Vancouver is a rainy city in the shadow of Grouse Mountain with beautiful views. Its citizens like to eat pancakes at Sophie’s Cosmic Café and cycle around UBC, while wearing clothes from Mountain Equipment Co-op or Patagonia.
The furthest point any Canadian could have been from the European bases of PORTION CONTROL and FRONT 242, it’s an unlikely cradle for the development of industrial electronics. Nevertheless, SKINNY PUPPY was born there, in a perfect storm of sequencers and hair spray. FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY broke through the membrane when Bill Leeb left to make music in a different vein.
With a changing cast that mostly revolved around Leeb and Rhys Fulber, FLA put less of a focus on gothic theatrics than SKINNY PUPPY. The band’s sound owed more to Neal Stephenson than Vincent Price. Cybernetics, media, and power complexes became themes around which intense electronic sounds were built.
Leeb and Fulber have also spent time in the mainstream as DELERIUM – a project that allows them to explore their interests in ambient and epic synth work. The Left Coast’s natural beauty is clearly impressed into the project, along with influences from Jean-Michel Jarre, Klaus Schulze and TANGERINE DREAM.
Leeb has just released his first solo album. ‘Model Kollapse’ sits between the intensity of FLA and the fluidity of DELERIUM. With guest vocals from a fellow Vancouverite, Shannon Hemmett (ACTORS, LEATHERS), and contributions from DELERIUM collaborator Mimi Page and Jason Corbett (ACTORS), it adds textures that don’t sit neatly in either bucket. It is also a deeply personal collection of songs, assembled during a period of transition for Leeb.
“All I ever wanted was to be with you” goes a line on ‘Muted Obsession’. Is it a statement of regret or an argument for forgiveness? The urgent bass line doesn’t resolve the question, but it is sophisticated dark poptronica. It butts up against ‘Simulation’ which is spiked with the essence of PORTION CONTROL. The material on ‘Model Kollapse’ combines the feel of classics from the Industrial bins at Vancouver’s Odyssey Imports with the lessons of a lifetime on global stages.
Photo by Bobby Talamine
You can detect the influence of FRONT 242 in ‘Terror Forms’ and NITZER EBB in ‘Infernum’ but these are not derivative tracks. They are built on the rhythmic foundations of EBM, but the edifice is a cathedral of reverb, distortion, and insistent vocal lines. Leeb’s stylings infuse the material with classic FLA definition and intensity.
‘Model Kollapse’ sounds a warning about the encroachment of technology on our lives. A description of the tendency of AI systems to fall apart when exposed to their own outputs, the term highlights that we take the good with the bad. A rainy winter in North Vancouver, contemplating the passing of friends and discomfort about the growth of Big Data could lead you there. So could 52 minutes in the company of the resulting album.
DELERIUM are the moody new age offshoot of Canadian industrial duo FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY. Although the line-up has seen a number of changes since DELERIUM’s formation in 1987, there throughout has been Bill Leeb and apart from a short hiatus, Rhys Fulber.
Best known for their worldwide hit ‘Silence’ featuring the voice of Canadian singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan, DELERIUM have continued to use a variety of female guest vocalists on their albums since.
Their new album ‘Signs’ features Kanga, Mimi Page, Phildel and Inna Walters among its cast to provide the aching beauty and romanticism over DELERIUM’s enveloping dark electronic ambience and compelling rhythmic lattice.
Bill Leeb kindly took time out from rehearsals for an imminent tour with MINISTRY and Gary Numan to chat to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about the ‘Signs’ which DELERIUM followed in the making of their most recent opus…
The most recent album ‘Mythologie’ was in 2016, so how did you decide the time was right to return with DELERIUM?
Well, a lot has happened since 2016. A world pandemic which changed everything and affected the whole music world immensely. Everyone’s lives have changed since then, and with Rhys moving back to Canada from Los Angeles, we were able to reconnect, be in the same room and be inspired to create again. Time does fly…
Was DELERIUM originally conceived as an escape from the louder more bombastic nature of FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY?
Yes, DELERIUM has always been an escape for the other side of my brain. I have always had a real love for ambient, world music inspired sounds, from TANGERINE DREAM to THE ORB to MASSIVE ATTACK and so on. It made sense to explore that side of my interest with an 8 track tape recorder in my room, so off I went into the dark blue yonder! When I started out, sampling was still it its infancy so the possibilities seemed endless, but all that has changed now as well. I think it’s important for artists to have different avenues to explore.
How does the creative dynamic between you both alter in DELERIUM away from FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY?
The fact that we bring in singers for DELERIUM who write the lyrics and add musical ideas as well changes the whole dynamic instantly. I do all that with FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY so there is a pattern with DELERIUM working with all those different artists. There is a constant change of flow and ideas between us all and that dynamic is incredible at times because we all learn from each other as the ideas get developed.
‘Silence’ with Sarah McLachlan in all its various guises was an international success in 2000 and took a life of its own, so did you feel you had lost control of how DELERIUM was perceived at that point?
‘Silence’ changed our lives forever. I could write a book about it. It’s also hard to know where to start and end with it, because even as we speak, some brand mixes have just emerged that are also getting a lot of love. It has never stopped. The song was originally being mixed [in 1996] as an instrumental when the phone rang and it was Sarah, who said she had an idea for it.
So, we took a break, she came down, sang it twice and the rest is history. We were asked to be on ‘Top Of The Pops’ when the song hit number 3 on the UK chart, it went to number 1 in Ireland, and was also a huge hit in Belgium, Holland, Australia, a hit in Germany, the US and more. We have no control over it anymore and when you go on YouTube, the song has its own life and that’s it. Thank you, Sarah…
Technology moves fast as we know, so were there any technological developments that shaped the way you realised the music this time round compared with before?
Technology is insane and now with AI and voice recognition, musicians will start to become expandable. When we started there were no computers, everything had to be done manually and you had to be in the same room. There was no MIDI, just analog, so timing and tuning were a constant issue. Nowadays everything can be done on the digital highway worldwide. Adaptability is the key to everything in life and art. You wake up tomorrow and you are out of fashion, so the only thing you can really do and be in charge of is what you create and are happy with.
With the ethereal downtempo nature DELERIUM, the new album ‘Signs’ focusses again on female vocalists and voice samples, are there any particular reasons for this preference?
I have always wanted DELERIUM to be a spiritual-minded escape and adventure. The female voices help to create an ethereal ambience and vocal choir samples really lend themselves to the sound we are trying to create. That said, we have actually recorded the Leoni Men’s Choir in a church in Vancouver for a Gregorian chant sound, plus the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra as well.
Phildel and Mimi Page return as vocalists after their featured turns on ‘Mythologie’, the former on ‘Coast to Coast’ while the latter has three tracks ‘Falling Back to You’, ‘Remember Love’ and ‘Absolution’; how you go about choosing a suitable vocalist and how collaborative is the process?
Once we create a track we try and envision the type of singer we would like and what their voice might be like. We have a wish list, of course, but it’s not always that easy. We have built a great rapport with Mimi and Phildel and love what they bring to the table. Mimi actually brings song demos as well, so this is also an amazing way to collaborate. We have worked with a lot of singers over the years and this has always helped keep this experience exciting.
How did you connect up with fellow Canadian Kanga, her track ‘In the Deep’ is both mystical and accessible?
Kanga has history with Rhys as he produced her first album and that counts for a lot in this world. I actually approached him with the idea of working with Kanga. She was very gracious working with us and spending time in the cold water for the video. I think the lyric has a very profound meaning for her as it pertains to a personal experience of hers.
‘Streetcar’ with Inna Walters has some quite immediate pop qualities, how did the song come together and develop?
I think ‘Streetcar’ is a fabulous track and I fell in love with it the very first time I heard it. Inna is from England and when Rhys brought that demo into our camp via his connections, I couldn’t wait to work on it. Yes, it’s a bit different from all our other tracks but I think it’s an important song on the album and is one of my favourites, for sure…
‘Esque’ is a beautiful moody mid-album set piece, what made you decide to keep it instrumental rather than add vocals?
We had versions of this track with and without vocals. The one without also had some different programming. I thought the album needed a bit of balance, so putting an instrumental track there made sense.
Photo by Eric ‘Rodent’ Chesiak
Another instrumental ‘The Astronomer’ has this haunting classic Gary Numan vibe about it in the synth string part?
Again, I love this track, which Rhys began. We were inspired by the soundtrack for ‘Stranger Things’. We loved that it had that retro Numan vibe, which I don’t think we have ever made anything like in the past. Rhys had also acquired a new drum machine which really lent itself to this sound… and we love new toys as well.
‘Glimmer’ featuring Emily Haines is perhaps the oddity on the album in that it was first issued in 2015 but existed sometime before that?
The original had only previously been on a rarities release. Sometimes you do things on impulse and we wanted to give the song more of a dub vibe. I guess that’s all part of being an artist, in that sometimes you do things because you were in the mood that day. In case you don’t know, Emily Haines is an important Canadian vocalist from the band METRIC.
Which are your own favourite tracks from ‘Mythologie’?
‘Blue Fires’, ‘Ritual’, ‘Stay’ and ‘Ghost Requiem’ are definite highlights for me, plus I adore the artwork.
What is next for you either as DELERIUM, FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY or solo?
As FLA we are about to start a full US tour with Gary Numan and MINISTRY, immediately followed by mainland Europe for ten shows plus the WGT festival. In the fall we will play the Cold Waves Festival in Chicago plus a few other shows around that. As for DELERIUM, there will be a video for the new album song ‘Coast To Coast’ shot this month and we may also have remixes made in the near future. I am also working on a solo album for later in the year.
ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its sincerest thanks to Bill Leeb
As the world steadily emerged from a painful pandemic that put many lives on hold, nostalgia appeared to be the commodity most in demand as the music industry took steps to recover.
No matter which era, anything musically from the past was more desirable that anything that reminded the public of the past 20 or so months. The first escape destination in the summer for many restricted to staying on their own shores were the established retro festivals.
Meanwhile television provided an array of documentaries ranging from chart rundowns of past decades and informative classic song analysis on Channel 5 to Dylan Jones’ look at ‘Music’s Greatest Decade’ on BBC2 and Sky Arts’ ‘Blitzed’ with all the usual suspects such as Boy George, Philip Sallon, Marilyn, Gary Kemp and Rusty Egan.
SPARKS had their own comprehensive if slightly overlong film ‘The SPARKS Brothers’ directed by Edgar Wright, but the Maels’ musical ‘Annette’ starring Adam Driver was a step too far. Meanwhile the acclaimed ‘Sisters With Transistors’ presented the largely untold story of electronic music’s female pioneers.
It was big business for 40th anniversary live celebrations from the likes of HEAVEN 17, THE HUMAN LEAGUE, OMD and SOFT CELL, while other veterans such as NEW ORDER and ERASURE returned to the live circuit with the biggest indoor headlining shows of their career.
Meanwhile for 2022, Midge Ure announced an extensive ‘Voices & Visions’ tour to present material from the 1981-82 phase of ULTRAVOX.
Also next year and all being well, GOLDFRAPP will finally get their belated 20th Anniversary tour for their marvellous debut ‘Felt Mountain’ underway while there are rescheduled ‘Greatest Hits’ live presentations for PET SHOP BOYS and SIMPLE MINDS.
Always money for old rope, but also giving audiences who missed them at their pioneering height an opportunity to catch up, ‘best of’ collections were issued by YELLO and TELEX while JAPAN had their 1979 breakthrough album ‘Quiet Life’ given the lavish boxed set treatment. Meanwhile, while many labels were still doing their best to kill off CD, there was the puzzling wide scale return of the compact cassette, a poor quality carrier even at the zenith of its popularity.
“Reissue! Repackage! Repackage! Re-evaluate the songs! Double-pack with a photograph, extra track and a tacky badge!” a disgraced Northern English philosopher once bemoaned.
The boosted market for deluxe boxed sets and the repackaging of classic albums in coloured vinyl meant that the major corporations such as Universal, Sony and Warners hogged the pressing plants, leaving independent artists with lead times of nearly a year for delivery if they were lucky.
But there was new music in 2021. Having achieved the milestone of four decades as a recording act, DURAN DURAN worked with Giorgio Moroder on the appropriately titled ‘Future Past’ while not far behind, BLANCMANGE took a ‘Commercial Break’ and FIAT LUX explored ‘Twisted Culture’. David Cicero made his belated return to music with a mature second album that was about ‘Today’ as Steven Jones & Logan Sky focussed on the monochromatic mood of ‘European Lovers’. Continuing the European theme but towards the former Eastern Bloc, Mark Reeder gave a reminder that he was once declared ‘Subversiv-Dekadent’ and fellow Mancunians UNE became inspired by the ‘Spomenik’ monoliths commissioned by Marshal Tito in the former Yugoslavia.
For those who preferred to immerse themselves in the darker present, Gary Numan presented ‘Intruder’, a poignant concept album produced by Ade Fenton about Mother Earth creating a virus to teach mankind a lesson! Meanwhile ITALOCONNECTION, the project of Italo veterans Fred Ventura and Paolo Gozzetti teamed up with French superstar Etienne Daho to tell the story of ‘Virus X’! The video of the year came from UNIFY SEPARATE whose motivation message to ‘Embrace The Fear’ despite the uncertainty reflected the thoughts of many.
Despite the general appetite for nostalgia, there was some excellent new music released from less established artists with the album of the year coming from Jorja Chalmers and her ‘Midnight Train’ released on Italians Do It Better. The critical acclaim for the UK based Aussie’s second long playing solo offering made up for the disbandment of the label’s biggest act CHROMATICS, as it went into its most prolific release schedule in its history with albums by GLÜME, JOON, DLINA VOLNY and LOVE OBJECT as well as its own self-titled compilation of in-house Madonna covers.
Attracting a lot of attention in 2021 were NATION OF LANGUAGE, who with their catchy blend of angst, melody and motorik beats welcomed synths as family in their evolving sound while also providing the song of the year in ‘This Fractured Mind’, reflecting the anxieties of these strange times. At the other end of the spectrum, DIAMOND FIELD went full pop with an optimistic multi-vocalist collection that captured the spirit of early MTV while BUNNY X looked back on their high school days with ‘Young & In Love’.
ACTORS delivered their most synthy album yet while as LEATHERS, they keyboardist Shannon Hamment went the full hog for her debut solo effort ‘Reckless’. FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY released a new album and some of that ‘Mechanical Soul’ was brought by their Rhys Fulber into his productions this year for AESTHETIC PERFECTION.
Featuring second generation members of NEW ORDER and SECTION 25, SEA FEVER released their eclectic debut ‘Folding Lines’ as fellow Mancunian LONELADY added sequencers and drum machines to her post-punk funk template. But Glasgow’s CHVRCHES disappointed with their fourth long player ‘Screen Violence’ by opting to sound like every other tired hipster band infesting the land.
The most promising artist to breakthrough in 2021 was Hattie Cooke whose application of traditional songwriting nous to self-production and arrangement techniques using comparatively basic tools such as GarageBand found a wider audience via her third album ‘Bliss Land’. In all, it was a strong year for female synth-friendly artists with impressive albums from Karin My, Laura Dre, Alina Valentina, Robin Hatch and Catherine Moan while comparative veterans like Fifi Rong, Alice Hubble, Brigitte Handley and Alison Lewis as ZANIAS maintained their cult popularity.
With ‘The Never Ending’ being billed as the final FM ATTACK album and PERTURBATOR incorrectly paraphrased by Metal Hammer in a controversial “synthwave is dead” declaration, the community got itself in a pickle by simultaneously attacking THE WEEKND for “stealing from synthwave”, yet wanting to ride on the coat tails of Abel Tesfaye, misguidedly sensing an opportunity to snare new fans for their own music projects.
With THE WEEKND’s most recent single ‘Take My Breath’, there was the outcry over the use of a four note arpeggio allegedly sampled from MAKEUP & VANITY SET’s ‘The Last City’. But as one online observer put it, “Wow, an arpeggiated minor chord. Hate to break it to you but you might want to check out what Giorgio Moroder was doing 50 years ago. We’re ALL just rippin’ him off if that’s how you think creativity works”. Another added “If a four note minor key arpeggiated chord can go to court on the basis of copyright law, we are in for a hell of a few years my synthy friends”. It outlined once again that there are some who are still under the impression that music using synths was invented by Ryan Gosling in 2011 for ‘Drive’ soundtrack ??
There were also belated complaints that 2019’s A-HA inspired ‘Blinding Lights’ had a simple melody and needed five writers to realise it… but then, so did UTRAVOX’s ‘Slow Motion’ and DURAN DURAN’s ‘Rio’! Collaboration, whether in bands, with producers or even outsiders has always been a key aspect of the compositional process. If it is THAT simple, do it yourself! As Andy McCluskey of OMD said on ‘Synth Britannia’ in 2009 about the pioneering era when Ryan Gosling was still in nappies: “The number of people who thought that the equipment wrote the song for you: ‘well anybody can do it with the equipment you’ve got!’ “F*** OFF!!”
Over the last two years, THE WEEKND has become the biggest mainstream pop act on the planet, thanks to spectacles such as the impressive gothic theatre of the Super Bowl LV half time showcase while in a special performance on the BRITS, there was a charming presentation of the ERASURE-ish ‘Save Your Tears’ where he played air synth in a moment relatable to many. But everything is ultimately down to catchy songs, regardless of synth usage.
So ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK would like to present a hypothetical case to consider… if someone uses the arpeggio function with a sparkling patch from a Juno 6 synth in a recording, does Cyndi Lauper sue for infringing the copyright of ‘All Through The Night’ or the original songwriter Jules Shear or even the Roland Corporation themselves as they created it? More than one producer has suggested that THE WEEKND’s soundbite came from a hardware preset or more than likely, a software sample pack, of which there are now many.
However, sample culture had hit another new low when Tracklib marketed a package as “A real game-changer for sample based music. Now everyone can afford to clear samples” with rapper and producer Erick Sermon declaring “Yo, this is incredible. They’re trying to put creativity back into music again. By having samples you can actually pay for and afford”.
Err creativity? How about writing your own songs and playing or even programming YOUR OWN instrumentation??!? One sampling enthusiast even declared “I might go as far as to say you don’t really like dance music if you’ve got a problem with adding a beat to a huge (even instantly recognizable) sample”… well guess what? ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK LOATHES IT!!! ?
In 2021, music promotion became a bit strange with publicists at all levels keen more than ever to have their clients’ press releases just cut ‘n’ pasted onto online platforms, but very reluctant to allow albums to be reviewed in advance in the event of a potential negative prognosis.
While cut ‘n’ paste journalism has been a disease that has always afflicted online media, in a sad sign of the times, one long established international website moved to a “pay to get your press release featured” business model.
The emergence of reaction vloggers was another bizarre development while the “Mention your favourite artist and see if they respond to you” posts on social media only added more wood to the dumbing down bonfire already existing within audience engagement.
It was as if the wider public was no longer interested in more in-depth analysis while many artists turned their publicity into a reliance on others doing “big ups” via Twitter and Facebook. But then, if artists are being successfully crowdfunded with subscriptions via Patreon, Kickstarter, Bandcamp and the like, do they need a media intermediary any longer as they are dealing direct with their fanbases?
However, it wasn’t all bad in the media with ‘Electronically Yours With Martyn Ware’ providing insightful artist interviews and the largely entertaining ‘Beyond Synth’ podcast celebrating its 300th show. Due to their own music commitments, Steven Wilson and Tim Bowness were less prolific with their discussion show ‘The Album Years’ but it was still refreshing for commentators to be able to say that a record was sh*t when it actually was, rather than conform to the modern day adage that all music is good but not always to the listener’s taste! And while various programmes came and went, other such as ‘Operating//Generating’, ‘KZL Live’ and ‘Absynth’ came to prominence.
Post-pandemic, interesting if uncertain times are ahead within the music industry. But as live performance returns, while the mainstream is likely to hit the crowd walking, will there be enough cost effective venues to host independent artists? Things have been tough but for some, but things might be about to get even tougher.
However, music was what got many through the last 18 months and as times are still uncertain, music in its live variant will help to get everyone through the next year and a half and beyond.
Los Angeles-born, Austrian-based artist Daniel Graves is the main man behind AESTHETIC PERFECTION.
It’s an industrial pop project that can veer in and out of electro, EBM, goth, alternative rock, metal and aggrotech, thanks to Graves’ love of artists such as diverse as Justin Timberlake, Darren Hayes, Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Trent Reznor and Marilyn Manson.
Following 2019’s ‘Into The Black’ album, Graves announced a 2021 schedule of releasing one AESTHETIC PERFECTION single per month funded by his Patreon supporters. It is a return of sorts to Graves’ singles only experiment of 2016-2018 which allowed him the freedom to broaden his vocal and production horizons, with the result being one of the best recordings of his career in ‘Rhythm + Control’.
The most recent single ‘Gravity’ has been produced by Rhys Fulber of FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY. It reflects on Graves’ struggles to keep his feet on the ground as he loses touch with reality, crushed beneath the weight of existence, while slowly being pulled away from it. It’s a feeling that many can relate to. Daniel Graves gave another enlightening interview to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about the future of music and how he is responding to an ever changing market place.
After your singles experiment of 2016-2018 which included ‘LAX’, ‘Love Like Lies’, ‘Rhythm + Control’ and ‘Ebb & Flow’, you produced an album ‘Into The Black’ in 2019. And now you are back with a run of singles at a rate of one per month, why have you returned to this “singles” format?
I’ve always believed the singles format to be the way of the future. From an artistic point of view, I looked at the creation of ‘Into The Black’ kind of like a commission; as if I were a sculptor or painter. It wasn’t something I would have created had I been left on my own, but I enjoyed the process and am happy with the result.
That doesn’t mean I think the way forward is albums. If anything, the pandemic has accelerated the streaming and singles model. I’m watching my friends and colleagues absolutely devastated because the records they’ve been releasing in the last 12-14 months get no traction. The social media timeline turns over every 3-4 weeks, and in order to stay in the public consciousness, you’ve gotta keep up.
So how do you look back on ‘Into The Black’, the pros and cons of making it and then the promotion after?
Working on ‘Into The Black’ was a lot of fun, and I did enjoy the singular focus that takes place when trying to complete a big project. I wasn’t on social media trying to promote myself or worrying about tours or any of the ancillary stuff that comes with being an independent musician – I was just locked into the creative mindset.
However, that’s a double edged sword, because you’re not really seeing what’s going on in the world around you. I feel like great artists know how to “read the room” and figure out how their voice fits into the world at large. That’s hard to do when you’ve got your nose buried in a big project.
The promotional aspect is very difficult, because even before the pandemic, “the churn” as I like to call it, moves quickly. You’ve only got a small window of time to drum up interest in your project, and getting people to sit down and consume (and digest) 10 new songs is an impossible task. Back when you could tour, there was some amount of wiggle room, as live shows gave you the opportunity to showcase that new music, and continually remind the world you exist. However, these days, you’ve got your couple weeks and then the door closes.
Do you think your very eclectic music tastes are partly contributing to your mindset to not lock AESTHETIC PERFECTION into any one style or ethos?
I grew up on artists like NINE INCH NAILS and David Bowie and Michael Jackson… artists who continually evolved and took risks. I sort of just assumed that’s what you did when you were a creator. As I got older and more involved in music, I found myself quickly losing interest in bands and artists who didn’t evolve. It shaped my entire creative worldview and made evolution a part of my artistic DNA. Whether or not that helps success or hinders it is anyone’s guess. Perhaps in an alternate universe where I’d stayed the course and rehashed ‘A Violent Emotion’ for the last 12 years, I’d be a megastar!
The first single of the schedule ‘S E X’ has a wonderfully deviant tone about it?
I don’t often write songs about sex. I was never sure why until I started writing ‘S E X’. As a creator, I’ve always tried to say things that I haven’t heard from other artists… or I at least try to add new perspectives to subjects and themes.
I suspect, on a subconscious level, I was never inspired to write about sex because so many other artists were doing it. You can’t turn on the radio without hearing a song about sex… so what could I possibly have to offer that would add to the conversation?
However, at some point, I realized that even though there are tons of songs out there about sex, there aren’t a lot of contemporary songs about love and passion. ‘S E X’ is really my way of trying to capture and express THAT view of sexuality.
‘Party Monster’ is reflective of the approach you took on ‘Rhythm + Control’ with a heavier guitar take, twinned with a more electro version, in this case by Deadbeat?
“Deadbeat” is the de facto moniker I adopt whenever remixing my own songs for the club. If you take a look through my discography, you’ll find a number of Deadbeat remixes (usually of tracks that aren’t clubby by nature). The electro version of ‘Rhythm + Control’ should by rights be referred to as a Deadbeat Remix actually, but it was the original version that was completed before Jinxx came through and cut the guitars (which was really just an afterthought). Technically, the version with the guitars is the remix, but it was just so much better than the “original”!
‘Dead Zone’ is classic industrial pop AESTHETIC PERFECTION, what inspired that track?
I’ve spent a lot of my time in lockdown reflecting on myself, my life, and my work. The endeavor has been simultaneously traumatic and transformative. It feels almost as if I’ve gone into a cocoon, a dead zone, if you will, to work through all these things – hopefully, to emerge on the other side as something better.
With your known love of pop, what have you thought about THE WEEKND’s recent Max Martin produced synth excursions ‘Blinding Lights’ and ‘Save Your Tears’?
To be 100% honest, I’m not as in love with the synthwave vibes of THE WEEKND’s new tracks as I was with his earlier work. I totally understand WHY these songs were produced that way (that style is HUGE right now), but as someone who is not personally a big fan of retro genres, it doesn’t speak to me so much. They’re well-crafted productions with top notch songwriting, but they don’t feel fresh to me.
In my mind, art is about using inspiration from the past to build something new and exciting in the future. Synthwave really is at odds with my musical philosophy in that regard. However, I *do* feel like synthwave is starting to craft its own identity apart from the nostalgia factor. A lot of the offshoot genres like Industrial Bass Music or EBSM are fresh and really getting my attention.
‘Automaton’ and ‘Gravity’ were both produced and mixed by Rhys Fulber of FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY, how did that association come about?
Facebook Messenger! I literally just wrote Rhys a Facebook message asking if he’d be interested in producing some music with me. As luck would have it, we had a number of friends in common and decided to start working on a couple tracks together. I feel like Rhys’s experience with industrial, metal and pop really make him uniquely suited to both understand and help me realize my musical vision. Definitely looking forward to more collaborations in the future.
Will you eventually compile these 12 singles as an album, or perhaps do a compilation including the 2016-2018 work?
Part of the promise of this project was that if I reached a certain number of Patreon supporters, I would collect the singles and release them as an album sometime next year. It was a very ambitious goal, I wasn’t exactly sure if I would be able to hit it. To my surprise (and many others as well) we hit it within 3 months. Which just goes to show how incredible the level of support is from my fans and from my community.
However, I also have no illusions about the state of the music industry. First of all: The world at large does not care about re-releases. They want NEW material and nothing else. Second: The world at large does not care about albums. Both of those things work against my plans, but I think if I do a very small run of physical releases (probably exactly the count of my Patreon supporters so each of them have a chance to get their hands on one) it will be okay. A good artist knows how to read the room, right?
Regarding the singles from 2016-2018: All those singles were already released on the deluxe edition of ‘Into The Black’ in September 2019!
There appears to still be demand for the long playing format, but is it cost effective for you as an independent artist now?
If there’s demand for the LP format, I don’t see it. I see people talking about it online, but I believe those people to be the vocal minority. Like my Facebook page is filled with people demanding I return to the sound and singing style of ’A Violent Emotion’. However, when you look at the actual metrics, like sales and streams and all of that, you see that the silent majority has a different opinion. When observing the actual metrics of CD sales and how LPs perform against singles in the world of streaming, a very clear picture emerges: Albums are losing ground more than ever before.
Again, it’s my job to read the room. So if the trend changes, you can bet I’ll be back on the album horse. However, I currently see no reason to invest months or years of my life into producing an album when people are only gonna listen to one or two songs and have the rest be forgotten in a matter of weeks.
Which is the upcoming single everyone should be looking out for that might spring a surprise?
The single for June is absolutely coming out of leftfield. It’s an AESTHETIC PERFECTION take on the beloved European concept of a “Summer Hit”. I expect a bunch of VERY p*ssed off people! I’m also planning a Christmas song for December so… get ready!
Have you a personal favourite out of this campaign?
‘Party Monster’ and ‘Dead Zone’ I think are great examples of my dedication to both brutal honesty and experimentation within the AESTHETIC PERFECTION framework. They may not be the most popular songs of mine, but they certainly mean the most to me.
Have you been able to make any future plans despite everything, how do you think things will pan out?
I’m an artist. I thrive in chaos. I’ve also learned to make the best of a bad situation. I feel like no matter what happens, I will be ready and willing to face it head on.
ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Daniel Graves
‘Gravity’, ‘S E X’, ‘Party Monster’, ‘Automaton’ and ‘Dead Zone’ are available to download, along with the AESTHETIC PERFECTION back catalogue from http://aestheticperfection.bandcamp.com/
Few, if any musicians on the electronic music scene could claim to be as prolific as the duo of Rhys Fulber and Bill Leeb.
The Canadian-based pair have collaborated as FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY, DELERIUM, INTERMIX and NOISE UNIT and have also brought their musical talents to several other diverse projects over the last 35 years. Rhys Fulber kindly took time out of his busy PR schedule to talk about the new FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY release ‘Mechanical Soul’ and a selection of some of his high profile side-projects.
How important was the influence of your father on you getting into music?
Hugely important. His record collection alone was a solid foundation for anyone, but then the fact our dining room was a jam space from when I was 5 or so meant there were always instruments set up to mess around with. The keyboard player in the bar band he played with had a Minimoog, so I remember playing with that when I was 7 or so. I also started playing drums maybe even earlier than that.
Who were your earliest musical influences?
KRAFTWERK is number one. My parents took me to a show when I was 5 and I still remember it. After that it’s Pete Shelley’s ‘Homosapien’ album and all the BUZZCOCKS original LPs. Their music really connected with me when I was young and still does today.
What kind of effect did growing up in Canada have on your music?
Vancouver was still very colonial when I grew up so we got more of the British music scene than the US, as well as Canada promoting a lot of their in house bands so we had our own take on things in some ways. Also Vancouver was a world class studio city already in the 80s so there was a culture of that in Vancouver. All the studios we worked in were first rate, and connected to a famous Canadian musician, like Bryan Adams or Paul Dean.
How much have the themes of ‘Mechanical Soul’ been influenced by the situation of the pandemic?
I think maybe lyrically a bit. I was still living in LA when we started the album so we were already used to working remotely, so it wasn’t a big change for us in that way.
What have been your other sources of song material for the album?
I had clips of music from various things and times that we pulled together as the basis. One was meant to be for my solo techno material as well, so it was a bigger variety of starting points that usual. We used to get in a room together and write all the music so this one is different in that way. I had some track ideas and Bill made suggestions to them and then added vocals and lyrics, so in some ways we both focused on our roles more than in the past in a way.
Were there any particular synths or pieces of technology that had an impact on the making of ‘Mechanical Soul’?
Each one had a different key piece. I added that to the liner notes; which was the featured instrument on each. For instance, the main riff of ‘Alone’ was from a borrowed Moog Model 15 reissue that I just recorded jams on for a day and pieced those core elements together from that. The single ‘Unknown’ has a lot of a Roland Alpha Juno 2 synth I think I have only used on maybe two other songs over 20 years or so…
You have two featured songs out of the 157(!) on the recent ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ computer game. What is the story behind ‘Drained’ and ‘Subvert’, were they written specifically for the product?
Yes, they were. I was put in touch with one of the music supervisors as just a general contact, because he had worked for a label FLA had released for in the past and he just asked if I would be interested in submitting some ideas to this new game project. I had submitted a total of 6 or 7 tracks and they chose those two. The song ‘Stifle’ on ‘Mechanical Soul’ was one of the tracks that didn’t make the cut. Bill liked it so we developed it into a Front Line song. Two tracks on my last solo album ‘Ostalgia’ were also from those sessions, and the ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ material spawned the rest of that album as well, as it was done at the same time.
In pre-pandemic times, FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY co-headlined with DIE KRUPPS on the ‘Machinists United Tour’, what are your recollections of those shows?
It was a pretty good tour. Just adding another name band does a lot for the draw it seems, so we had some shows that we hadn’t had in a while in places like Munich for instance.
What means most to you? Recording new material or playing live?
Well, you can’t have live without the studio for this music, so I think the studio means more to me although I really like both.
Sampling has always been at the core of your musical projects, what have been the highs and lows of creating songs using this creation method?
Sampling is just like another form of synthesis to me so it’s hard to extract it as a separate thing now. We didn’t think too much about what we sampled other than if it sounded good. I still think that holds true now, though I have just gotten much more covert with how I do it now. Random and obscure sources, for instance.
‘Voices’, which featured on the INTERMIX album, has always been a favourite. What are your memories of working on this album?
I don’t remember that album too well. I remember the mix room and the gear we used, but it’s not exactly clear. It was a busy time and we made that album fairly quickly as a way to experiment with new ideas without committing them to FLA. So it was like a testing site album.
From the same album, ‘S+M=y’ features a sample from Clive Barker’s seminal horror film ‘Hellraiser’. Was there a specific process with getting the “we’ll tear your soul apart” dialogue cleared, or was this an early case of let’s sample it and hope no-one will notice?
We didn’t think that way then at all. We just sampled whatever. It wasn’t until ‘Millennium’ (1994) that we had to atone for our sins!
In terms of commercial success, the DELERIUM track ‘Silence’ sticks out. The original version still stands up, but how did you feel when the trance versions brought the track to a more mainstream audience?
It was pretty surreal, like you are somehow disconnected to it. But who can complain about a magic moment like that? I think hits have to be accidents, because nothing about that was planned.
You have produced for other artists, notably working on KANGA’s superb eponymously titled album and ‘Automaton’, the upcoming single by AESTHETIC PERFECTION. What do you think makes a good producer?
Someone who can make an artist comfortable and not afraid to try new things and push themselves. It’s usually done with lots of support and being careful with words and constructive criticism.
You have worked with co-collaborator Bill Leeb for over 30+ years now. What do you feel helps to keep that relationship fresh creatively?
It is mainly around a similar taste and we still listen to new things. I think our working relationship is better than ever because there has been so much trust built up.
How influenced are you by current forms of music?
Moderately. I think you can’t have stale beats in electronic music, so it’s good to hear what the current sounds are to keep your sound fresh without jumping too much on one thing. As you get older you realise being yourself is the most important, but buying new shoes and a jacket really helps.
Do you feel that the Industrial format is a bit of a straitjacket? Is this a reason why you have pursued several side projects?
It doesn’t have to be, but I think the audience wants the bands they like to deliver the sound they were drawn to. When you go too far off that they feel betrayed somehow. It’s easier just to have another banner to keep everyone happy.
Your CV of outside artists you have worked from a production / remix perspective with is pretty incredible including MÖTLEY CRÜE and MEGADETH as well as Alice Cooper, Sarah Brightman, Sinéad O’Connor; do you find working with other artists more or less stressful than working on your own material?
It really depends. Both can be very stressful. Working on your own, you can lose perspective which can really slow things down, whereas with a band or something there are more ears in the room.
You have been pretty vocal about the way that streaming sites such as Spotify give musicians a raw deal when it comes to royalties. What musical formats do you tend to generate most of your income from?
It’s hard to answer that because I get income from so many places now after so many years in the business, and sometimes it’s really random; suddenly one song will get used somewhere and you get a blip, so I can’t complain too much. I just think YouTube and Spotify is devaluing art in many ways and it’s hard to steer away from ‘free’ for a lot of people once the toothpaste is squeezed from the tube. I much prefer the model Bandcamp have come up with, where you get some streaming and the appreciation of tangible product as well.
You are stuck on a desert island, what is the one piece of electronic gear you would have with you and why?
My Waldorf Q+. It literally can do it all, and very well!
ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Rhys Fulber
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