Lock Up – Demonization

It never ceases to amaze me how many bands are out there. Specifically, the sheer amount of bands that I should know about, but for one reason or another have never even been picked up by my symbolic radar is downright embarassing, to say the least. That is one of the biggest and most cherished perks of this job, for me at least: It allows me to get to know, and get my grubby hands on, many different bands that I would most likely never have come across otherwise (despite the fact that I should have been able to find them on my own). The newest, and probably best examples of this, is the British Grindcore-slash-Death Metal act Lock Up: A spin-off from their kinsmen and musical colleagues Napalm Death, created on the whim of Shane Embury, the basist of Napalm Death (as well as the current one in Lock Up). And while Lock Up is clearly different from their progenitor (the lack of Barney as vocalist is quite obvious), they have still managed to create an impressive four full-length albums since their inception back in 1988 (made impressive due to the near-ridiculous amounts of bands that all four band members are tied into in one form of another; It is actually quite surprising that they have the time to release anything at all). Musically the resemblance to their before-mentioned kinsmen is strong; However, there are several areas where they differ. The two most noticeable to these actually tie together: Overall, the musical style of Lock Up is kept a bit slower, a lot heavier and more relentless than even their colleagues, which is supported by a deeper and equally slower growl delivered by Kevin Sharp, which makes his debut as their vocalist upon Demonization, their newest release. Containing almost forty-two minutes of relentless auditory onslaught expertly divided across fourteen individual tracks, Demonization is a part of eighties history waiting to be recognized (and, given my penchant for, among other things, this time period, it at least comes as no surprise to myself that I thoroughly enjoyed this blast from the past), and a must-listen to for anyone into old-school Grindcore and Death Metal, the way only the British can deliver. So far, sadly, only two singles have been released from the album. As such, below can be found the track ”Desolation Architect”, for no other particular reason than the fact that it was the longest track of the two. Recommended for fans of Napalm Death (I think that I have made that point painfully clear by now) and Bolt Thrower.

https://www.facebook.com/LockUpOfficial/