Noise Unit

Last updated
Noise Unit
Band Noise Unit in Mark Verhaegen studio 1988.jpg
Recording sessions for Noise Unit "Grinding Into Emptiness"
Background information
Origin Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Genres Industrial, [1] EBM, [2] Electro-industrial
Years active1989 (1989)–present
Labels Wax Trax!, Antler-Subway, Dossier, Cleopatra, Off Beat, Metropolis, Artoffact
Members Bill Leeb
Rhys Fulber
Past membersMarc Verhaeghen
Chris Peterson
Jeremy Inkel

Noise Unit is a Canadian industrial band, founded by Bill Leeb of Front Line Assembly as a side project. [3] [4] The band has seen several changes in line-up, with Bill Leeb being the only permanent member.

Contents

History

Noise Unit's first album, Grinding into Emptiness, arose from the collaboration between Leeb and Marc Verhaeghen of Belgian industrial band Klinik. [5] [1] It was released in 1989 through Wax Trax!, and Antler-Subway.[ citation needed ]

The 1990 album Response Frequency included Rhys Fulber. After the completion of the album, Verhaeghen left Noise Unit for several years. [6] Fulber remained with the band for the next three releases, including the contemporary techno album Decoder in 1995. [7]

Verhaeghen resumed his collaboration with Noise Unit for the 1996 album Drill, which also featured members of German industrial band Haujobb. [8]

After an eight-year hiatus, Leeb teamed with former Front Line Assembly member Chris Peterson in 2004 to release Voyeur in 2005. [3] Jason Filipchuk and Michael Balch also contributed to the album. [9] The album peaked at #4 on the German Alternative Charts (DAC) and ranked #26 on the DAC Top Albums of 2005. [10]

In 2016, Canadian label Artoffact reissued the albums Grinding Into Emptiness, Response Frequency and Drill on vinyl and CD. [2]

Deviator

In May 2020, it was announced that Rhys Fulber and Bill Leeb were working on a new Noise Unit album, the first in 15 years. [11] On November 24, 2020, album title Deviator and cover were revealed. The cover art was created by Dave McKean. [12] In May 2021, Artoffact scheduled the release date for September 17 the same year and made the second album track "Body Aktiv" available to the public via Bandcamp. [13] The album contained ten tracks and featured Raymond Watts on the track "Atrocity Obsession". In July 2021, Artoffact released a lyric video for this track on their YouTube channel. [14]

Cheeba City Blues

In July 2022, Artoffact announced the release of a new Noise Unit album titled Cheeba City Blues for October 21, 2022. The announcement coincided with the release of the single Alone Again, co-written by former member Jeremy Inkel before his death in January 2018. [15] One month later the band followed up with the release of the second single Dub It Up. [16]

Discography

Albums

Singles

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Leeb</span> Austrian-Canadian musician

Wilhelm Anton "Bill" Leeb is an Austrian-Canadian electronic musician and record producer. He is best known for being a founding member of the industrial music group Front Line Assembly and Delerium. Additionally, Leeb is known for his work with groups Noise Unit, Intermix, Skinny Puppy, Synæsthesia, Cyberaktif, Equinox, Fauxliage and Pro>Tech.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Front Line Assembly</span> Canadian electro-industrial band

Front Line Assembly (FLA) is a Canadian electro-industrial band formed by Bill Leeb in 1986 after leaving Skinny Puppy. FLA has developed its own sound incorporating elements of electronic body music and electro-industrial. The band's membership has rotated through the years, including Michael Balch, Rhys Fulber, and Chris Peterson, all of whom are associated with several other acts.

<i>Tactical Neural Implant</i> 1992 album

Tactical Neural Implant is the sixth full-length studio album by electro-industrial artists Front Line Assembly. Third Mind Records originally released it in 1992 on both compact-disc and LP formats. The album has also been issued by Roadrunner in a two-disc set that includes the Millennium album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhys Fulber</span> Canadian producer and musician

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.

<i>Caustic Grip</i> 1990 studio album by Front Line Assembly

Caustic Grip is the fifth full-length studio album by Front Line Assembly, originally released on Third Mind Records in Europe and on Wax Trax! Records in the United States in 1990.

<i>Hard Wired</i> Album by Front Line Assembly

Hard Wired is the eighth full-length studio album by Canadian electro-industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 1995.

<i>Millennium</i> (Front Line Assembly album) 1994 studio album by Front Line Assembly

Millennium is the seventh full-length studio album by industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 1994 by Roadrunner Records on both compact disc and LP formats. The album is also being planned for an LP release in 2020, by the Canadian label Artoffact. The album marks the first major use of metal guitars, shifting in musical direction from their typical electro-industrial sound. The riffs were obtained from samples and the musicianship of the then unknown Devin Townsend of Strapping Young Lad, who would also contribute and perform on the next album.

<i>Artificial Soldier</i> 2006 studio album by Front Line Assembly

Artificial Soldier is the thirteenth full-length studio album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 2006. This is the first Front Line Assembly album to feature new member Jeremy Inkel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeremy Inkel</span> Musical artist

Jeremy Michel Neville Inkel was a Canadian electronic musician based in Vancouver. He was best known as a keyboard player and programmer for Left Spine Down and electro-industrial band Front Line Assembly as well as producing tracks for various well known musicians worldwide. He began his work with Left spine Down in 2003 when he replaced original member Frank Valoczy. He was invited into Front Line Assembly in 2005 and made his first contributions to their 2006 album Artificial Soldier. He also made contributions to Front Line Assembly side-projects Noise Unit and Delerium. Inkel died from complications with asthma at the age of 34 on January 11, 2018.

<i>The Initial Command</i> 1987 studio album by Front Line Assembly

The Initial Command is the first full-length studio album released by Canadian industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 1987 through Belgian label KK.

<i>Fallout</i> (Front Line Assembly album) 2007 remix album by Front Line Assembly

Fallout is a remix album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 2007. Initially announced as an EP, it is a collection of nine remixes by both the band themselves and other artists as well as three previously unreleased tracks.

Front Line Assembly, a Canadian Vancouver-based electro-industrial band, has released seventeen studio albums, three live albums, numerous singles and compilations, and two video game soundtracks. With Bill Leeb being the founder and sole permanent member of the band, Michael Balch, Rhys Fulber and Chris Peterson were acting as long-time members during different periods of time.

<i>Improvised Electronic Device</i> 2010 studio album by Front Line Assembly

Improvised Electronic Device is the fourteenth full-length studio album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 2010.

<i>Echogenetic</i> 2013 studio album by Front Line Assembly

Echogenetic is the fifteenth full-length studio album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released on July 9, 2013. It was well received both by critics and fans and charted in German and US charts. Critics commented on the band's return to a purely electronic approach and on the dubstep influence on the album. Front Line Assembly toured extensively in Europe and North America in support of this album and remix follow-up Echoes, which included a tour with vocalist and band leader Bill Leeb's former band Skinny Puppy. This was the last studio album to feature Jeremy Inkel before his death in 2018.

<i>Echoes</i> (Front Line Assembly album) 2014 remix album by Front Line Assembly

Echoes is a remix album by Industrial band Front Line Assembly. It was released on May 13, 2014 through Metropolis.

<i>The Remix Wars: Strike 2</i> 1996 remix album by Front Line Assembly and Die Krupps

The Remix Wars: Strike 2 is remix album of Canadian industrial band Front Line Assembly and German industrial band Die Krupps, released in 1996. It is subtitled "Front Line Assembly vs. Die Krupps". It is the second in a series of four remix albums on which two bands remix each other's tracks. The liner notes of the album describes the concept: "Two different groups or projects fight each other using samplers, mixing consoles and creativity as their weapons." The first three tracks are from III - Odyssey of the Mind, the other tracks are from Hard Wired. On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the launch of the remix series in 2016 Canadian label Artoffact re-released the albums on vinyl.

<i>Cryogenic Studio, Vol. 2</i> 2000 compilation album by Front Line Assembly

Cryogenic Studio, Vol. 2 is a compilation album, released in 2000, and the follow-up to the 1998 album Cryogenic Studios. It is composed from songs of electronic music bands Front Line Assembly, Noise Unit, Delerium, Pro>Tech, Equinox, and Synæsthesia, all of which are projects of Canadian electronic musician Bill Leeb. The album title refers to the name of Cryogenic Studio in Vancouver that serves as headquarters studio for Front Line Assembly and related side projects. All tracks except "Biosphere", "Eros", "Door to the Otherside", "Miracle", "Inner Chaos", and "Re-Thread" were re-released in 2005 by Cleopatra on the compilation album The Best of Cryogenic Studio, together with most of the tracks from previous compilation album Cryogenic Studios.

<i>Wake Up the Coma</i> 2019 studio album by Front Line Assembly

Wake Up the Coma is the sixteenth full-length studio album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly. It was released on February 8, 2019 on CD, vinyl and digitally through Metropolis.

<i>Mechanical Soul</i> 2021 studio album by Front Line Assembly

Mechanical Soul is the seventeenth full-length studio album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly. It was released on January 15, 2021 on CD, vinyl and digitally through Metropolis. It features Jean-Luc de Meyer from Belgian EBM group Front 242 and Dino Cazares from American industrial metal band Fear Factory. It contains a remix of the track "Hatevol" from the predecessor album Wake Up the Coma.

<i>Model Kollapse</i> 2024 studio album by Bill Leeb

Model Kollapse is the first solo album by Vancouver industrial musician Bill Leeb. It was released on September 13, 2024 on CD, vinyl and digitally through Metropolis.

References

  1. 1 2 Ankeny, Jason. Noise Unit at AllMusic. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Van Isacker, Bernard (August 1, 2016). "3 new Noise Unit to be re-released as deluxe vinyl sets". Side-Line. Belgium. Archived from the original on August 6, 2016. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Noise Unit". Metropolis . Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  4. ↑ Michael Barclay; Ian A. D. Jack; Jason Schneider (2011). Have Not Been the Same: The CanRock Renaissance, 1985-1995. ECW Press. pp. 707–. ISBN   978-1-55490-968-1.
  5. ↑ "Two classic EBM albums of Noise Unit back on vinyl". Peek-a-boo. Belgium. November 22, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  6. ↑ "Noise Unit". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  7. ↑ AllMusic. Noise Unit Decoder at AllMusic . Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  8. ↑ Mercer, Matt (1997). "Noise Unit Drill". Ennui. 2 (2). Kent, Ohio: 38.
  9. ↑ Carlsson, Johan (June 13, 2005). "Noise Unit: Voyeur". Release. Gothenburg: Release Musik & Media. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  10. ↑ "DAC Top 50 Albums 2005". Trendcharts oHG. AMC Alster Musik Consulting GmbH. 2006. Archived from the original on 23 April 2008. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  11. ↑ Van Isacker, Bernard (May 5, 2020). "Rhys Fulber and Bill Leeb working on a new Noise Unit album". Side-Line. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
  12. ↑ mindphaser, jon. "New Noise Unit". mindphaser.com. Retrieved December 5, 2020.
  13. ↑ Yücel, Ilker (May 7, 2021). "Artoffact Records announces first new Noise Unit album in over 15 years". ReGen Magazine. Beltsville, Maryland. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  14. ↑ Yücel, Ilker (July 7, 2021). "Artoffact Records releases lyric video for latest single from Noise Unit, featuring Raymond Watts of PIG". ReGen Magazine. Beltsville, Maryland. Retrieved July 10, 2021.
  15. ↑ Yücel, Ilker (July 22, 2022). "Bill Leeb honors bandmate Jeremy Inkel with latest Noise Unit album, revealing first single". ReGen Magazine. Beltsville, Maryland. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  16. ↑ Van Isacker, Bernard (August 16, 2022). "Industrial act Noise Unit lands brand new single 'Dub it up'". Side-Line. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.