The Melvins and Napalm Death have joined forces for Savage Imperial Death March, out April 10th, 2026 via Ipecac Recordings, a genuine collaboration rather than a traditional split; a new album built from members of both bands. The first track to emerge from the record, Tossing Coins Into The Fountain Of Fuck, offers an initial taste of the project’s formidable chemistry.
Recorded at the Melvins’ Los Angeles studio, the album brings together Buzz Osborne (vocals/guitar) and Dale Crover (drums) alongside Napalm Death’s Barney Greenway (vocals), Shane Embury (bass), and John Cooke (guitar), uniting two heavy music institutions in an uncompromising lineup.
“I have loved the Melvins forever and their outlook on music,” Embury explains. “A chance to make an album of eclectic musical madness with them was truly an honour and a whole lot of fun, which surely is the whole point! Let’s do another one soon.”
“Napalm Death are one of my favorite bands ever,” Osborne says. “It was an absolute pleasure and a dream come true to do this collaboration with them. We wrote songs together. I would write a riff and we would learn it and record it right there. They wrote stuff and we would learn it immediately as well. It was truly a 50/50 partnership.”
"Funny how life turns out sometimes... collecting hard-to-find Melvins 7-inches on Bleecker Street in 1989 and then touring twice and doing an album with them within the following 35 years,” Greenway adds. “Had a great time with it all, and nice to work with fellow travellers in the Melvins who also couldn't care about pandering to 'demographics'. I felt myself almost babbling lyrically during the recording, and that alone made for very fun recording times."
ZR