Band:	The Locust
Album:	Plague Soundscapes
Style:	Grindcore
Release date:	2003
A review by:	Herzebeth

01. Recyclable Body Fluids In Human Form
02. Identity Exchange Program Rectum Return Policy
03. Solar Panel Asses
04. Live From The Russian Compound
05. Earwax Halo Manufactured For The Champion In All Of Us
06. Wet Dream War Machine
07. Listen, The Mighty Ear Is Here
08. Who Wants A Dose Of The Clap?
09. Teenage Mustache
10. How To Become A Virgin
11. Anything Jesus Does I Can Do Better
12. Late For A Double Date With A Pile Of Atoms In The Water Closet
13. File Under Soft Core Seizures
14. Practiced Hatred
15. Psst! Is That A Halfie In Your Pants?
16. The Half-Eaten Sausage Would Like To See You In His Office
17. Pulling The Christmas Pig By The Wrong Pair Of Ears
18. Can We Please Get Another Nail In The Coffin Of Culture Theft?
19. Your Mantel Disguised As A Psychic Sasquatch
20. Twenty-Three Lubed Up Schizophrenics With Delusions Of Grandeur
21. Captain Gaydar It's Time To Wind Your Clock Again
22. Priest With The Sexually Transmitted Diseases Get Out Of My Bed
23. Pickup Truck Full Of Forty Minutes

Let me start by saying... "This is the sickest, most bizarre, out of this world release I've heard in a really long time."

The Locust is not your average Grindcore band at all, these weird looking guys present one of the most difficult albums to explain in history. This release features mainly Grindcore, but we can also hear fragments of Punk, Crust, Hardcore, even Ambient and some other undecipherable things.

I'll try my best to be accurate and precise in the "What Do They Sound Like" part. The Locust music, analogically, sounds like a hammer throbbing your head hardly. Now in a more realistic way, The Locust is a mix of Grindcore ala Circle Of Dead Children, with some vocals ala Agoraphobic Nosebleed, then take the drummer of Pig Destroyer add the riffs of both Cephalic Carnage and Sex Pistols, finally mix all that with some ambience then voila...that's The Locust.

Their Music is really difficult to digest, I like it that's for sure, but I am also sure that most Metal listeners will despise this release due to the noisy and electronic parts (or maybe, on the other hand, most people would love this release due to the catchy/punk riffs); the music is actually very accurate and tight. Yes it's raw and sometimes extremely strident, but the muddy elements really sound experienced and the songwriting in general is marvelous. This way we can understand that all of those apparently random riffs are not just arbitrary but planned. The drummer is also incredible, this guy goes from ultra fast to ultra slow then to mid tempo and so on. Then we have the vocal work; we can hear 2 types of vocalizations in "Plague Soundscapes," the first type is like any other Grindcore band with high-pitched vocals and hardcore shrieks, but then there's the second kind?the kind of vocals that sound like nothing I've heard before, it sounds like a clean yet rough scream, I don't know how to explain those vocals?but believe me they sound amazing.

Well, finished with the "How Do They Sound Like" part, now the production. This album sounds really clean in most parts, the instruments sound sparkling clear, and the mixing on the keyboards is just overwhelming, those atmospheres are just incredible and sometimes even scary, so the production and engineering gets a 10 this time.

The Locust is surely not for the weak ones, there are some catchy songs for those willing to download their stuff ("Ear Wax Halo Manufactured For The Champion In All Of Us" and "Psst¡ Is That A Halfie In Your Pants?" (this is by far the best tune in the CD), but if you are willing to buy this album, pay attention to every part of it and try to be open-minded when you hear it, in the end I assure you'll love tracks like "Who Wants A Dose Of The Clap," "Solar Panel Asses" and some other titles too long and way too funny to list.