Front Line Assembly
Encyclopedia
Front Line Assembly is a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 electro-industrial
Electro-industrial
Electro-industrial is a music genre drawing on EBM and post-industrial that developed in the mid-1980s. While EBM has a minimal structure and clean production, electro-industrial has a deep, complex and layered sound. The style was pioneered by Skinny Puppy, Front Line Assembly, and other groups,...

 band formed by Bill Leeb
Bill Leeb
Bill Leeb is an electronic musician.He moved to Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada with his family when he was 13...

 in 1986 after leaving Skinny Puppy
Skinny Puppy
Skinny Puppy is a Canadian industrial musical group, formed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in 1982. The group is widely considered to be the founders of the electro-industrial genre....

. Influenced by early Industrial acts such as 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...

, Portion Control, D.A.F.
Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft or D.A.F. is an influential German electropunk/NDW band from Düsseldorf, formed in 1978 featuring Gabriel "Gabi" Delgado-López , Robert Görl , Kurt "Pyrolator" Dahlke , Michael Kemner and Wolfgang Spelmans...

, Test Dept
Test Dept
Test Dept were an industrial music group from London, one of the most important and influential early industrial music acts. Their approach was marked by a strong commitment to radical socialist politics.-History:...

, SPK
SPK (band)
SPK, formed in 1978 in Sydney, Australia, was a 1980s and early 1990s industrial music and noise music group. One member, Graeme Revell, would later go on to become a successful Hollywood movie composer.-History:...

, and Severed Heads
Severed Heads
Severed Heads is an Australian electronic music group based and founded in Sydney in 1979 as Mr. and Mrs. No Smoking Sign. The original members were Richard Fielding and Andrew Wright, and were soon joined by Tom Ellard. Fielding and Wright eventually left the group, leaving Ellard as a singular...

, FLA has developed its own unique sound while combining elements of electronic body music
Electronic body music
Electronic body music or industrial dance is a music genre that combines elements of industrial music and electronic dance music...

 (EBM). The band's membership has rotated through several members over the years, including Rhys Fulber
Rhys Fulber
Nowell Rhys Fulber is a Canadian electronic musician and producer. He was a member of Front Line Assembly and Delerium along with Bill Leeb, and now records on his own under the name Conjure One.- Biography :...

 and Michael Balch who are both associated with several other successful artists.

Formation (1985–1986)

Between 1985–1986, Bill Leeb supported Skinny Puppy under the pseudonym Wilhelm Schroeder. As an early friend of the band he contributed bass synth and backing vocals for several tracks while also supporting their 1985 tour. Leeb reflects on this period, "Skinny Puppy was a good starting point for me, but there was definitely no way for me to get my ideas across." His experiences working with Skinny Puppy gave him some insight in the industry and helped shape his ideas for his own personal career.

Upon the formation of Front Line Assembly, Leeb produced the Nerve War
Nerve War
Nerve War is the first release by the Canadian band Front Line Assembly . Having a limited cassette release , it remains the most sought after release from Bill Leeb and company. The songs on the tape sound more abrasive and industrial than Leeb's more recent output which leans more toward an EBM...

demo tape which was distributed on a limited basis (an estimated 50–100 copies were produced). Around this time, Leeb and Rhys Fulber became friends when they discovered they both had a similar interest in underground music. As an unofficial member at this time, Fulber partnered with Leeb during the production of Total Terror
Total Terror
Total Terror is the second of two self-released cassette tapes by industrial band Front Line Assembly. At this point, Bill Leeb was the band's only dedicated member, with some help from Rhys Fulber.-Track listing:-Notes:...

and was credited for the song "Black Fluid" on the demo.

Debut and first album (1987–1988)

In 1987, Front Line Assembly debuted its first album The Initial Command
The Initial Command
The Initial Command is the third release by Canadian Industrial band Front Line Assembly. This is the group's first album since their first two releases, Nerve War and Total Terror, were demo tapes. The music was created mostly by Bill Leeb with some help from Michael Balch. Since the 1987 release...

(KK Records, Belgium) with credited assistance by Fulber and Balch. The album had been produced on a tight budget which would determine whether or not cuts would be done with an eight track system or split into two four track cuts. After finally reaching a point of relative stability, the band's next album, State of Mind
State of Mind (Front Line Assembly album)
-References:...

, was released on Third Mind records in 1988.

After working with FLA on an unofficial basis, Balch officially joined the band in 1988 and began writing songs alongside Leeb for the next few albums. Balch mostly contributed by providing keyboards and programming. As Leeb put it, "I would write the songs, and he was really good with the software." This partnership produced the releases Corrosion
Corrosion (Front Line Assembly album)
Corrosion is an album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 1988. The album was composed by band founder Bill Leeb and Michael Balch.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Bill Leeb - production, vocals*Michael Balch - production...

and Disorder
Disorder (EP)
Disorder is an EP by Canadian electro-industrial band Front Line Assembly released in 1988. This was the band's first EP which was only released on Vinyl. Later Disorder was released on a record called Convergence, along with the Corrosion album....

in 1988 which were released together later that year with three more unreleased tracks in the compilation, Convergence
Convergence (Front Line Assembly album)
Convergence is the sixth album by Canadian industrial artist Front Line Assembly. This release contains all but two tracks from the Corrosion and Disorder releases, The Wrack Part III- Wisdom, and Aggression respectively...

.

Growing popularity (1989–1991)

Fueled by growing success, FLA produced their next album Gashed Senses And Crossfire. This album introduced the single "Digital Tension Dementia" which caught the attention of many underground music fans and disc jockeys. While FLA was beginning to grow in popularity, Balch parted ways to join Ministry
Ministry (band)
Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded by lead singer Al Jourgensen in 1981. Originally a synthpop outfit, Ministry changed its style to industrial metal in the late 1980s. Ministry found mainstream success in the early 1990s with its most successful album Psalm 69: The Way to...

. Filling the void, Rhys Fulber officially joined and the two produced Caustic Grip
Caustic Grip
Caustic Grip is an album by Front Line Assembly, originally released on WaxTrax! Records in 1990. The album was reissued by Roadrunner in a two-disc set that also includes the Gashed Senses & Crossfire album....

—an instant classic with underground fans. Leeb attributed this success to his new partnership with Rhys due to their similar taste in music while noting that Rhys was "a lot more fun to work with." In 1990, the duo released the non-album single, Virus, which sounded similar in style to the tracks from Caustic Grip. The single, along with the accompanying music video, gained extensive attention in industrial and dance clubs world wide.

Changing style and direction (1992–1995)

In 1992, Front Line Assembly reached a turning point in the band's musical style with the album Tactical Neural Implant
Tactical Neural Implant
Tactical Neural Implant is an album by electro-industrial artists Front Line Assembly. Third Mind Records originally released it in 1992 on both compact-disc and LP formats...

. Leeb and Fulber intended to create an album with the intensity of Caustic Grip but with song structures "like bands who really write songs." After a week, the duo gave up that method and started over. Their new method, as described by Leeb, was just finding what "sounds good." The resulting album pushed FLA's style toward a hard-edged disco while "having more in common with Nine Inch Nails than Skinny Puppy." This album helped FLA become one of industrial music's most popular bands. The next album Millennium
Millennium (Front Line Assembly album)
-Personnel:*Bill Leeb – programming, vocals*Rhys Fulber – programming*Devin Townsend – guitars *Don Harrison – guitars *Che the Minister of Defense – vocals...

(1994) featured a combination of metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...

 guitars, electronic music, and media sampling (much of which was taken from the Michael Douglas
Michael Douglas
Michael Kirk Douglas is an American actor and producer, primarily in movies and television. He has won three Golden Globes and two Academy Awards; first as producer of 1975's Best Picture, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and as Best Actor in 1987 for his role in Wall Street. Douglas received the...

 film Falling Down
Falling Down
Falling Down is a 1993 crime-drama film directed by Joel Schumacher. The film stars Michael Douglas in the lead role of William Foster , a divorcee and unemployed former defense engineer...

) which had become one of the characteristics of industrial rock and industrial metal
Industrial metal
Industrial metal is a musical genre that draws from industrial music and many different types of heavy metal, using repeating metal guitar riffs, sampling, synthesizer or sequencer lines, and distorted vocals. Founding industrial metal acts include Ministry, Godflesh, and KMFDM.Industrial metal's...

 during the 1990s. Hard Wired
Hard Wired
Hard Wired is an album by Front Line Assembly, released in 1995. It makes extensive use of audio-clips from the 1995 film In the Mouth of Madness, especially in the track "Mortal." The album includes artwork by David McKean....

(1995) and the world tour following the release was FLA's most successful commercial and critical period.

Fulber leaves (1997-2002)

In 1997, Rhys Fulber left the band to concentrate on producing Fear Factory
Fear Factory
Fear Factory is an American industrial metal band. Formed in 1989, they have released seven full-length albums and a number of singles and remixes. Over the course of their career they have evolved from a succession of styles, as well as steadily pioneered a combination of the styles death metal,...

 along with other bands. Chris Peterson, who had already supported the band's live shows, replaced Fulber. Soon after Fulber quit, the 1997 album FLAvour of the Weak
FLAvour of the Weak
-Personnel:*Bill Leeb*Chris Peterson*Adam Drake - Editor*Dave McKean...

was released. Yet again, the album was stylistically divergent from previous releases. The metal influences found in Millennium gave way to a more electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...

 sound within the new release.

Front Line Assembly made somewhat of a return to their former sound with the album Implode
Implode (album)
- Personnel :*Bill Leeb – Producer, performer*Chris Peterson – Producer, performer*Dan Handrabur – Additional programming, production*Jed Simon – Guitar*Greg Reely – Mixing, editing*Sean Thingvold – Assistant editor...

(1999), followed by Epitaph (2001), as well as half of the soundtrack for the video game Quake III Arena
Quake III Arena
Quake III Arena , is a multiplayer first-person shooter video game released on December 2, 1999. The game was developed by id Software and featured music composed by Sonic Mayhem and Front Line Assembly...

in 1999. Chris Peterson left FLA in 2002. Through most of that year it was rumored that the band had essentially broken up.

Fulber returns (2003-2009)

After rumors that the band had essentially broken up, Rhys Fulber rejoined the band in 2003. The reunited duo released the single Maniacal in October of that same year, launching a new phase in the band's career. The next year, they released the studio album Civilization
Civilization (album)
- Personnel :* Bill Leeb – production, vocals* Rhys Fulber – production, programming* Jamie Muhoberac – keyboards ; vocals * Leah Randi – vocals ; bass * Sean Ashby – guitar * Christian Olde Wolbers – guitar - External links :*...

. Chris Peterson later rejoined the band to release Artificial Soldier
Artificial Soldier
Artificial Soldier is an 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.- Critical reception :Reviews for Artificial Soldier were mixed...

in 2006. The following tour was cut short due to a problem with the company supplying the tour bus. The band acknowledged that they were returning home to Vancouver earlier than planned after playing roughly half of their scheduled tour in the United States (dates in New York and Canada were canceled). The band toured in Europe in August 2006 covering 18 cities.

By April 2007, Front Line Assembly released a remix album titled Fallout
Fallout (Front Line Assembly album)
Fallout is an album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 2007. Initially announced as an EP, it is a collection of nine remixes and three previously unreleased tracks...

. The album was released in a 4-panel digipak and featured three previously unreleased tracks ("Electric Dreams," "Unconscious," and "Armageddon") and nine remixes by several other Industrial acts and names. After the release of the remix album, the band went out to tour North America and Europe.

Improvised Electronic Device (2010-Present)

In 2010, Front Line Assembly released a new single and album. The single, Shifting Through The Lens
Shifting Through The Lens
Shifting Through The Lens is a single off the studio album Improvised Electronic Device by the Industrial band Front Line Assembly. This single was released May 28, 2010 on the dependent record label...

, was released May 28, 2010. The album, Improvised Electronic Device
Improvised Electronic Device
Improvised Electronic Device is an album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 2010.-Track listing:-Personnel:* Bill Leeb* Chris Peterson* Jeremy Inkel* Jared Slingerland* Al Jourgensen featured on the track Stupidity...

, was released on June 25, 2010 along with a deluxe edition featuring two extra tracks (only available as a digital release). As described on Dependent Record's website, the album is described as "stronger and more danceable" when compared to previous releases. "Angriff", the second single off the album, is further described as "wandering on metal paths reminiscent of Rammstein
Rammstein
Rammstein is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band from Berlin, formed in 1994. The band consists of members Till Lindemann , Richard Z. Kruspe , Paul H. Landers , Oliver "Ollie" Riedel , Christoph "Doom" Schneider and Christian "Flake" Lorenz...

 and their own 'Millenium
Millennium (Front Line Assembly album)
-Personnel:*Bill Leeb – programming, vocals*Rhys Fulber – programming*Devin Townsend – guitars *Don Harrison – guitars *Che the Minister of Defense – vocals...

' album."

Name spelling

The spelling of the band name has varied over the years. Various albums (e.g. Artificial Soldier
Artificial Soldier
Artificial Soldier is an 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.- Critical reception :Reviews for Artificial Soldier were mixed...

or State of Mind
State of Mind (Front Line Assembly album)
-References:...

) spell the name in compound form ("Frontline Assembly") while the majority spells it in three words. The abbreviation "FLA", also used on various albums, may hint that the correct spelling of the artist name is indeed three separate words.

Current members

The current official line-up of Front Line Assembly consists of:
  • Bill Leeb
    Bill Leeb
    Bill Leeb is an electronic musician.He moved to Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada with his family when he was 13...

  • Chris Peterson
    Chris Peterson (producer)
    Chris Peterson is a Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada based producer and keyboard player and works for Front Line Assembly, Noise Unit and Decree...

  • Jeremy Inkel
    Jeremy Inkel
    Germy redirects here. For the iCarly character, see iCarly.Born in Montreal and raised in Vancouver, Jeremy Inkel is best known as a keyboard player and programmer in Left Spine Down and Front Line Assembly...

  • Jared Slingerland
    Jared Slingerland
    Jared Slingerland was born on January 16, 1984 in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada where his father was a radio announcer on CKIQ. The family moved to Calgary, Alberta shortly after birth due to his father securing an on air job with a new CHR radio station...


Key members

Front Line Assembly has frequently changed personnel since Leeb started the band in 1986. Rhys Fulber
Rhys Fulber
Nowell Rhys Fulber is a Canadian electronic musician and producer. He was a member of Front Line Assembly and Delerium along with Bill Leeb, and now records on his own under the name Conjure One.- Biography :...

, Greg Reely, and Chris Peterson
Chris Peterson (producer)
Chris Peterson is a Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada based producer and keyboard player and works for Front Line Assembly, Noise Unit and Decree...

 have been members of Front Line Assembly for the longest time and have significantly influenced the band.

Other previous members

  • Michael Balch
  • Jeff Stoddard
    Jeff Stoddard
    Jeff Stoddard is an electronic musician, recording engineer and remix artist. He has been a member of and played with such notable electronic acts as: Front Line Assembly, Will and Decree.-Early Life:...

  • Devin Townsend
    Devin Townsend
    Devin Garret Townsend is a Canadian musician and record producer. He was the founder, songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist in extreme metal band Strapping Young Lad from 1994 to 2007 and has had an extensive career as a solo artist....

  • Jed Simon
    Jed Simon
    Jed Simon is a Canadian musician. He has been a member of numerous metal bands, including Front Line Assembly, Strapping Young Lad, Zimmers Hole, and TENET.-Biography:...

  • Jason Filipchuk
  • Adrian White
  • Greg Reely
    Greg Reely
    Greg Reely is a Canadian record producer, engineer, and mixer who has worked with acts such as Sarah Mclachlan, Frontline Assembly, Fear Factory, Machine Head, Coldplay, The Tea Party, Spirit of the West and others.-Credits:...

  • Jason Hagen
  • Craig Joseph Huxtable

Discography

Major Releases
  • The Initial Command
    The Initial Command
    The Initial Command is the third release by Canadian Industrial band Front Line Assembly. This is the group's first album since their first two releases, Nerve War and Total Terror, were demo tapes. The music was created mostly by Bill Leeb with some help from Michael Balch. Since the 1987 release...

    (1987)
  • State of Mind
    State of Mind (Front Line Assembly album)
    -References:...

    (1988)
  • Corrosion
    Corrosion (Front Line Assembly album)
    Corrosion is an album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 1988. The album was composed by band founder Bill Leeb and Michael Balch.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Bill Leeb - production, vocals*Michael Balch - production...

    (1988)
  • Disorder EP
    Disorder (EP)
    Disorder is an EP by Canadian electro-industrial band Front Line Assembly released in 1988. This was the band's first EP which was only released on Vinyl. Later Disorder was released on a record called Convergence, along with the Corrosion album....

    (1988)
  • Convergence
    Convergence (Front Line Assembly album)
    Convergence is the sixth album by Canadian industrial artist Front Line Assembly. This release contains all but two tracks from the Corrosion and Disorder releases, The Wrack Part III- Wisdom, and Aggression respectively...

    (1988)
  • Gashed Senses And Crossfire (1989)
  • Caustic Grip
    Caustic Grip
    Caustic Grip is an album by Front Line Assembly, originally released on WaxTrax! Records in 1990. The album was reissued by Roadrunner in a two-disc set that also includes the Gashed Senses & Crossfire album....

    (1990)
  • Tactical Neural Implant
    Tactical Neural Implant
    Tactical Neural Implant is an album by electro-industrial artists Front Line Assembly. Third Mind Records originally released it in 1992 on both compact-disc and LP formats...

    (1992)
  • Millennium
    Millennium (Front Line Assembly album)
    -Personnel:*Bill Leeb – programming, vocals*Rhys Fulber – programming*Devin Townsend – guitars *Don Harrison – guitars *Che the Minister of Defense – vocals...

    (1994)
  • Hard Wired
    Hard Wired
    Hard Wired is an album by Front Line Assembly, released in 1995. It makes extensive use of audio-clips from the 1995 film In the Mouth of Madness, especially in the track "Mortal." The album includes artwork by David McKean....

    (1995)
  • [FLA]vour of the Weak
    FLAvour of the Weak
    -Personnel:*Bill Leeb*Chris Peterson*Adam Drake - Editor*Dave McKean...

    (1997)
  • Implode
    Implode (album)
    - Personnel :*Bill Leeb – Producer, performer*Chris Peterson – Producer, performer*Dan Handrabur – Additional programming, production*Jed Simon – Guitar*Greg Reely – Mixing, editing*Sean Thingvold – Assistant editor...

    (1999)
  • Epitaph (2001)
  • Civilization
    Civilization (album)
    - Personnel :* Bill Leeb – production, vocals* Rhys Fulber – production, programming* Jamie Muhoberac – keyboards ; vocals * Leah Randi – vocals ; bass * Sean Ashby – guitar * Christian Olde Wolbers – guitar - External links :*...

    (2004)
  • Artificial Soldier
    Artificial Soldier
    Artificial Soldier is an 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.- Critical reception :Reviews for Artificial Soldier were mixed...

    (2006)
  • Improvised Electronic Device
    Improvised Electronic Device
    Improvised Electronic Device is an album by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly, released in 2010.-Track listing:-Personnel:* Bill Leeb* Chris Peterson* Jeremy Inkel* Jared Slingerland* Al Jourgensen featured on the track Stupidity...

    (2010)

Side projects

Side projects include:
  • Conjure One
    Conjure One
    Conjure One is a Canadian electronic music project, headed by Rhys Fulber, better known as a member of Front Line Assembly and Delerium, as well as other musical groups alongside Bill Leeb.-History:...

  • Cyberaktif
    Cyberaktif
    Cyberaktif was a one-time musical collaboration project between Bill Leeb of the band Front Line Assembly, and cEvin Key and Dwayne Goettel of Skinny Puppy...

  • Delerium
    Delerium
    Delerium is a band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, formed in 1987, originally as a side project of the influential industrial music act, Front Line Assembly...

  • Equinox
    Equinox (electro-industrial band)
    Equinox is the name of an electro-industrial/drum'n'bass musical project, featuring Bill Leeb and Chris Peterson of Front Line Assembly.Equinox released one album, Holon, in 1998.-External links:*...

  • Intermix
    Intermix (band)
    Intermix was a musical band in the 1990s, made of Bill Leeb and Rhys Fulber.Unlike their other projects , Intermix showed somewhat more of a techno music influence, while Delerium was more mellow like ambient music, and FLA had a very industrial music style.On the first two albums Intermix sounded...

  • Left Spine Down
    Left Spine Down
    Based in Vancouver, BC, Canada, Left Spine Down is a band that plays what they call "cyberpunk," a mixture of electronica, metal, punk, and drum & bass....

  • Noise Unit
    Noise Unit
    Noise Unit is a musical band, a side-project of the prolific Bill Leeb and Rhys Fulber, of Front Line Assembly. Its members have included Marc Verhaeghen and Chris Peterson...

  • Pro>Tech
  • Synæsthesia
  • Stiff Valentine
    Stiff Valentine
    Based in Vancouver, BC, Canada; Stiff Valentine is a Canadian rock band. They play a unique style of hard rock mixed with industrial, techno, metal and punk elements....

  • We Will Follow: A Tribute to U2
    We Will Follow: A Tribute to U2
    We Will Follow: A Tribute to U2 is a U2 tribute album recorded by various artists in May 1998. It was first released on July 13, 1999, and was re-released in 2006.- Track listing :...

     (features a song by Front Line Assembly and Tiffany
    Tiffany (singer)
    Tiffany Renee Darwish , known popularly as Tiffany, is an American singer and former teen icon. She is most notable for her 1987 cover version of "I Think We're Alone Now", originally recorded by Tommy James and the Shondells in 1967. Released as the second single from her eponymous album, Tiffany,...

    )
  • Will
    Will (band)
    Will was a Canadian electronic music act founded by Rhys Fulber and Chris Peterson, both members of Front Line Assembly and Delerium at different times...


External links

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