| Industrial rock | |
|---|---|
 Industrial rock bandKMFDM | |
| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Late 1970s to early 1980s; United States, United Kingdom, Germany |
| Fusion genres | |
| Industrial metal | |
| Regional scenes | |
| Germany | |
| Other topics | |
Industrial rock is afusion genre that fusesindustrial music androck music. Originally emerging in the late 1970s to early 1980s, pioneered by artists such asChrome,Killing Joke,Swans,Big Black andSkinny Puppy, the movement was further proliferated in the late 1980s byWax Trax! Records inChicago, with artists likeFront 242,Front Line Assembly,KMFDM, andSister Machine Gun.
Subsequently, the movement would lead to the emergence of genre fusions and subgenres likeelectro-industrial,industrial metal,martial industrial,industrial hip-hop,industrial dance andindustrial techno. By the 1990s, broader industrial music genres were made accessible to mainstream audiences through the popularity of acts such asNine Inch Nails,Ministry,Rammstein,Marilyn Manson, all of whom released platinum-selling records.
Industrial rock is defined by the merging of rock music with influences lifted fromindustrial music,electronic, andavant-garde music. Industrial rock bands are characterized by harsh, abrasive sounds, blending distorted, aggressive guitar riffs with electronic textures and experimental production techniques.[1] Exemplified by artists who signed to industrial focused independent record labelWax Trax! Records, while some industrial rock artists later overlapped withindustrial metal.[2]
Cromagnon's 1969 recordOrgasm has been credited with foreshadowing the industrial rock sound, withAllMusic describing it as sounding "like it could be aMinistry [...] recording from 1989".[3]Pitchfork labelled the opening track "Caledonia" as a "pre-industrial stomp".[4]
During the 1970s,industrial music emerged through the early works ofThrobbing Gristle,Cabaret Voltaire,NON,SPK andZ'EV.[5] SAlongside, New York City bandSuicide, formed in 1970, byAlan Vega andMartin Rev, whose 1977debut album has been credited with providing "the blueprints for [...] industrial rock".[6] Furthermore,Iggy Pop who released his debut solo albumThe Idiot, produced byDavid Bowie, in 1977, was later retroactively recognized as a forerunner to industrial rock,[7] particularly the closing track, "Mass Production', which contains numerous "proto-industrial noises" created usingtape loops,[8][9] which Hugo Wilcken described as "early industrial electronica."[10][11]Ian Curtis ofJoy Division, cited the album as an inspiration, and later influenced the work ofTrent Reznor ofNine Inch Nails, who'd cover their song "Dead Souls".[12] Other influences on industrial rock includeEinstürzende Neubauten,Alien Sex Fiend, andCome.
By the late 1970s,post-punk andpost-hardcore bands began incorporating elements ofindustrial music into rock music. Music critics retroactively credit theSan Francisco bandChrome with sparking the "beginning of industrial rock."[13][14]Killing Joke described by music journalistSimon Reynolds as "a post-punk version ofheavy metal"[15] emerged as an influential band in the development of industrial rock music, their albumNight Time (1985) saw mainstream success and influencedTrent Reznor ofNine Inch Nails.[16][17][18] Subsequently, New York City bandSwans emerged and drew influence from the localno wave scene, most notablyGlenn Branca'sTheoretical Girls "You Got Me",[19] as well as punk rock,noise music (particularlyWhitehouse) and the original industrial groups.[20]Chris Connelly said the musical projectFoetus was "the instigator when it comes to the marriage of machinery tohardcore punk."[21]
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During the early 1980s,Steve Albini's bandBig Black blendedpost-hardcore andnoise rock with industrial music.[22][23] The Swiss trioThe Young Gods, who deliberately eschewed electric guitars in favor of asampler,[24] also took inspiration from both hardcore and industrial.[25] In 1986, Canadian bandSkinny Puppy released the albumMind: The Perpetual Intercourse,[26] with its lead single, "Dig It", seeing frequent airplay onMTV.[27] The song was a major influence onNine Inch Nails founderTrent Reznor, who used it as inspiration when writing his first song, "Down in It".[28]: 38
By the late 1980s, Chicago'sWax Trax! Records became a central hub for the genre, further popularizing it across the United States.[29][30] The label was started by Jim Nash and Dannie Flesher. The label went on to distribute some of the most prominent names in industrial throughout the late 1980s and 1990s, with artists likeFront 242,Front Line Assembly,KMFDM, andSister Machine Gun. In 1988,Ministry, released their albumThe Land of Rape and Honey, which drew from hardcore punk andthrash metal, while retaining electronic elements and samples.[31][32] Ministry frontmanAl Jourgensen was also involved in multiple industrial rock side projects that were signed to Wax Trax!, includingRevolting Cocks,1000 Homo DJs andPailhead.[33] Drawing heavy influences from New York's no wave scene,Cop Shoot Cop replaced lead guitars with bass.[34]
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In the 1990s, industrial rock broke into the mainstream with artists and bands such asNine Inch Nails,Orgy,Rob Zombie,White Zombie, andMarilyn Manson. In December 1992, Nine Inch Nails' EPBroken was certified platinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[35] Nine Inch Nails gained further popularity with the release of their 1994 albumThe Downward Spiral, which was certified 4× platinum by the RIAA in 1998.[36] The band's 1999 albumThe Fragile was certified 2× platinum in January 2000.[37] With the success of Nine Inch Nails, the band's debut albumPretty Hate Machine was certified 3× platinum by the RIAA.[38] In the 1990s, four Nine Inch Nails songs went on theBillboard Hot 100.[39] Several industrial rock and industrial metal artists such asKMFDM,Fear Factory,Gravity Kills andSister Machine Gun appeared on the 1995Mortal Kombat: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack,[40] which was certified platinum by the RIAA in January 1996.[41]
Marilyn Manson released their albumAntichrist Superstar in 1996, which was certified platinum by the RIAA two months after its release date.[42] In the United States,Antichrist Superstar sold at least 1,900,000 units.[43] Marilyn Manson's EPSmells Like Children was certified platinum in May 1998.[44] The band's third albumMechanical Animals went to number 1, dethroningLauryn Hill's solo debutThe Miseducation of Lauryn Hill and selling 223,000 copies in its first week in stores.[45] It was certified platinum by the RIAA in February 1999[46] and sold at least 1,409,000 copies in the United States.[47]Orgy also experienced mainstream success during the 1990s. The band's 1998 albumCandyass was certified platinum by the RIAA in July 1999.[48] Orgy's cover ofNew Order's song "Blue Monday" went to number 56 on theBillboard Hot 100[49] and number 2 on theDance Club Songs chart.[50] White Zombie experimented withindustrial metal on its 1995 albumAstro-Creep: 2000,[51] which was certified 2× platinum by the RIAA in March 1996.[52] White Zombie's vocalistRob Zombie began creating pure industrial metal albums in his solo career. Rob Zombie's 1998 solo debut studio albumHellbilly Deluxe was certified 3× platinum by the RIAA less than two years after its release date.[53] In November 1999,Powerman 5000's albumTonight the Stars Revolt! was certified platinum by the RIAA.[54] The album sold at least 1,316,172 units in the United States.[55]A large Industrial metal scene also emerged in Europe in the 20th century. The Industrial Metal band that manages to appeal to the largest audiences worldwide isRammstein.Other names have also proven successful in the European scene, includingPain,Deathstars,Dagoba,Eisbrecher,Gothminister andGodflesh.
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