Digimortal | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | April 24, 2001 | |||
Recorded | September 30 − November 4, 2000 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 43:23 | |||
Label | Roadrunner | |||
Producer |
| |||
Fear Factory chronology | ||||
| ||||
Fear Factory studio album chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from Digimortal | ||||
|
Digimortal is the fourth studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory,released on April 24,2001,by Roadrunner Records. It is a concept album and the final part of a trilogy that started with Demanufacture and continued with Obsolete . It was the band's last album before officially breaking up in March 2002,though they reformed in 2003.
In February 2000,Fear Factory reported working on their follow-up to Obsolete. No lyrics had been written and the band had decided to shift away from their typical approach to creating a record. They also wanted a less-produced sound and stated that the new album would not be concept-based as their previous two were. The latter would ultimately not hold true. Already, Alternative Press was describing it as one of the most anticipated albums of the year. [5]
Digimortal was produced by longtime Fear Factory collaborator Rhys Fulber. The group had considered working with Bob Rock who declined. Toby Wright was also approached but was allegedly busy with a new Ozzy Osbourne record.
Burton C. Bell noted in an interview with Billboard that,when beginning the writing process,the band wished to evolve their sound. As such,they constantly reminded themselves of the word "simplification" in the pursuit of Fear Factory's progression. He added,"We don't need to play a song seven minutes long if we can get the idea across in four minutes." [6] Digimortal would use a more melodic approach both musically and vocally than previous records while maintaining Fear Factory's heaviness. Bell described it as "definitely as intense as Demanufacture but with the groove of Obsolete,and there's a lot more melody." [7]
The track "Linchpin" was originally titled "Lynchpin" and an unused early track listing is featured on The Best of Fear Factory . In a move uncharacteristic for the band,B-Real,of the hip hop group Cypress Hill,is featured as a guest vocalist on "Back the Fuck Up",contributing elements of hardcore hip hop;Cazares and Olde Wolbers had guested on Cypress Hill's 2000 album Skull &Bones . It is the only song on the album that is not written by the band.
While the band had initially decided to detour from their concept-based records,Digimortal would continue where Obsolete left off. Conceptually,the record contains a futuristic story about man and machine merging into one. The surviving humans and the machines realize they have to depend on each other if they are going to continue on. The title of the album is actually short for "Digital Mortality".
A limited edition digipak version of the album was released simultaneously with the standard version,with four extra tracks. Fear Factory performed on the 2001 SnoCore Tour early that year. Frontman Burton C. Bell noted the album concept as "circuitry is creating a new image of man" and related this as "perfect for the first tour of the millennium". [8] The band was also scheduled to support Papa Roach on their Raid The Nation Tour in spring but the headliners had to cancel due to an injury. [6] Fear Factory instead performed smaller venues close to the originally planned tour's schedule.
In the fall of 2001,the band co-headlined with Machine Head alongside ill Niño and Chimaira on the Roadrunner Road Rage Tour. Fear Factory departed for two shows to perform on the Cypress Hill Smoke Out tour featuring the likes of Deftones,Busta Rhymes,and Method Man. The October 6 date would have an extended lineup featuring all the bands from the Roadrunner Rage Tour. [9]
Digimortal featured the single "Linchpin" which gained substantial radio play and had a music video. A portion of "Invisible Wounds (Dark Bodies)",was featured during the credits of Resident Evil ,as well as a mix on its soundtrack.
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [10] |
Blabbermouth.net | 8/10 [3] |
Chronicles of Chaos | 6/10 [11] |
Drowned in Sound | 9/10 [12] |
Q | 05/2001 (p. 108) |
Rolling Stone | (favorable) [13] |
Digimortal was a commercial disappointment compared to the band's previous record. While its single "Linchpin" managed to chart,the album had only sold a reported 152,000 copies by March 2002. [14] Digimortal received generally positive reviews. College Music Journal (4/9/01,p. 17) called the album "Demented disco" and that "Digimortal is cybercore:digitized,overdubbed metal with crunchy,machine-like production." Q magazine (5/01,p. 108) gave the album 3 stars out of 5 and called it "ethereal and breathtaking". Fan reaction was mixed,with some alienation stemming from the album's melodic simplicity and more radio friendly sound when compared to the band's other albums.
All tracks are written by Fear Factory, except "Back the Fuck Up", written by B-Real
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "What Will Become?" | 3:24 |
2. | "Damaged" | 3:03 |
3. | "Digimortal" | 3:04 |
4. | "No One" | 3:37 |
5. | "Linchpin" | 3:25 |
6. | "Invisible Wounds (Dark Bodies)" | 3:54 |
7. | "Acres of Skin" | 3:55 |
8. | "Back the Fuck Up" (featuring B-Real) | 3:10 |
9. | "Byte Block" | 5:21 |
10. | "Hurt Conveyor" | 3:42 |
11. | "(Memory Imprints) Never End" | 6:48 |
Total length: | 43:23 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
12. | "Dead Man Walking" | 3:16 |
13. | "Strain vs. Resistance" | 3:25 |
14. | "Repentance" | 2:40 |
15. | "Full Metal Contact" (instrumental) | 2:28 |
Total length: | 55:12 |
Fear Factory
Additional personnel
Production
Album
| Singles
|
Fear Factory is an American industrial metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1989. Throughout the band's career, they have released ten full-length albums and have evolved through a succession of sounds, all in their main style of industrial metal. Over the years, Fear Factory has seen frequent changes in its lineup, with lead vocalist Burton C. Bell being the only consistent member for 31 years until his departure in 2020. Guitarist Dino Cazares is the only original member still in the band. The band went on hiatus in March 2002 following some internal disputes, but resumed activity a year later without founding member Cazares. Previous bassist Christian Olde Wolbers replaced him on guitar, while Byron Stroud handled bass duties. After a second hiatus in 2006, Fear Factory reunited in April 2009 with a new lineup that featured a returning Cazares, Gene Hoglan as the replacement of original drummer Raymond Herrera, and Bell and Stroud reprising their respective roles; this lineup recorded the band's seventh studio album titled Mechanize (2010). Wolbers and Herrera — together comprising 50% of the band's legal ownership — disputed the legitimacy of the reunited band, and a legal battle from both parties had begun. Despite this, Fear Factory has since released three more albums: The Industrialist (2012), Genexus (2015) and Aggression Continuum (2021).
Archetype is the fifth studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory. It was the first album by the band not to feature Dino Cazares, with Christian Olde Wolbers handling both bass and guitar duties. It was released on April 20, 2004, through Liquid 8. It debuted at No. 30 on the Billboard 200 chart and is their highest charting album to date.
Nowell Rhys Fulber is a Canadian electronic musician and producer. He is a member of Front Line Assembly and Delerium, along with Bill Leeb. He also records under his own name and under the name Conjure One.
Soul of a New Machine is the debut studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, released on August 25, 1992, by Roadrunner Records. Although this record was Fear Factory's first studio album to be released, it was actually their second album to be recorded, after Concrete, which was recorded in 1991 but not released until 11 years later. German magazine Rock Hard described it as death metal with many other elements such as industrial metal.
Demanufacture is the second studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, released on March 3, 1995, by Roadrunner Records. It is the band's first album with their classic line-up, adding new bassist Christian Olde Wolbers, who performed on close to half of the album's tracks, with guitarist Dino Cazares handling the rest. Many regard it as the band's best album and a heavy metal classic. The album was certified Gold in Australia by ARIA and Silver in the UK by the BPI.
Concrete is an album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, recorded in 1991 but not released until 2002. The first album to be produced by Ross Robinson, it was intended to be Fear Factory's first album; however, it was shelved after the band declined a record contract presented to the band by Robinson. Subsequently, the album was shelved, with Robinson retaining the master tapes and the band retaining the song rights; half of which were re-recorded and released on their 1992 debut album Soul of a New Machine. Robinson sold the master tapes to Roadrunner, who subsequently released the album on July 30, 2002, though the band members have had divided opinions on its release.
Obsolete is the third studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, released on July 28, 1998, through Roadrunner Records. It was produced by Fear Factory, Greg Reely and Rhys Fulber, the latter of whom wrote, arranged and performed all of the album's keyboard parts, and was the band's first full album to feature bassist Christian Olde Wolbers, who performed on around half of the tracks of the band's previous album Demanufacture (1995).
Transgression is the sixth studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory. It was released in the UK on August 22, 2005 through Calvin Records and released in the US and Canada the next day on August 23. Guest appearances include Billy Gould, the bassist of Faith No More, and Lamb of God guitarist Mark Morton, who co-wrote the song "New Promise". The album was released as an enhanced CD with access to the exclusive Fear Factory website. It was also released as an enhanced DualDisc with the DVD side featuring the whole album in (48,000 kHz), music videos and "The Making of Transgression" video. One could also retrieve another bonus track, entitled "My Grave", by putting the CD into the computer and clicking the 'Music' section at the special website.
Dino Cazares is an American musician, best known as the guitarist and one of the co-founders of industrial metal band Fear Factory. He is also a co-founder of Divine Heresy, Asesino, and Brujeria. Cazares popularized the use of digital amp modelling processors, as well as the use of seven and eight-string guitars in metal music.
Christian Francis Olde Wolbers is a Belgian musician, songwriter and producer. He is the bassist and backing vocalist of the rap metal/nu metal band Powerflo and the bass player of the thrash metal band Vio-lence. He is also a former bassist, guitarist and backing vocalist of the industrial metal band Fear Factory, and the hardcore punk/crossover thrash band Beowülf.
Genexus is the ninth studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, released on August 7, 2015. It is the third Fear Factory album since guitarist Dino Cazares rejoined the band in 2009, their first album to feature drummer Mike Heller, and the final album they released with vocalist Burton C. Bell before his departure from the band in 2020, although his vocals appear on the band's next album, Aggression Continuum, which was initially recorded in 2017 but not released until four years later. Genexus is also Fear Factory's first release through Nuclear Blast. Upon its release, the album received positive reviews from critics.
Remanufacture – Cloning Technology is the first remix album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory. The album is a remix of the band's second studio album Demanufacture, released on May 20, 1997.
Fear Is the Mindkiller is the first EP by American industrial metal band Fear Factory. It was released on April 14, 1993, by Roadrunner Records and is containing remixes of songs from the first album Soul of a New Machine.
Hatefiles is the second compilation album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, released by Roadrunner Records on April 8, 2003. It contains rare, unreleased and remixed tracks. The album is notable as it contains "Terminate", the last song to be recorded with original guitarist Dino Cazares until his return to the band in 2009. Graphic designer Dave McKean's artwork is also used.
The discography of Fear Factory, an American industrial metal band, consists of ten studio albums, three compilation albums, two remix albums, one demo album, one video album, five extended plays, twenty-one singles and thirteen music videos. Fear Factory formed in 1989, signing to Roadrunner Records three years later. The band's debut studio album, Soul of a New Machine, was released in 1992. The following year, Fear Is the Mindkiller was released as an EP, featuring remixes by Rhys Fulber and Bill Leeb of Front Line Assembly. In 1995, Fear Factory released their second studio album, Demanufacture, which peaked at number 27 on the UK Albums Chart, and was later certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI); it was followed two years later by another remix project, Remanufacture , which this time featured contributions from a number of different remixers, including many techno-oriented artists, as well as the band themselves.
The Best of Fear Factory is the third compilation album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, released on Roadrunner Records, featuring a collection of the band's music with the label. The record was released without Fear Factory's involvement, so it's unlikely that the album is officially recognized by the band themselves. Songs from Concrete, as well as their various compilation, live and remix albums, are not included.
"Shock" is a song by American industrial metal band Fear Factory. It was released as the lead single from their third album Obsolete (1998) and is the first track on the album. Its music was composed by guitarist Dino Cazares and drummer Raymond Herrera. The lyrics were written by vocalist Burton C. Bell. The introduction of a concept album, "Shock" introduces its protagonist, a political prisoner known only as Edgecrusher, who declares his personal mission to destroy the totalitarian society in which he lives.
"Linchpin" is a song by American industrial metal band Fear Factory. The song was released as the first single from their fourth studio album, Digimortal (2001). It peaked at No. 31 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.
Mechanize is the seventh studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, released on February 5, 2010 in Germany and February 9, 2010 in United States. It is the only album to feature Gene Hoglan on drums and the first since 2001's Digimortal to include original guitarist and founding member Dino Cazares, who rejoined the band after a reconciliation with lead vocalist Burton C. Bell, in April 2009. The album was produced by Rhys Fulber, who had not produced or been involved with a Fear Factory album since Archetype. The album has received mostly positive reviews from fans and music critics, being praised for its very aggressive and heavy sound. In its first week of release, the album sold 10,000 copies.
The Industrialist is the eighth studio album by American industrial metal band Fear Factory, released on June 5, 2012.