The Locust – Molecular Genetics from the Gold Standard Labs

July 24, 2012 • Anti-

I have only a passing familiarity with The Locust, having heard merely Plague Soundscapes and their split with Arab on Radar, and they are still one of the most bizarre bands I've heard when it comes to heavy music (Melt-Banana comes close, I suppose). Gold Standard Laboratories, their old label, has released a bunch of old material culled from various splits and early material. Despite my usual aversion to this sort of raw, early "-core" music (mostly produced by crappy bands who can't sign on to anything more impressive than underground splits), this is a great collection.

For anyone who's heard the later albums, The Locust's older material isn't too much different—still the same old grindcore-meets-noise rock-meets-a total disregard for conventional songwriting and any sort of sympathy for their listeners. The music is as dissonant, spazzed-out, and unapproachable as ever, as each and every song provides an impenetrable wall of bizarreness. Noisecore blastbeats give way to jazz- and punk-influenced grooves and jump back just as quickly, as time signatures, tempos, and riff structures bounce all over the place. The assault never seems to let up for more than a few seconds total, and even though just a few songs break the one-minute mark, the lengthy tracklist makes for a real workout.

As a compilation of old and rare tracks, the long length and exhaustive effort it takes to hear this album is understandable—of course, these tracks probably weren't originally intended to be listened to in this way. Even so, the material here is surprisingly good (compared to old/rare material from similar bands) and definitely deserved this re-release. I daresay I probably enjoy this more than Plague Soundscapes as well, somehow; perhaps for the extra variety and unstoppable brutality.

Definitely a good place to start for anyone who's never heard of the band and a good place to continue for anyone who heard their newer albums but not the early stuff. Not for the faint of heart, but if you can take it, it's very much worth it.

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