Factrix
Encyclopedia
Factrix was an American
pioneering industrial
group from San Francisco, formed in 1978 by Bond Bergland, Cole Palme, and Joseph T. Jacobs, and was praised by Carlo McCormick
as "one of the great bands of their era, prescient and influential."
Factrix the group released a number of experimental industrial
and gothic rock
recordings in the early 1980s. Their first 7" single, "Empire Of Passion/Splice Of Life" balanced sound-poetry with minimalist rock, using tape permutations and found percussion to evoke bleak and droning walls of sound. The first full-length LP, "Scheintot", expanded on the directions taken with their first single, creating a morbid, moody, and subtle experimental
rock
album that was highly innovative for its time. Reminiscent at times of bands like Throbbing Gristle
or early Cabaret Voltaire
("Anemone Housing" or "Over My Shoulder - And Out of My Life"), the album also managed to demonstrate a strong rock sensibility, betraying influences of bands like The Velvet Underground
("Ballad of the Grim Rider") or even avant rock contemporaries like Art Bears
or '70s era King Crimson
(the opening track, "Eerie Lights" or "The Center of the Doll"). The live LP California Babylon (1982) (a collaboration with Monte Cazazza
- the record is credited to "Factrix-Cazazza" on the cover) by contrast was a far more stark and abrasive release, in both minimalist sound and morbid lyrical content. The record also featured a musical treatment of the Brion Gysin
cut up "poem" "Kick that Habit Man" with avant garde percussionist Z'EV
backing the band.
In 2003, German based Storm Records re-released both the single and album recorded by the band as well as selections from the California Babylon LP and previously unreleased live material on a double CD titled Artifact. The release was well received and has since gone out of print.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pioneering industrial
Industrial music
Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...
group from San Francisco, formed in 1978 by Bond Bergland, Cole Palme, and Joseph T. Jacobs, and was praised by Carlo McCormick
Carlo McCormick
Carlo McCormick is a culture critic and curator living in New York City. He is the author of numerous books, monographs and catalogues on contemporary art and artists.-Pedagogic Activity:...
as "one of the great bands of their era, prescient and influential."
Factrix the group released a number of experimental industrial
Industrial music
Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...
and gothic rock
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
recordings in the early 1980s. Their first 7" single, "Empire Of Passion/Splice Of Life" balanced sound-poetry with minimalist rock, using tape permutations and found percussion to evoke bleak and droning walls of sound. The first full-length LP, "Scheintot", expanded on the directions taken with their first single, creating a morbid, moody, and subtle experimental
Experimental rock
Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
album that was highly innovative for its time. Reminiscent at times of bands like Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle were an English industrial, avant-garde music and visual arts group that evolved from the performance art group COUM Transmissions...
or early Cabaret Voltaire
Cabaret Voltaire (band)
Cabaret Voltaire were a British music group from Sheffield, England.Initially composed of Stephen Mallinder, Richard H. Kirk and Chris Watson, the group was named after the Cabaret Voltaire, a nightclub in Zürich, Switzerland that was a centre for the early Dada movement.Their earliest performances...
("Anemone Housing" or "Over My Shoulder - And Out of My Life"), the album also managed to demonstrate a strong rock sensibility, betraying influences of bands like The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground was an American rock band formed in New York City. First active from 1964 to 1973, their best-known members were Lou Reed and John Cale, who both went on to find success as solo artists. Although experiencing little commercial success while together, the band is often cited...
("Ballad of the Grim Rider") or even avant rock contemporaries like Art Bears
Art Bears
Art Bears were an English avant-rock group formed during the disassembly of Henry Cow in 1978 by three of its members, Chris Cutler , Fred Frith and Dagmar Krause...
or '70s era King Crimson
King Crimson
King Crimson are a rock band founded in London, England in 1969. Often categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, the band have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation during their history...
(the opening track, "Eerie Lights" or "The Center of the Doll"). The live LP California Babylon (1982) (a collaboration with Monte Cazazza
Monte Cazazza
Monte Cazazza is an American artist and composer best known for his seminal role in helping shape the early landscape of industrial music through recordings with the London-based Industrial Records in the mid-1970s.-Career:...
- the record is credited to "Factrix-Cazazza" on the cover) by contrast was a far more stark and abrasive release, in both minimalist sound and morbid lyrical content. The record also featured a musical treatment of the Brion Gysin
Brion Gysin
Brion Gysin was a painter, writer, sound poet, and performance artist born in Taplow, Buckinghamshire.He is best known for his discovery of the cut-up technique, used by his friend, the novelist William S. Burroughs...
cut up "poem" "Kick that Habit Man" with avant garde percussionist Z'EV
Z'EV
Z'EV is an American poet, percussionist, and sound artist. After studying various world music traditions at CalArts, he began creating his own percussion sounds out of industrial materials for a variety of record labels...
backing the band.
In 2003, German based Storm Records re-released both the single and album recorded by the band as well as selections from the California Babylon LP and previously unreleased live material on a double CD titled Artifact. The release was well received and has since gone out of print.
Discography
- Empire of Passion / Splice of Life 7" single (1980, Subterranean RecordsSubterranean RecordsSubterranean Records is an independent record label based in San Francisco, California. Founded by Steve Tupper and a then partner, Michael Fox in 1979, it focused on that city's underground punk and industrial music scene....
) - Scheintot (1981, Adolescent Records)
- California Babylon (with Monte CazazzaMonte CazazzaMonte Cazazza is an American artist and composer best known for his seminal role in helping shape the early landscape of industrial music through recordings with the London-based Industrial Records in the mid-1970s.-Career:...
) (1982, Subterranean RecordsSubterranean RecordsSubterranean Records is an independent record label based in San Francisco, California. Founded by Steve Tupper and a then partner, Michael Fox in 1979, it focused on that city's underground punk and industrial music scene....
) - Artifact (2003, Storm Records)