SHANE EMBURY Says Next NAPALM DEATH Album 'Probably' Won't Arrive Before Late 2027

In a new interview with "Reckless" Rexx Ruger of Pod Scum, NAPALM DEATH bassist Shane Embury spoke about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the band's seventeenth studio album. The British grindcore pioneers are once again working with longtime producer Russ Russell (DIMMU BORGIR, AT THE GATES, AMORPHIS) at his Parlour Studios in Kettering, United Kingdom. Asked if NAPALM DEATH fans can expect to get some new music from the band in 2027, Shane said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think [it's] probably not gonna be until the end of 2027, maybe, because of touring. Music, at the moment, there is the — I call it the 'bare bones'. The way I did it was, being a bit of a drummer, I have the guitars and the bass recorded. And I said to Danny [Herrera, NAPALM DEATH drummer], 'Maybe this beat, but you try what you wanna try.' It's a weird way of doing it, in a way, strangely. So he'll be familiarizing himself with the general... I mean, it's not set in stone. If he feels he wants to change something a bit longer, shorter, that's all doable as well, really. So these are just ideas I have there. But there's a lot of them to sink in. And Barney's [NAPALM DEATH frontman Mark Greenway] gonna start writing lyrics probably on tour, maybe, I suppose, in November. But I think it'll probably surface… It'd be nice to get it out before the summer, but I think it might even be late next year."

Asked if he makes it a point to read fans' reactions to NAPALM DEATH's music once a new album has been released, Shane said: "I don't intentionally go on, but you'll come across it. And I have to be careful because, of course, like anybody, if somebody says [something negative], I'm, like, 'Ah, fuck.' My wife will go, 'Why did you read it? That's ruined your day now.' And I'm, like, 'I know. Sorry, I know.' But then it also works other ways. Like, a guy wrote to me a few months ago, 'cause he likes the kind of weirder, slower tracks we do. He said, 'Oh, I'd love you to do a 12-, 13-minute track.' And I thought, 'Oh,' and there probably might be a 12-, 13-minute track of just insanity, based on the fact that this guy said it might be a good idea. So I said, 'Right. I like that idea.'"

Elaborating on what the musical direction of the new NAPALM DEATH music, Shane said: "There might still be a few more tracks [that we'll write] too, because the great thing with Russ is we're on no timeframe with Russ, so I go in, we go in, and then we'll listen to it… 'Cause Danny said the other day, 'cause Danny just wants to — he loves his blast. And I said, 'Is there enough fast stuff?' I'm, like, 'Well, do you want some more?'"

In February 2022, NAPALM DEATH released a new mini-album, "Resentment Is Always Seismic - A Final Throw Of Throes", via Century Media Records.

"Resentment Is Always Seismic – A Final Throw Of Throes" was a partner recording to "Throes Of Joy In The Jaws Of Defeatism", concluding matters through vital, tumultuous grindcore and shockwave ambience.

The eight-song "Resentment Is Always Seismic – A Final Throw Of Throes" came with a total playing time of 29 minutes and was made available as a limited CD digipak, vinyl as well as in the digital album format.

"Throes Of Joy In The Jaws Of Defeatism" was released in September 2020 via Century Media Records. The band's sixteenth studio LP was recorded with longtime producer Russ Russell and featured artwork by Frode Sylthe.

Embury released his autobiography, "Life?… And Napalm Death", in October 2023 via Rocket 88, an imprint of the established British book production company Essential Works.

Largely misunderstood and widely mocked in their early days, NAPALM DEATH nonetheless became the benchmark for uncompromising extremity, as well as a political force for good. Dismissed by many as a ridiculous noise, NAPALM DEATH became the credible face of extreme art rock, beloved of John Peel, NME cover stars and indie music darlings. Embury's debut studio release with the band, 1988's "From Enslavement To Obliteration", remains a seminal work of raging sonic violence coupled with ultra-credible punk critiques of corrupt politics, capitalist opportunism and societal collapse. The record remains as revered today as it ever was.