Industrial music is a genre of music that draws on harsh, mechanical, transgressive, or provocative sounds and themes. AllMusic defines industrial music as the "most abrasive and aggressive fusion of rock and electronic music" that was "initially a blend of avant-garde electronics experiments and punk provocation." The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by members of Throbbing Gristle and Monte Cazazza. While the genre name originated with Throbbing Gristle's emergence in the United Kingdom, artists and labels vital to the genre also emerged in the United States and other countries.
Throbbing Gristle were an English music and visual arts group formed in Kingston upon Hull by Genesis P-Orridge and Cosey Fanni Tutti, later joined by Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson and Chris Carter. They are widely regarded as pioneers of industrial music. Evolving from the experimental performance art group COUM Transmissions, Throbbing Gristle made their public debut in October 1976 in the COUM exhibition Prostitution, and released their debut single "United/Zyklon B Zombie" and debut album The Second Annual Report the following year. P-Orridge's lyrics mainly revolved around mysticism, extremist political ideologies, sexuality, dark or underground aspects of society, and idiosyncratic manipulation of language inspired by the techniques of William S. Burroughs.
Genesis Breyer P-Orridge was an English singer-songwriter, musician, poet, performance artist, visual artist, and occultist who rose to notoriety as the founder of the COUM Transmissions artistic collective and lead vocalist of seminal industrial band Throbbing Gristle. They were also a founding member of Thee Temple ov Psychick Youth occult group, and fronted the experimental pop rock band Psychic TV.
Psychic TV were an English experimental video art and music group, formed by performance artist Genesis P-Orridge and Scottish musician Alex Fergusson in 1981 after the break-up of Throbbing Gristle.
COUM Transmissions was a music and performance art collective who operated in the United Kingdom from 1969 through to 1976. The collective was influenced by the Dada and surrealism artistic movements, the writers of the Beat Generation, and underground music. COUM were openly confrontational and subversive, challenging aspects of conventional British society. Founded in Hull, Yorkshire, by Genesis P-Orridge, other prominent early members included Cosey Fanni Tutti and Spydeee Gasmantell. Part-time members included Tim Poston, Brook Menzies, Haydn Robb, Les Maull, Ray Harvey, John (Jonji) Smith, Foxtrot Echo, Fizzy Paet, and John Gunni Busck. Later members included Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson and Chris Carter, who together with P-Orridge and Tutti went on to found the pioneering industrial band Throbbing Gristle in 1976.
Cosey Fanni Tutti is an English performance artist, musician and writer, best known for her time in the avant-garde groups Throbbing Gristle and Chris & Cosey.
Paula P-Orridge, also known as Alaura O'Dell, is an English musician, writer and entrepreneur.
Trip Reset is a 1996 album credited to Genesis P-Orridge and Psychic TV featuring The Angels of Light.
Old Europa Cafe is an Italian independent record label and mail order service specializing in ambient music, noise music, electronic music, and industrial music. It is based in Pordenone. Originating in the early 1980s Old Europa Cafe began as a small cassette label. Some of the original Old Europa Cafe artists included De Fabriek, Mauro Teho Teardo, and Brume. According to founder Rodolfo Protti, Old Europa Cafe has two guidelines for musick it releases—uncompromising industrial sounds and esoteric dark ambient styles.
Cold Spring is an independent record label based in Northamptonshire, England, specialising in "all forms of extreme media, but particularly: dark ambient, neo-classical/neo-folk, orchestral, power electronics/noise, Japanese noise, minimal, death industrial, dark soundtracks, experimental, obscure electronics from Russia, China, Japan, Poland and others."
Force the Hand of Chance is the debut studio album by English experimental group Psychic TV, released in 1982 by record label Some Bizzare. The first 5,000 pressings came with a bonus album, Themes.
Dreams Less Sweet is the second studio album by English experimental band Psychic TV, released in 1983. It was the last Psychic TV album to feature co-founder Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson.
Thee Majesty was a British industrial music group.
Pagan Day (originally released as A Pagan Day (Pages From a Notebook)) is a 1984 album by English experimental band Psychic TV. The cover photograph is of Caresse P-Orridge taken by Andrew Rawling.
Jack the Tab/Tekno Acid Beat is a compilation of material by Psychic TV released under the guise of two various artists compilation albums, Jack the Tab – Acid Tablets Volume One and Tekno Acid Beat.
Splinter Test was used as a group name for Larry Thrasher and Genesis P-Orridge. The name was first used for a box set of reissues of the more experimental material by Psychic TV, and then it was used to issue the spoken word projects of Psychic TV or their instrumental music, before the foundation of Thee Majesty. The name refers to an essay on sampling as holographic magick by P-Orridge.
Wesley Eisold is an American musician, poet and author. He records music under the name Cold Cave, and runs the publishing house Heartworm Press.
Rebellion Is Over is a split EP by Genesis Breyer P-Orridge, Black Rain and Cold Cave, released on October 15, 2015, by Dais Records.
You & Me & Infinity is an EP by synthpop/darkwave band Cold Cave, released on April 27, 2018, by Heartworm Press.
