The Locust: Swarming in New Directions

By Chris Sabbath
Photos by Robin Laananen

"Is this the dumpster of your dreams?" beseeches San Diego's The Locust during "AOTKPTA," the cathartic opener to its third full-length album, New Erections, released late last month. As the song climaxes into its own drone-damaged hell of destroyed electronics, brutal guitars and stamina-quenched drum fire, the throat-ragged vocals of band members Justin Pearson, Bobby Bray, and Joey Karam coalesce into one and yell: "We'll bury this city in trash." This threat is light in comparison to the merciless grind-punk that inexorably lashes out for the remainder of the album.
Originally a five-piece, The Locust formed in 1994 out of the wake of Pearson's hardcore outfits, Struggle, and Swing Kids. During that era, the band became a SoCal namesake by selling out shows and initial pressings of its early recordings, as well as sticking to a hefty diet of endless touring. Over the years, The Locust has put out a string of successful vinyl splits with bands such as Melt Banana, Arab on Radar, and Jenny Piccolo on Pearson's Three One G label, Gold Standard Laboratories, and Ipecac. However, by the time the group's self-titled debut was released in October 1999, The Locust had already gone through numerous lineup changes. After unleashing its seminal 2001 7-inch EP, Flight of the Wounded Locust, drummer David Astor left the group, and The Locust has remained a quartet ever since.
In addition to devoting their attention to the group, various members participate in bands such as Some Girls, Head Wound City, and Holy Molar. Buts since The Locust dropped its Epitaph Records-affiliated ANTI- debut, Plague Soundscapes, Pearson, Bray, and Karam - in addition to drummer Gabe Serbian - have perfected their guttural noise rock into an abrasive terror machine articulated with resonant pandemonium and middle-finger exuberance.
On New Erections, The Locust has blasted new life into its sci-fi parading monster by giving it a sonic rendering. Though songs such as "Tower of Mammal" and "We Have Reached an Official Verdict: Nobody Gives a Shit" still flaunt the classic Locust vehemence - breakneck tempos, mathy time-signatures, screamed vocals - it's evident in songs such as the synth-crackling doom of "Scavenger, Invader" and the bombastic "Book of Bot" that the band is expanding its sound into new dimensions.
During a recent telephone call from his hometown of Long Beach, Calif., Karam explains that the group spent all of 2006 working on New Erections and that it was the longest single stretch of time the band had ever put into recording an album. "In the past, we've recorded and then punctuated it with tours and shows, but we felt like we needed to push through it because it's been awhile since our last full length," Karam says. "And it helped because for us, getting ready for tour and playing shows is also a labor-intensive process and it takes us awhile to get to the point where we feel comfortable bringing it out."
Karam also notes that the recording process for New Erections felt comfortable and not rushed. According to him, the songs took a fairly long time to write, even though most of them are generally short in duration. "It's like four filters basically on every song," says Karam. "There's an explicit drive to not want to rehash something from the past albums, because we're always trying to tread on new territory." Karam adds that if the band does stumble across a familiar chord progression or sound sequence from its musical vault, it will try and give it a new voice or different feel.
And speaking of voices, one can't help but notice the amount of space that The Locust allotted for the vocal element on New Erections. Though Pearson's signature spazzy-babble is still finely honed, Bray and Karam's caustic squawks are just as razor-like. On "Slum Service (Served on the Sly)" the pair spike through the song's tumultuous verses with hoarse yells, sounding in dire need of cough drops.
Karam believes that the vocals have always been an afterthought on past outputs, and divulges that the album's producer, Alex Newport - who also produced 2003's Plague Soundscapes and the band's 2005 EP Safety Second, Body Last - aided in mutating the vocals into lead instruments. Newport felt the group should give the vocals some breathing room.
"Some of us write in different voices and styles then others, and with this record we decided to kind of capitalize on that," says Karam. "We allowed ourselves a little bit more experimentation in that way and took on more single-song singing based on whoever wrote it."
In addition to New Erection's vocal-wrought accentuation, the foursome has also shaved its chronic 30-something track listing (seen on previous works) down to 11 songs. Clocking in at 23 biting minutes, the songs are a little longer than The Locust's songs typically have been. Also prevalent is the overall electronic-driven essence that the album exudes. This can be heard during "Full Frontal Obscurity" where Serbian's meteoric blast beats and Bray's slicing guitar riffs detonate violently as a lingering moth-like buzz carries the weight of the song. Karam clarifies that it's probably symptomatic of the rerecording processes that the four have gone through in the last year.
"Working with Alex has helped each instrument develop a better place," says Karam. "The guitar and bass use kind of synthy-sounding effects from time to time. I guess there's more of an electronic feel to this record and I think the guitar, bass, and synths come to the forefront and really just find a place."
The Locust just hit the road in support of New Erections in late March, and Karam says he's excited to give fans the full-scale onslaught. Audiences can expect to see The Locust's trademark skintight costumes as well, but Karam disregards the media hype that comes along with it. He states that the band took on "this ridiculous persona" in reaction to the critical attention it has received.
"We're not the kind of band that can just flail around, so we just try and take it the extra mile in any way that we can," Karam says. "We're locked in front of our instruments and the guitars are in front of the pedals; we're not the band that is totally flying around stage."

www.thelocust.com