Back in February, on a late Friday evening, I made my way down to my favorite Chicago haunt, Reggies, to catch an unmissable double bill of High Spirits and Savage Master. On one hand, you’ve got the single greatest rock act of the 2010s (High Spirits). On the other, you’ve got one of the few bands to capture the spirit of the 80s satanic panic (Savage Master). Opening it all up was a power trio from Michigan who I’d never heard of: Locust Point. I though to myself, “If they’re opening a bill such as this, they MUST be good!”
Sure enough, they were more than good. They were fantastic. Simple and straightforward, Locust Point manage to tap into the untouchable cool of metal circa the mid 70s. They’ve got the swagger of Thin Lizzy, the attitude of Motörhead, and showcases shades of other various era staples, ranging from UFO and Status Quo, to Bachman-Turner Overdrive and Foghat. These were the days when metal was loud, sweaty, hairy, and not restricted to the confines of what Priest and Maiden would release a few short years later. All of these qualities and more are showcased on the band’s latest album, Michigan Drag.
It’s easy to compare many of the songs on this album to Thin Lizzy, especially with their no frills approach, tasty twin guitar interludes, and introspectively blunt lyricism. That said, aside from the melodic rock balladry of “Quiet Ones”, which resembles one of the gentler moments on Bad Reputation (i.e. “Southbound”, “Dancing in the Moonlight (It’s Caught Me in Its Spotlight)”), there’s not really any one song that comes off as blatant Lizzy worship. Sure, “More than the Measure” and the title track boasts its fair share of Lizzy traits, but there’s still a driving, Michigan rock n’ roll spirit intact, one passed down from Grand Funk, Uncle Ted, and so forth.
Locust Point bravely explores the musical mood spectrum, concocting unapologetically air guitar friendly headbangers (“The Chaser”, “Drain Fly”), as well as mean and menacing motörcharged hymns that would make Lemmy toast a Jack and coke in approval. Did I mention these songs were MEAN? “In the City” and “Movers & Shakers” are enough to get my body thrashing and face scowling with the same intensity that “Swampers” gets me boogieing in rejoice, coming off as the second coming of the aforementioned BTO. New Balance wearing dads and stoned heshers alike will rejoice upon hearing this one!
Is Michigan Drag metallized rock n’ roll, or is it rock n’ roll inspired metal? Who knows? Quite frankly, who cares? The riffs and grooves of Locust Point are so damn addictive that any self respecting arbitrator will hardly notice the blurring of musical lines. What they will notice is a surge of energy, pulsating through their guts and nuts with vim and vigor. It’s that enduring spirit that goes back nearly 70 years, when Little Richard first sang, “A wop bop a loo bop a lop bom bom.” The suits may have neutered it, tamed it, controlled it…but goddamn, they CAN’T kill it. They won’t be able to, so long as Locust Point has something to do about it.
8 out of 10
Label: Dystopian Dogs Records
Genre: Heavy Metal/Hard Rock
For fans of: Thin Lizzy, Motörhead, Midas