Lock Up is back and nastier than ever with their latest opus The Dregs Of Hades.
The very first thing you're going to notice with this latest release from the legendary grindcore-inspired death supergroup, Lock Up now has the absolute percussive insanity from newly acquired drummer Adam Jarvis. You know, Adam from from Misery Index, Scour, and Pig Destroyer? Noted for his technical precision at blazingly fast speeds, Jarvis and gives Lock Up a rhythm section (along with the prolific Shane Embruy) that will make you experience more punch than a ride on the Philadelphia subway system.
Also joining the band once again is second vocalist Kevin Sharp (Brutal Truth), who joins existing growler Tomas Lindberg from At The Gates. (No idea if Kevin also wears a black ball cap every single place he goes). Together they created a beautifully morbid cacophony that adds an additional layer of texture to the moiling musical landscape of terror and grotesquery.
Faster than antivax trolls commenting on a Joe Biden post on Facebook, Lock Up accelerates like a Tesla in ludicrous mode. But unlike the sleek lines and luxurious lushness of the ultimate in conspicuous transportation, Lock Up gives you a much more uncomfortable ride that more resembles an AMC Gremlin on the poorly paved back roads of the Smokies. It's a destructive celebration.
Nasty cuts like "Hell Plague The Ruins," make you feel as if you're actually engaged in an adventurous quest across a vast, post-apocalyptic wasteland. Like going through Penn Station as you change trains during rush hour.
While there is a lot of fresh sounding material on this LP, the band doesn't forget their early grind roots. This is evidenced on songs like "Nameless Death." That guitar, right up in the mix, and the slightly more distant vocal in the will take you back to 90s – in a definitive non-grunge way. Think of it as the Eddie Vedder overexposure antidote.
The Dregs Of Hades is the album you want to put on just as you end a terrible week of work. You walk out the door as the time clock hits 5 and then you just slip your headphones on as you let the magnificent catharsis of Lock Up free your soul.
This record is 40 minutes of blinding grind but with enough nuance, texture and songcraft to make it distinct and discernible. It's raw, yet unabashedly refined at the same time. Frankly, this might be Lock Up's best recorded work in their twenty plus years of existence.
