UMUR
"Demonization" is the 4th full-length studio album by multi-national death metal/grindcore act Lock Up. The album was released through Listenable Records in march 2017. It´s the successor to "Necropolis Transparent" from 2011 and features one lineup change compared to the predecessor as lead vocalist Tomas Lindberg (At the Gates) has been replaced by Kevin Sharp (Brutal Truth). The remaining members of the lineup are Shane Embury (bass), Nicholas Barker (drums), and Anton Reisenegger (guitars). All prolific musicians on the extreme part of the metal scene.
"Demonization" opens in great deathgrinding assault mode with "Blood and Emptiness", and pretty much continues down that road all the way through the 14 track, 41:54 minutes long album. It´s a highly energetic and fast-paced release featuring elements from both hardcore punk, grindcore, and death metal. The pace is lowered a couple of times during the album´s playing time, but it doesn´t happen that often, and when it does (like on the title track), it´s usually only for short periods of time before the deathgrind assault continues. Kevin Sharp is a suitable replacement for Tomas Lindberg, and his performance here is solid, although he doesn´t bring anything special to the vocal part of the album. His delivery is somewhere between death metal growling and a distorted shouting hardcore type vocal style. The instrumental part of the music is very well performed. Especially drummer Nicholas Barker stands out with his powerful and creative approach to extreme metal drumming.
"Demonization" is well produced, and features a sharp, clear, and powerful sounding production, which suits the music well. So upon conclusion "Demonization" is a quality release by Lock Up. The only minor issue is that not enough of the tracks on the 14 track, 41:54 minutes long album stand out, and few are easy to remember when the album ends, but it´s still a very enjoyable release while it plays, so a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.