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A Thrash Artifact From The Early 2000s Part II: Loknut - Mutha Fucker (EP Review) Released: 2005

 


Some bands evolve. Some bands sharpen. By 2005, Loknut had done the latter. Two years removed from their self-titled debut, the Chicago thrash outfit returned with the bluntly titled Mutha Fucker, with three tracks, no label, no apologies, and not a second wasted. Where the self-titled announced a band finding its footing, Mutha Fucker finds Loknut settled into their identity with confidence. The independent release format remained the same, but the intent felt more focused, like a band that had spent two years in the rehearsal room deciding exactly what they wanted to say and exactly how hard they wanted to hit when they said it.

"Down Hard" opens the EP with the kind of momentum that doesn't ask permission. It establishes the tone immediately, Dave Dorocke's vocals locked in and commanding, the rhythm section of Erik "Tater" Armstrong and Sean Schipper driving the track with disciplined aggression. Carl Weiss's guitar work is as economical as ever, but there is a sharpness here that feels earned. "Crush the Will" is the EP's crown jewel. The riff at its center is the kind of thing that burrows in and doesn't let go, heavy, purposeful, and built for maximum impact. Dorocke rides it with a vocal delivery that matches the track's intensity beat for beat, commanding rather than pleading, channeling something genuinely menacing. It is the kind of track that reminds you why the underground mattered, no polish, no compromise, just four guys locked in and doing exactly what they set out to do.

The title track closes things out on the EP's most audacious note. "Mutha Fucker" earns its name as raw, direct, and unbothered by anyone's expectations. It is a fitting closer for a release that never once asked for permission to exist. These three tracks are a tight canvas, but Loknut proved on their debut that brevity was never a limitation for them; it was a weapon. Mutha Fucker swings it just as hard. Chicago's underground may never have given them the recognition they deserved, but the music has a way of outlasting the moment it was made in. Three EPs and still completely off the grid, Loknut remained exactly what they always were: uncompromising, independent, and worth your time.

Here is the title track Mutha Fucker: 

Loknut DOES NOT have ANY social media, but if you want to read up on them, here is the link to the page on Metal Archives:

Loknut

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