Review Summary: The Locust expands on their previous EP to create a more than enjoyable full length while maintaining their roots of originality.
Music is an art of sound that can be manipulated in various ways. Music may be changed with different rhythms, melodies, harmonies, or noises. What one may consider music may be different for another person. Take for instance a bird chirping. There is a possibility of it being a song, or simply a call to another bird. It may be hard to decipher with creatures that we are not familiar with and noises we are not prone to hearing. This raises a question to some whether
The Locust are simply random blurts of noises and shouting, or a new form of music. Justin Pearson, bassist and vocalist of the Locust, has been quoted saying that they want people to look at music in a different manner. With their latest release
New Erections, it is never too late to look at music differently.
New Erections can be translated into a new birth of music and what the Locust are capable of accomplishing. It has taken some time since their last release, but it has finally come.
Head Wound City,
Holy Molar, and
Some Girls please step aside. While filling a void between the Locust records, they simply were not as delectable. Let us get back to the real deal. It has been a long four years since the Locust’s last full-length album. While
Safety Second, Body Last filled a desired craving two years ago; it simply was not enough to satisfy my appetite. One can only handle so much pure thrash dealt with their various side-projects without feeling the ambient mayhem encountered with the Locust. There is a new perplexing sound with every album they produce; sounds of raucous and nauseating proportions. This is meant in a positive manner though. After hundreds of albums and guitar chords, it becomes tiresome. It is like a broken record, but there is always an escape route with this band. When listening to the Locust, everything becomes unexpected. It becomes an ongoing process of what may be lurking ahead throughout the song, whether it is a keyboard break or exasperating high-pitched guitar chords. Luckily, this album is suited for the unpredictable.
A constant formula that the Locust has used in their writing is the element of creative song titles. While the titles may seem immature at times, they are complex. Whether it may be a political view or otherwise, there seems to be a definite and true meaning to each song title. The same complexity is embedded within
New Erections. The Locust have even expanded their song lengths once again. No longer is every song under two minutes. “AOTKPTA,” the initial track provides a spastic and smooth joyride for just over three minutes. The vocals are dramatically cleaner than any song they have previously released which is a huge step in their progression. With ambient transitions of daydreaming, there is journey encountered while maintaining chaos. A similar experience is endured with “The Unwilling…Led By The Unqualified…Doing The Unnecessary…For The Ungrateful.” After one minute’s duration, a harmonious keyboard is the sole transition into an off timed section of sludgy strumming. The initial single of the record, “We Have Reached An Official Verdict: Nobody Gives A Sh
it,” does not fail to meet expectations with a complete riot of spastic riffs and awkward rhythms. The drums are flawless while there is what seem like an endless number of transitions packed within the song. The album only gets weirder, and better. During the drum-less track “Scavenger, Invader,” a feeling of discomfort is obtained with a grinding synthesizer and soft but eerie vocals. The Locust goes back to their roots of short but rewarding songs with “Slum Service (Served On The Sly)” where pandemonium erupts in a quick shotgun blast. The drumming is complex and clean while the vocals are at a reasonable and listenable volume.
New Erections as a whole is beyond excellent, as the Locust have not lost a step from their previous releases and continue on an upward trend.
Complexity, chaos, and noise are three components that create
New Erections with a never-ending saga of eccentric music. While there will still be non-believers in what the Locust do as a band, they are creating brilliant, innovative music that will not be featured on Guitar Hero III. They have thrown generic song structure down into an infinite hell and made it to fit who they are as a band. While few bands will try to recreate what they are doing with music, musicians alike will perhaps think of music more than just a standard format of: Intro, Verse, Chorus, Verse, Chorus, Bridge/Solo, Chorus, Outro. Without change, we are at a standstill in life in which repetition takes over.
New Erections may be the Locust’s best work yet in their collection and a change for the better. It is time for everyone to hear a new birth in creativity and more importantly a new birth in music.
Recommended Tracks:
-The Unwilling…Led By The Unqualified…Doing The Unnecessary…For The Ungrateful
-Slum Service (Served On The Sly)
-We Have Reached An Official Verdict: Nobody Gives A Sh
it
