Search - Locust :: Locust

Insane hardcore

shea | wa, usa | 12/13/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Hardcore. Insane. Fast. Short. That's The Locust. Their album is 20 songs of pure madness. Fans of hardcore will love this band. Faster than any punk music, crazier than any hardcore music, The Locust features powerful guitar and bass, loud keyboards, fast drumming, and screaming vocals. Anyone who is a fan of hardcore, I suggest that you buy this cd."

Embury meets shatner

Chris Whitehead | AUSTIN, TX United States | 04/02/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"i dont think theres much more to describe the locust other than imagine a star trek army battling it out with phasers at a napalm death concert at the same time a plague of...insects of some sort swarm around...add a healthy dose of confusion to that and youve got the locust."

Impressive...

Bando | 12/16/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Hell...this band is quite a pill to swallow. I have been into Hardcore, grindcore, math metal, ???-core, ect... for a while now. I'm a big christian so I tend to lean toward the Zao/norma jean type stuff. But the controversy surrounding this band got me into them despite their low profile image.



According to the bassist Justin Pearson, this band is in existance for the sole reason of taking down pop/mainstream music. They've been doing this since 95. I'd say they've done pretty good considering the hell they've raised in the scene so far. And yeah, this band is really hard to encompass in a short time. There's a lot to it that most people just brush off as hype and complain about it. I however, was determined to solve the mystery behing The Locust and I'm happily saying that I'm glad I did.



The members of The Locust have been in so many west coast hardcore bands it seems. One that really caught my eye was the Epitaph band "Some Girls" which has put up a pretty big riot in the mainstream. It just so happens that The Locust is on the same label. Perhaps we'll see a pattern here soon? Anyway, if you can get past the odd costumes and crazy off kilter synth beats then The Locust is easilly one of the finest Hardcore/Grindcore bands ever to play music. I like their philosophy, which basicly comes across as a personal vendetta to reinvent the pop industry with noise music. I respect that greatly, but i can't say the same for modern day america.



That aside, The Locust is a phenomenol band. Not only in their chaotic music, but lyrically too. The poetry written for their anthems of noise are so beyond me that I'm struggling just to figure out what a song could possibly be about. No, it's not that they've written down a bunch of random metaphors and stuck them in music. It's just that they're that great of writers. Period... The sincerity is clear. They aren't just some secular areligious hardcore band out to hurt people and make noise. They care about real life issues and world views.



The music here is beyond our time. They take the chaos of Some Girls, and tack it together with Chiodos like Synths. Even without the keyboard this band would be regarded by me as incredibly innovative. I would like to call this a bunch of mass chaos but, in truth it's really organized chaos. The technicality is truly undeniable. There's wild tempo change all through these 1 minute songs. Altough I don't see how that's possible even for a grindcore band, they pull it off easilly.



There are a couple of drawbacks though. Mainly, the shortness. I'm sorry Locust, but a 20 minute CD with 20 fast fire tracks isn't quite enough. Heck, it's a great 20 minutes and every second is awesome but when are they going to release a respectable full length?



Second thing... They aren't really going anywhere with their music. They have an awesome sound and they've put out more than enough material over the decade but they haven't gained any of the success they talk about in interviews other than the fact that they got on Epitaph. I highly doubt they'll achieve world domination within the next five years. (laugh)



I any case though, this band has done a lot of stuff both good and bad. I've heard they've roused up venues into fist fight havens and gotten bottles thrown at them. Last time I checked, the Locust's main goal was to challenge themselves and their listeners. Whether it be through the socio-political lyrics or perhaps by way of their unneasy stance in the scene, The Locust is definately doing something right."