Machine Head – Unto The Locust (2011) Review

Machine Head Interview – Dave McClain Talks About Unto the Locust, The Grammy Nomination, and More

Unto The Locust Review:

If you could judge a book by its cover, Iâd be a nice guy. The truth is, however, that Iâm a huge asshole.

Hey, at least I know it.

By the same token, if you could judge an album by its cover, Machine Headâs Unto the Locust would be a dark and sinister album foretelling an impending wrath-of-God apocalypse. All systems go, letâs check this bitch out. Now, if you could judge an entire album based on the opening track (âI Am Hellâ), Unto the Locust would be brutally creative and epic; it would be exactly what that cover art told you it would be.

Then youâd hit the second track, âBe Still And Know,â and feel a little cheated. Why? Because the opening guitar riff sounds like recycled material from a guitar solo in the first track.

Thank God Machine Head redeemed themselves on âLocust.â Yeah, just three tracks in and they were needed some redemption. âLocustâ is visceral, seeming to extract our own wrath and angst. In a way, at least in parts, it feels like a really heavy version of The Cure. But, as this song was directed at someone specific (see our interview Dave McClain), we can feel the hate, the pain, the anger, and the intensity burning in every aspect of the song.

Unfortunately, thatâs where this album ends for me. Aside from a few cool interludes and solos, the album feels a bit lacklustre. It feels a little emo and Rob Flynnâs vocals just didnât do it for us, seeming to clash with the music itself.

Also, Unto The Locust is more of an EP than an LP, as it only has seven original tracks (the remaining three are covers, which arenât very good — except the Priest cover).

Verdict:

Iâm not going to outright say that Unto The Locust is a bad album; itâs really good if youâre a Machine Head fan. However, if you donât get the band, youâre going to want to avoid this one.