Industrial rock

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Industrial rock
Stylistic origins
Cultural origins
Typical instruments
Mainstream popularity Large in North America in the 1990s; is now hitting the peak of its popularity in Europe.
Derivative forms Industrial Metal
Regional scenes
Germany
Other topics
Notable artists

Industrial rock is a musical genre that fuses industrial music and specific rock subgenres such as punk, oi!, hardcore and later on hard rock. Industrial rock spawned industrial metal and is frequently confused with the latter.

Contents

[edit] Musical style

Industrial Rock artists generally employ the basic rock instrumentation of Found Objects, electric guitars, drums and bass and pair it with white noise blasts, electronic music gear (synthesizers, sequencers, samplers and drum machines). Guitars are commonly heavily distorted or otherwise effected. Bass guitars and drums may be played live, or be replaced by electronic musical instruments or computers in general.

One characteristic that distinguishes industrial rock from its non-industrial counterpart is the incorporation of sounds commonly associated with machinery and industry. The incorporation of this sound palette was pioneered by the early 1980s "Metal Music" artists (SPK, Einstürzende Neubauten, Die Krupps, Test Dept, Z'ev and others), who practiced an Industrial Music variation that relied heavily on Metal percussion, generally made with pipes, tubes and other products of industrial waste. The psychological effect was symbolic of urban decay[citation needed].

Both the music and the lyrics of industrial rock are commonly presented in a manner that some listeners might find unsettling. Many bands produce and release their own records, honoring the DIY credo. A combination of the elements above can be seen in a handful of post-punk purveyors: Chrome, Killing Joke, Laibach, The Swans and Big Black.

In his introduction for the Industrial Culture Handbook (1983), Jon Savage considered some hallmarks of the Industrial Music genre: organizational autonomy, shock tactics and the use of synthesizers and "anti-music".[1] Furthermore, a "special interest" in the investigation of "cults, wars, psychological techniques of persuasion, unusual murders (especially by children and psychopaths), forensic pathology, venereology, concentration camp behavior, the history of uniforms and insignia" and "Aleister Crowley's magick" was present on Throbbing Gristle's work[2], as well as in other Industrial pioneers.

[edit] Origins

Industrial Music was created in the mid to late 1970s, amidst the punk rock revolution and Disco fever, and was epitomised by bands such as Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire, and SPK.[3] Within a few years, many other musical performers were incorporating industrial-musical elements into a variety of musical styles. Casual listeners often use "industrial" to refer to the more accessible industrial rock style that came later, such as Nine Inch Nails, Rammstein or Marilyn Manson.

Some post-punk performers developed styles parallel to Industrial Music's composing techniques. Pere Ubu's debut (The Modern Dance), for example, was tagged "Industrial".[4] So was San Francisco's Chrome, who mixed Jimi Hendrix, The Sex Pistols and tape music experiments;[5] or Killing Joke, considered by Simon Reynolds as "a post-punk version of Heavy Metal".[6]

Others followed in their wake.[7] The NYC band Swans were inspired by the local No Wave scene as well as Punk rock (Buzzcocks, The Sex Pistols), Noise (Whitehouse) and the original purveyors of Industrial Music - Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle and SPK.[8] Steve Albini's Big Black followed a similar path, adding american hardcore (Minor Threat, Black Flag) and Oi! (Skrewdriver) to the mix.[9] There was also Swiss trio The Young Gods, who deliberately esquewed electric guitars in favor of a sampler.[10] The Young Gods early ouvre was inspired both by Washington, DC hardcore punkers Bad Brains[11] and Jim Thirlwell's Foetus project.

[edit] Mainstream Breakthrough

Industrial rock's first commercial success might be attributed to Killing Joke's fifth album, Night Time. It won a silver sales certificate (60,000+ units sold) by the BPI[12] largely on the strength of club favorite "Love Like Blood".[13]

Industrial Rock's true commercial breakthrough, though, came through industrial metal's early leading lights: Ministry and Nine Inch Nails. Nine Inch Nails's 1992 EP Broken hit the platinum mark in America and so did Ministry's Psalm 69.[14] Both groups participated in the Grammy's 1992 Best Metal Performance category (Nine Inch Nails won[15]). Nine Inch Nails went on the win another Grammy[16] and four more nominations.[17] Trent Reznor was also chosen by Time as one of the most influential Americans in 1997.[18]

Industrial Rock reached its commercial zenith in the latter half of the 1990s. According to the RIAA databases, its top-selling artists, together, shifted around 17,5 million units.[14][19] Other style-related groups gained recognition from the mainstream, being nominated for the Grammys: Marilyn Manson and White Zombie.

Sales were still going strong throughout 2000-2005; at least 10 million records were sold during that timeframe.[14] Other style-related groups were nominated for the Grammys as well, such as Spineshank[20] and Rammstein.[21]

[edit] Mixed-Reactions from Inside the Scene

While Industrial Rock was riding high on the charts of the late 1990s and early 2000s, its sudden popularity was met with mixed reactions from the music's early practitioners - from mild estrangement to outright hostility. Some examples:

  • Peter Christopherson (ex-TG, Coil) told The Wire that he "went into this record shop out in the middle of Wiltshire and they had an 'Industrial' section - so many of which I'd played on and I suddenly felt separate from it - like, this is not me, this is not what I'm about".[22]
  • In an interview by the Industrial Nation zine, Lustmord mainman Brian Williams declared the following about Ministry's Industrial metal phase: "I have no time for all this rock and roll shit they're doing now. (...) I can't understand why they would want to do it, I can't imagine why people would want to listen to it, but people have a right to do what they want. Ministry just doesn't interest me".[23]
  • cEvin Key (of Skinny Puppy) listened to The Downward Spiral "1 or 2 times" and wasn't impressed[24]; he thought that Nine Inch Nails's success was "a bit of hype".[25] Ogre went further: he called Nine Inch Nails "cock rock"[26] and referred to Filter and KMFDM derisively as "the new Metal", although he was admittedly impressed by Ministry's Psalm 69.[27]

[edit] Wavering Popularity

[edit] Decline in America

While Industrial Rock was riding high on the American charts of the late 1990s and early 2000s, specific quarters of the music press were mounting a backlash against the genre.

This attitude is best represented by music critic Jim DeRogatis. In an April 2000 review for the Chicago Sun Times, DeRogatis dismissed Nine Inch Nail's new music as a "generic brand of industrial thrash" and accused Ministry of repeating an act that "was old by 1992".[28] Although The Fragile reached the top spot of the Billboard 200[29] and went on to earn a double platinum status[14], DeRogatis considered it a "flop", nonetheless.[28]

A myriad of other reasons could support Jim DeRogatis's line of thinking:

Recent controversial assessments of Industrial Rock include a recent interview with Skinny Puppy conducted by Matt Child. A scathing excerpt condemns the genre as simply plagiarizing earlier influences:

"Industrial music -- or whatever it is we're calling that convergence of electronic elements, big guitars and punk's troublemaking spirit these days -- has got a bad rap. Admittedly, a lot of it's deserved: Most of today's rivet-heads are content to simply plagiarize Ministry and KMFDM riffs, pack a few heavy beats behind the noise and round out the package with a few samples and a few electronic bleeps pulled from the latest software plug-in. It's probably pretty engaging and energizing if you're the type who walks around in a long, black trench-coat visualizing public-space massacres. For everyone else, sadly, it's just another sad, tired offshoot of metal that has its moments now and then."[35]

[edit] Boom in Europe

Parallel to the "i-rock" decline in North America, Europe belched forth its own brand of electro-metal. Germany's Neue Deutsche Härte, in particular, has had success in Continental Europe. Its leading light, Rammstein, has sold nearly 4 million records in Germany alone, while racking up gold (and platinum) records in Sweden, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Poland and the Czech Republic.[36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46]

Other like-minded German musicians have climbed the charts as well. NDH pioneers Oomph! have achieved a gold record for their Augen Auf! single on Austria and Germany.[47][48] Eisbrecher's debut entered at #13 on the Deutschen Alternative Top 20 Chart, while the group's second album (Antikörper) reached the #85 position on the German main chart.[49][50]

Scandinavian acts such as Deathstars, Gothminister and The Kovenant have been met with a degree of underground success. The sophomore Deathstars album, Termination Bliss, landed on #87 in the German Media Control Chart.[51] They toured with gothic metal stahlwarts Paradise Lost and Lacuna Coil; in September 2007, they were the opening act of KoЯn's European tour.[52] Gothminister's debut single "Angel" entered at #10 on the Deutschen Alternative Top 20 Chart.[53] Another single, "Monsters", reached a peak position at #11.[citation needed] The Kovenant won two Spellemann awards, the Norwegian equivalent to the Grammys.[54][55]

[edit] Artists

[edit] Labels

[edit] Sales & Awards

Main article: Industrial Rock: Sales & Awards

The template above re-directs to a page dedicated exclusively to the awards (Grammys, MTV Video Music Awards) and certifications (IFPI, RIAA, CRIA) given to Industrial Rock groups.

[edit] External links

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Vale & Juno (1983), page 05.
  2. ^ Ibid, page 09.
  3. ^ Vale & Juno 1983.
  4. ^ Irvin (2001), page 442.
  5. ^ Reynolds (2005), pages 257 & 258.
  6. ^ Ibid., page 435.
  7. ^ Chantler 2002, page 54.
  8. ^ Licht (2003), page 32.
  9. ^ Sharp (1999), page 48.
  10. ^ Mörat 1992, page 12.
  11. ^ Stud & Stud 1987, page 27.
  12. ^ CERTIFIED AWARDS. THE BPI. Retrieved on 2007-08-24.
  13. ^ KILLING JOKE - Unique, Detailed Biography. Rockdetector - The World's Biggest Rock Resource on the Web. Retrieved on 2008-06-11.
  14. ^ a b c d GOLD AND PLATINUM - Searchable Database. RIAA. Retrieved on 2007-12-12.
  15. ^ 35th Annual Grammy Awards - 1993. ROCK ON THE NET. Retrieved on 2007-12-12.
  16. ^ 38th Annual Grammy Awards - 1996. ROCK ON THE NET. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  17. ^ 40th Annual Grammy Awards - 1998. ROCK ON THE NET. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  18. ^ TIME'S 25 MOST INFLUENTIAL AMERICANS. TIME (1997-04-21). Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  19. ^ Groups such as Filter, Marilyn Manson, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Orgy, Rammstein, Stabbing Westward, Static-X and White Zombie, plus Rob Zombie's solo career.
  20. ^ METALLICA, EVANESCENCE Among Winners At 46th Annual GRAMMY AWARDS. BLABBERMOUTH.NET (2004-02-08). Retrieved on 2008-06-11.
  21. ^ SLIPKNOT Win GRAMMY Award For 'Best Metal Performance'. BLABBERMOUTH.NET (2006-02-08). Retrieved on 2008-06-11.
  22. ^ Keenan, David (1998-07-21). Time Out Of Joint. THE WIRE - ADVENTURES IN MODERN MUSIC. Retrieved on 2007-09-08.
  23. ^ Fergunson (1993), page 55.
  24. ^ Bali, Gunnar (May 1995). ???. New Life. Retrieved on 2007-09-08. Archived at Litany: Music News Covering Skinny Puppy, Download, ohGr and Related Projects.
  25. ^ Radish, Diakon (1997). cEvin Key: Music for Cats and Video Games. New Empire. Archived at Litany: Music News Covering Skinny Puppy, Download, ohGr and Related Projects.
  26. ^ Bright (1996), page 39.
  27. ^ Gill & Rotondi (1996), page 78.
  28. ^ a b DeRogatis, Jim (April 2000). Nine Inch Nails stuck in the '90s. Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved on 2007-08-24. Archived at The NIN Hotline.
  29. ^ Top Music Charts - Hot 100 - Billboard 200 - Music Genre Sales. Billboard Music Charts. Retrieved on 2008-05-09.
  30. ^ Pettigrew 1996, page 46.
  31. ^ Martin 2004, page 25.
  32. ^ Di Perna 1995, page 35.
  33. ^ Hochman 1997, page 21.
  34. ^ Considered only are the artists have earned either gold or platinum certifications from the RIAA. This short list includes Björk, Fatboy Slim, Moby, Portishead, The Chemical Brothers, The Crystal Method and The Prodigy.
  35. ^ Child, Matt (2007-02-26). Dog Days: Skinny Puppy. Aversion.com - Rock, Punk, Indie news. Retrieved on 2007-09-08.
  36. ^ Gold/Platin Datenbank durchsuchen. www.ifpi.de - Die deutschen Phonoverbände. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  37. ^ GULD & PLATINA - År 2004. IFPI. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  38. ^ Gold und Platin Datenbank. IFPI Austria, Verband der Österreichischen Musik Wirstchaft. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  39. ^ Belgium Database. Charts français. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  40. ^ Goud/Platina Muziek. nvpi. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  41. ^ Search for: Rammstein. The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  42. ^ Guld og platin. IFPI Danmark - IFPI.dk. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  43. ^ SØK I TROFÉER. IFPI Norsk platebransje. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  44. ^ Platinium certification awards. Związek Producentów Audio-Video. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  45. ^ Gold certification awards. Związek Producentów Audio-Video. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  46. ^ TIMELINE: October 28, 2005. RAMMSTEIN :: News. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  47. ^ Gold und Platin Datenbank. IFPI Austria, Verband der Österreichischen Musik Wirstchaft. Retrieved on 2008-05-07.
  48. ^ Gold/Platin Datenbank durchsuchen. www.ifpi.de - Die deutschen Phonoverbände. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  49. ^ Former MEGAHERZ Duo Launch EISBRECHER. BLABBERMOUTH.NET (2004-05-24). Retrieved on 2007-08-24.
  50. ^ EISBRECHER: 'Antikörper' Enters German Chart At No. 85. BLABBERMOUTH.NET (2006-11-02). Retrieved on 2007-08-24.
  51. ^ DEATHSTARS: 'Virtue To Vice' Video Posted Online. BLABBERMOUTH.NET (June 13, 2007 2007-06-13). Retrieved on 2007-10-07.
  52. ^ News Library: Live. Nuclear Blast Europe (September 2007). Retrieved on 2007-10-10.
  53. ^ BIO(short version). Gothminister. Retrieved on 2007-10-10.
  54. ^ IFPI Norsk platebransje. Spellemannprisen. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
  55. ^ Spellemannsprisen - the Norwegian equivalent to the Grammy Awards. MIC - Musikkinformasjonssenteret. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.

[edit] References

  • Bright, Matt (1996). Dog gone. Melody Maker, February 24th: 39.
  • Chantler, Chris (2002). Splitting heirs. Terrorizer, 96: 54-5.
  • Di Perna, Alan (1995). White Zombie: zombies gave me lunch! Guitar World, 15(6): 33, 35-6, 38, 40, 46, 170, 172.
  • Fergunson, Paul (1993). Terror against terror: Lustmord's dancefloor coup. Industrial Nation, 7: 53-7.
  • Gill, Chris; Rotondi, James (1996). Heady metal. Guitar Player, 30(3): 74-82.
  • Hochman, Steve (1997). Rock & roll: hype or hope? Rolling Stone, 756: 20-1.
  • Irvin, Jim (2001). The Mojo collection: the greatest albums of all time. Edinburgh: Cannongate.
  • Licht, Alan (2003). Tunnel vision. The Wire, 233: 30-37.
  • Martin, Jim (2004). Sadness will prevail. Terrorizer, 123: 24-5.
  • Mörat (1992). Ye gods! Kerrang!, 411: 12.
  • Pettigrew, Jason (1996). Watch yourself and watch what you say. Alternative Press, 92: 44-51.
  • Reynolds, Simon (2005). Rip it up and start again: postpunk 1978-1984. London: Faber and Faber Limited.
  • Sharp, Chris (1999). Atari Teenage Riot: 60 second wipe out. The Wire, 183: 48-9.
  • Stud, B., Stud, T. (1987). Heaven up here. Melody Maker, June 20th: 26-7.
  • Vale, Vivian; Juno, Andrea (1983). RE/Search #6-#7: Industrial culture handbook. San Francisco, CA: RE/SEARCH PUBLICATIONS.
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