Damon Locks has a career filled with twists and unexpected turns. The Chicago-based artist employs a wide range of media to impart his message. A visual artist, educator, vocalist, and musician, Locks first came on the scene as a member of the punk group Trenchmouth.  After Locks and actor/comedian Armisen left the School of Visual Arts in NYC, they moved to the Windy City and formed the group with fellow members Chris DeZutter on guitar, bassist Wayne Montana. Armisen handled drum duties, with Locks providing vocals and percussion. Though the band was known for its post-punk music, they dabbled in other genres like funk, reggae, and acid jazz.  The group released an EP and five studio albums before disbanding.

In the aftermath, Montana and Locks formed The Eternals, where the seeds of experimentation and use of electronics were planted, to flourish later in Locks’ solo career. His next move was joining Exploding Star Orchestra, an ensemble led by composer/cornetist Rob Mazurek, a key player on the Chicago music scene.

In 2018, began a new project, Black Monument Ensemble. BME’s debut recording captured a live musical and Chicago at the Garfield Park Botanical Conservatory, utilizing Locks’ poetry and art into an immersive experience. After two more albums, Locks’ most recent release, List of Demands, finds him delving deeper into experimental jazz with emphasis on the spoken word. Pitchfork praised the work and noted that the record heralded Locks’, “arrival, the logical destination of his years as a musician and activist.”