Lock Up - Play Fast of Die: Live in Japan (Re-release)
Cargo Records

file under Death metal

Menno: Play Fast or Die: Live in Japan is in many ways a very special record. First off, it's a re-release from a CD previously released for the Japanese market (ergo; also in Europe as an expensive import). Not too long ago, Shane Embury (Napalm Death) and Michael Kenney (Anaal Nathrakh) started Feto Records and decided that this record should get a worldwide distribution. The fact that Shane and the late Jesse Pintado (Napalm Death) both play in Lock Up made things easier of course.

Also pretty special are the other band members. Jesse and Shane are being helped by Tomas Linberg (At the Gates) on vocals and the mighty Nick Barker (Dimmu Borgir, Old Mans Child, Cradle of Filth) behind the drumkit. It's hard to believe that these guys found time to rehearse and do a proper tour together, but it's certain that Lock Up is a gift to the grindcore community. An extremely tight live performance in Nagoya in the summer of 2002 shows the band at it's best. The opening track 'Feeding the Opiate' instantly is one of my favourite tracks, but the other 19 blast just as hard! One track is a bit catchier than the other, but who cares.

A furious old school grind tornado as we all like it. The recording is very reasonable for this kind of metal. Unpolished of course, but still very brutal without loss of the details. The last fact which makes this record a special one is that it's one of the (if not, the) last releases that gives us the work of the late Jesse Pintado. A nice tribute.


Rating: 90/100 (details)

http://www.lockup666.com/

__________________