Locust was written collaboratively between vocalist and guitarist Robb Flynn and guitarist Phil Demmel, with Demmel originally coming up with the locust concept for the song and the album.

Demmel explained both that fact and the meaning behind the song in a Twitter Q&A on March 12, 2018, writing: “Nothing Biblical about people coming into your life and harvesting everything from you before upping and flying away after they drain you of all they can”, in response to a fan asking about the concept behind the song and referencing the biblical imagery occasionally used in Machine Head’s music. He went on to deny the presence of allusion to the biblical locust plague story (found in Exodus 10) in the lyrics, explaining: “It’s purely metaphorical. Read through them again. “The charade comes down……””.

(the referenced Q&A can be found here:

The song, by all means, is much more about the underlying theme of a leeching, malicious person exploiting someone for their own personal gain, rather than a literal swarm of locusts attacking a civilization or. Closer to the end of the song, however, the person’s true intentions seem to be revealed, with lines like “tear the veil, the lies derail” and “halos of truth now they surround” painting the picture of their intent finally being exposed.