmbury2:50
4."Puritanical Punishment Beating"GreenwayHarris3:25
5."When All Is Said and Done"EmburyEmbury3:00
6."Freedom Is the Wage of Sin"GreenwayHarris3:08
7."In Deference"GreenwayHarris3:13
8."Short-Lived"GreenwayEmbury3:05
9."Identity Crisis"GreenwayHarris2:43
10."Shattered Existence"EmburyEmbury3:10
11."Eyes Right Out"GreenwayHarris3:13
12."Call That an Option? (vinyl and digipak CD limited editions bonus track)"GreenwayEmbury3:02
13."Warped Beyond Logic"GreenwayEmbury1:59
14."Rabid Wolves (For Christ)"GreenwayEmbury1:23
15."Deaf and Dumbstruck (Intelligent Design)"GreenwayHarris2:45
16."Persona Non Grata"GreenwayEmbury2:46
17."Smear Campaign"GreenwayEmbury2:47
18."Atheist Runt (vinyl and digipak CD limited editions bonus track)"GreenwayEmbury6:43

Personnel

Chart positions

Chart (2006) Peak position
French Albums (SNEP)[10] 158

References

  1. ^ Prato, Greg. Napalm Death: Smear Campaign > Overview at AllMusic. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  2. ^ Bergman, Keith (2 October 2006). "Napalm Death 'Smear Campaign'". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  3. ^ Smit, Jackie (22 August 2006). "Napalm Death – Smear Campaign". Chronicles of Chaos. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  4. ^ Popoff, Martin; Perri, David (2011). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 4: The '00s. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 346. ISBN 9781-926592-20-6.
  5. ^ Larkin, Colin, ed. (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. pp. 1015–1016. ISBN 978-0857125958.
  6. ^ Donnelly, Justin (5 October 2006). "Napalm Death – Smear Campaign". The Metal Forge. Sumner, Queensland. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
  7. ^ Pardo, Pete (21 August 2006). "Napalm Death: Smear Campaign". Sea of Tranquility. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  8. ^ Official Napalm Death forum
  9. ^ "Napalm Death: 'Smear Campaign' Track Listing Revealed". Blabbermouth.net. 24 July 2006. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  10. ^ "Lescharts.com – Napalm Death – Smear Campaign". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 October 2014.