On July 15, 2026, NPR shocked music fans by featuring a Tiny Desk Concert by legendary English grindcore band Napalm Death.
Certainly, the outlet has featured heavy bands before—like Gwar and Turnstile—but this was on a whole other level. (Also, shoutout to the band’s stage manager/tech Matt Sheridan for donning that Primitive Man shirt while holding down bass for the performance.)
I got to thinking, who are some other heavy bands that I’d love to see play a Tiny Desk concert? I mean, the seal is broken after f**king NAPALM DEATH turns up. There are no rules, so let’s run with it!
Knocked Loose
I’ll be honest, I’m kind of surprised Knocked Loose hasn’t done a Tiny Desk Concert yet. If I were a betting man, I’d put real money on the chance that they’re the one band from my wish list who actually gets offered one.
This is modern metalcore (emphasis on the core) at its finest. They wouldn’t really even have to pare it back all that much, because God knows Napalm Death didn’t.
These dudes are on top of the world right now, and they’re just so f**king cool; it would make perfect sense for them to pull up to the NPR offices for a Tiny Desk Concert.
Corrosion of Conformity
Of all the bands on this dream wish list, Corrosion of Conformity is the one band I would love to see go full acoustic.
Their brand of southern sludge metal lends itself so well to a stripped-down performance. Give me “Albatross”, “Wiseblood”, “Clean My Wounds”, all that s**t. It’s so groovy, and I want to hear it all pared back to its most organic rendition.
Behemoth
Look, I’m not gonna lie, this one would be super weird. But it also has the potential to be VERY transformative.
Behemoth’s stage show (which is phenomenal) is very theatrical. It’s basically the black metal version of an Alice Cooper concert. That’s a tough thing to make translate in a Tiny Desk Concert.
So my idea is: cut out some lights, light a few candles, and let them do a slightly more subdued version of their songs without stripping it down fully. I genuinely believe that songs like “Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel” and “Bartzabel” would sound incredible in this setting.
(It’s a good idea, and I stand by it.)
Nailbomb
This one is maybe the hardest sell of the bunch. I get that.
Nailbomb is a super niche band, and they straight up didn’t even play for a long time. The band started in 1993, released their only album—Point Blank—in ’94, and then split in 1995. Fast forward almost 30 years, and Nailbomb reunited in 2024. They’re even, once again, touring the globe.
The music is fast and thrashy, socially conscious, and so I think Nailbomb would make a perfect pairing for NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert.
Photo by Mariano Regidor/Redferns
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