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Front 242

Front 242 is a Belgian electronic music group that came into prominence during the 1980s. Pioneering the style they called electronic body music, they are a profound influence on the electronic and industrial music genres.[1]

Front 242
Background information
OriginAarschot, Belgium
GenresEBM, electronic
Years active1981 (1981)–present
LabelsAnother Side, Red Rhino Europe, Animalized, Wax Trax!, Epic, XIII Bis Records, Alfa Matrix
SpinoffsCobalt 60, C-Tec, Revolting Cocks
MembersJean-Luc De Meyer
Daniel Bressanutti
Patrick Codenys
Richard Jonckheere
Tim Kroker
Past membersDirk Bergen
Jean-Marc Pauly
Pierre Pauly
Kristin Kowalski
Eran Westwood
John Dubs
Jean-Marc Lederman
Websitewww.front242.com

History

Formation

Front 242 were formed in 1981 in Aarschot, near Leuven, Belgium, by Daniel Bressanutti and Dirk Bergen, who wanted to create music and graphic design using emerging electronic tools. Prior to forming Front 242, Bressanutti worked on a music project called Prothese that had already produced several one-off tracks.[2] The front part of the name comes from the idea of an organized popular uprising and the fact that the word can be translated in many languages while retaining the same meaning.[3] The number "242" was chosen because it's "just sort of a design work".[4] The first single by the duo, "Principles", with b-side "Body To Body," was released in 1981.[5]

Patrick Codenys and Jean-Luc De Meyer had separately formed a group called Underviewer at around the same time. The groups merged in 1982 after Underviewer had given their demo tapes to Bressanutti who was working at a music instruments shop at the time (Hill's Music in Brussels.[6]) Daniel was so impressed he asked Patrick and Jean-Luc to join Front 242.[2]

Recordings by the band were initially created in Daniel's apartment studio, where all the entire band and their equipment were packed into a 2.5m x 2.5m room.[7] The band incorporated as an artistic association in Belgium which allowed them to access government assistance and made it easier to afford better studio equipment.[8]

Bressanutti, Codenys and De Meyer took turns on vocals at first, until they settled on De Meyer as the lead vocalist (early recordings with Bressanutti on vocals were subsequently released in 2004). De Meyer came to write most of the lyrics, although Valerie Jane Steele wrote several tracks including "Don't Crash." Despite falling into specific roles, however, the band sought to project a more anonymous, mysterious image, replete with dark sunglasses and militaristic uniforms so that they could not be easily identified.[9] Bressanutti took this anonymity to the extreme, leaving stage entirely to run live shows from the sound board behind the audience.[10]

The band self-released their first album, Geography, in 1982[11] and shortly after signed to the Belgian indie label consortium Les Disques du Crépuscule who later re-released the album.[2] Their next single, "U-Men", was released the same year as was the band's first music video, produced by Marcel Vanthilt and played on the program RoodVonk on VRT (Vlaamse Radio Televisie - Flemish Radio & TV). The video proved a challenge, not only conceptually given the band's insistence on anonymity, but because of the small budget; ultimately the video was shot on location in Daniel's bedroom.[12]

In 1983, the band brought on Richard Jonckheere (a.k.a.: Richard 23), who they became familiar with through Richard's own "noise concept," as a percussionist and second vocalist to help boost the band's live presence.[13] Not long after, Dirk Bergen left the band to manage the group and pursue a graphic design career.[2] Also in 1983 the band released the EP Endless Riddance.

Rising popularity

Front 242 became a popular musical group in Belgium, particularly for their "infamous" live performances that involved loud sound, aggressive stage presence, smoke, and bright flashing lights.[14] The music press in Belgium was less receptive, sometimes interpreting their militaristic appearance, dark music, and samples from war movies - especially given the backdrop of the Cold War and terror incidents in Belgium - as being pro-fascist, an interpretation that the band firmly rejected.[15]

Their second album, No Comment, released in 1984,[5] was the first to introduce the term electronic body music in association with their sound via the liner notes, which stated: "Electronic body music composed and produced on eight tracks by Front 242."[2] The band followed the release with a European tour.[16]

It was around this time that Front 242 had some collaborations with Luc van Acker, who was a familiar presence at Hill's Music. On one occasion, Luc brought his guitar and gear to the band's studio where samples of the session were used in composing the track "No Shuffle." Luc was also known to take the stage with the band at times.[17]

Front 242 signed with the American label Wax Trax! in 1984. At the behest of Alain Jourgensen who was working with Wax Trax at the time, Front 242 was invited to be the support band for Ministry during their upcoming tour in the United States. This tour led to the creation of Revolting Cocks by Richard 23, Luc van Acker, and Alain Jourgensen.[18]

In 1985 the band played the Seaside Festival and the first ever Pukkelpop Festival in Belgium. An incident between the band and security at Pukkelpop resulted in more poor reflections and accusations in the press.[19] That year they also released the Politics of Pressure EP and a 12" for "No Shuffle."

In 1986, Front 242 turned down a contract with ZTT Records and instead signed with the Red Rhino (RRE) label in Europe[20] - a sub-label of Play It Again Sam - who released Backcatalogue and Official Version in 1987.[5] Trouser Press credited Official Version with helping Front 242 "emerge from relative obscurity to become a significant cult force, selling records all over the world."[21] In the fall of 1987, Front 242 supported Depeche Mode on the first European leg of their Music for the Masses tour.[22]

In 1988, Front by Front was released, and in December of that same year, "Headhunter" (with a video by Anton Corbijn),[5] became the band's first club hit, reaching number 13 on the US Billboard Dance/Club Play Songs chart.[23]

1990s

Tyranny (For You), released in 1991, became the band's highest-charting album, reaching #95 on the Billboard 200.[24] Tyranny (For You) was the first album they released under contract with a major corporate label, Sony/Epic,[5] after the widespread popularity of Front by Front. Sony/Epic also acquired the rights to the band's back catalog from Wax Trax! and issued re-released versions of the albums with new cover art and bonus tracks taken from singles and EPs.[5]

In 1992, Bressanutti returned to combining graphic arts with music, taking his lithographs on tour to three U.S. galleries. Bressanutti also composed a solo half-hour atmospheric recording called Art and Strategy (or The Art Corporation) to play during viewings of the lithographs, and released it in a limited edition of 1,000 CDs.

Front 242's style shifted abruptly with each of their next two albums, released in rapid succession in 1993 on Epic's sub-label RRE (originally planned as a double-CD): 06:21:03:11 UP EVIL and 05:22:09:12 OFF (the numbers correspond to letters, spelling "FUCK UP EVIL" and "EVIL OFF"). The band describes the two albums as "based on the duality of good and evil."[5] However, strains were emerging, with the band members apparently having different artistic views. Despite these tensions, they performed on the main stage of the 1993 Lollapalooza tour.[25]

Neither of these albums had significant input from Richard 23, and 05:22:09:12 OFF only included their lead vocalist, Jean-Luc De Meyer, on a remixed track originally from Up Evil. On the other hand, a variety of new contributors were listed as members of Front 242 on these albums: Jean-Marc Pauly and Pierre Pauly (of the Belgian electronic group Parade Ground) on Up Evil, and 99 Kowalski, Jon Dubs and Eran Westwood on Off.[26]

99 Kowalski is the stage name of Kristin Kowalski, making a tradition out of Richard 23's idea of number-as-name. Kowalski, Dubs and Westwood were originally members of a New York City band called Spill who Bressanutti and Codenys had brought to Belgium to produce their debut album. After the recording sessions fell apart, they contributed to Front 242 on the Off release.

After the release of 06:21:03:11 Up Evil and 05:22:09:12 Off, there was no new material from Front 242 under any lineup. Instead, the band released a stream of live recordings and remixes. However, this period also saw a proliferation of side projects, an inordinate number of which involved De Meyer.

Earlier, Richard 23 played in the Revolting Cocks, and De Meyer had a side project doing vocals for Bigod 20 for their single, "The Bog" in 1990. In 1995, De Meyer met Marc Heal of Cubanate at a Front Line Assembly concert, and the two of them collaborated along with Ged Denton and Jonathan Sharp, to record as Cyber-Tec Project for the new (and short-lived) Cyber-Tec record label.[27]

After the departure of Sharp and the demise of the Cyber-Tec label, the remaining group continued working under the name C-Tec. De Meyer also took over as vocalist for Birmingham 6 for their 1996 album Error of Judgment. 1996 also saw the debut album Elemental from Cobalt 60, which De Meyer formed with Dominique Lallement and Frederic Sebastien of Reims, France, members of Kriegbereit. This was the start of a number of releases from Cobalt 60, which also did the soundtrack for the video game Wing Commander V.[28] Meanwhile, Richard 23 recorded with the groups Holy Gang, and later, LaTchak.

The four core members of Front 242 regrouped in 1998 to compose radically reworked versions of many of their songs, which they then performed on their first tour in five years, appropriately called the Re:Boot tour. They acknowledged the influence of The Prodigy and their Fat of the Land album in crafting the new, more techno style of Re:Boot.

The new tour material was the subject of Front 242's new recording contract in the U.S. with Metropolis Records. Front 242 also indicated at this time that they were recording new material. However, they had little activity after 1998, making occasional appearances in Europe and Mexico, while Codenys recorded under the name Gaiden with Steve Stoll in 2001.

2000s

2002 saw the beginning of a wave of new material from Bresanutti and Codenys, and then from Front 242. In August 2002 a DVD/CD two-disc set called Speed Tribe was released by Dance.com. The DVD was a collaboration with experimental documentary filmmakers Rod Chong and Sharon Matarazzo, who filmed the 2001 24 Hour Le Mans. In the video, the racecars, clouds, rain and spectators form an impressionistic visual backdrop for the music.

Several months later, the first release from Male or Female, also known as Morf, a new project for Bresanutti and Codenys along with vocalist Elko Blijweert. In 2002 and 2003, Morf released an album, an E.P., a double album, and a DVD/CD two-disc combo, on the Belgian record label Alfa Matrix, and went on tour through the U.S.

Then, 2002 and 2003 also saw the release of the new material from Front 242 in a decade: the EP Still & Raw and the album Pulse, released on XIIIBis Records in Europe and Metropolis in the U.S. These represented another iteration of Front 242's explicitly stated goal of reinventing itself. The style of the two new releases is more mellow than some of their past work, using more "glitchy" and "bleepy" sounds. As well, it uses the manipulated voice as a musical instrument. The new releases have a much more emotional style from De Meyer, which was presaged in his later recordings with C-Tec and particularly Cobalt 60 on its album Twelve.

Front 242 promised a new U.S. tour to perform new material from these releases. They have made occasional appearances in Latin America and Europe, even being rejoined by Dirk Bergen for a reunion concert in Aarschot (De Klinker club) in 2004 under the original lineup of Bresanutti, Bergen, Codenys and De Meyer. This performance was kept secret until two days before the show but when the scene magazine Side-Line and the band's label Alfa Matrix launched the news, tickets were quickly sold out.

The band has now also set itself to re-release its entire back catalogue both as a normal CD and as a limited edition consisting of a 2-CD set holding previously unreleased material. For this the band is working together with the Belgian label Alfa Matrix that already took care of releasing the albums of the Front 242 side-project Male Or Female. The first re-release is their debut album Geography, this time newly remastered personally by Bresanutti to surprisingly powerful effect and including 3 extra tracks (two hidden ones) on the normal CD format.

 
Front 242 at Infest 2008

Meanwhile, their enthusiasm for side projects has continued, as Patrick Codenys started appearing with a new group called Red Sniper, Bresanutti started recording with a new group called Troissoeur, and Codenys and Richard 23 formed a quasi-DJ project called Coder23 which toured in late 2004 and early 2005 as the opening act for VNV Nation. De Meyer contributed vocals on two studio tracks for the Glis album Nemesis in 2005. The lyrical content of the two songs ("The Irreparable" and "La Béatrice") were based on the poems of Charles Baudelaire.

Front 242 toured through twenty venues in North America in November 2005, their first tour as a full band since 2000. The band performed at the Roskilde Festival in 2006. The band's sold out two-day performance at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels has been recorded for a future release via Alfa Matrix.

In December 2006, Front 242 announced from their MySpace page that they were writing music for a video game called Cipher Complex and provided a link to a teaser trailer with a short sample of one of their scores.

In 2007, De Meyer announced a new project: 32CRASH via the Alfa Matrix label. The band is preparing for an album release in October 2007 after the release of the EP Humanity.[29]

In August 2008, Front 242 played live at the Infest Festival in Bradford, England.

In October 2008, Front 242 performed for the first time in Finland, at the Alternative Party 2008 media arts festival.

2008–present

In 2008, the band added two new members: Tim Kroker on percussion and Sylvain Guigon on live video projection and effects.[30]

On 1 June 2008, the Alfa Matrix label announced that Front 242 would make an ultimate statement towards abusive audio compression by releasing the free two-track download, First Moment. By 15 June the same year, the tracks were made available for free on Alfa Matrix's site in medium and high bit-rate MP3s, WAV, FLAC, and M4A formats.[31] Contrary to what fans and some media speculated, the two-track download was not new studio material. Instead, First Moments consisted of two previously unreleased live tracks, "U-Men" and "Im Rhythmus Bleiben", in rather stunning sound quality. It is rumored that over 20,000 people downloaded the tracks within hours of being made available.[citation needed] The label later confirmed that over 25,000 people downloaded the free tracks.

On 4 June 2008, Alfa Matrix announced the release of Moments... The album was a live recording encompassing the best of Front 242's compositions. The album was shipped in several formats including limited CD box sets, vinyl in different colors including 300-copy limited editions, and as a one-disc CD release.[32]

 
Front 242, Amphi festival 2014

On 15 April 2016, Alfa Matrix released the remastered edition of P.U.L.S.E. The re-release featured the companion Still+Raw EP, in multicolored two-disc CD formats with the special collector box set limited to 1242 copies; this box set included the album in vinyl and CD formats, as well as a 1989 live recording, a laminated live pass, posters, and the Alfa Matrix Sounds from the Matrix 017 compilation.[33]

In February 2020, Front 242 announced the "Black To Square One" US Tour with a planned 13 dates across the country which were to be preceded by a string of concerts in the EU.[34][35] The US tour was rescheduled for 2021 and many of the European dates were postponed or cancelled due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.[36] The rescheduled 16 date US tour was announced in May 2021 with the first show planned for 15 September 2021, in New York City.[37]

While Front 242 have not released new music since Pulse in 2003, on the "Black To Square One" US Tour they played three 'new' songs: "Generator", "Fix It", and "Deeply Asleep." There is no information on whether these songs or a new studio album will see a release.

Influences and style

Bressanutti cites Musique Concrète, Avant Garde, and the experimental music of Karlheinz Stockhausen as early influences.[38] De Meyer cited Joy Division as an early influence for their "dramatic content."[39] The electro-pop style of Fad Gadget also provided early inspiration for the band.[40] While they were aware of, enjoyed, and learned from musical progenitors such as Klaus Schulze, Kraftwerk, and fellow countrymen Telex, the band did not see their styles as particularly influential.[41] When asked in a 1989 interview about Front 242's being grouped with other industrial bands, Codenys replied that they "were somewhere in between Throbbing Gristle, Kraftwerk, and bands like that, but... wanted to be exclusive, and to have nothing to do with any fashion."[8]

Despite the stated intention of remaining genre-neutral, Front 242 did latch onto a phrase to describe their style: "electronic body music" or EBM; a phrase that would expand into a genre in itself. The band was not the first to use "electronic body music" as a music descriptor. Kraftwerk used the phrase to describe their 1978 album Die Mensch Maschine (translated: The Man-Machine) and the German group Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft (DAF) used a similar term - "körpermusik" - to describe their music at the beginning of the 1980s.[42] Despite not having coined the term originally, Front 242 was the first to explicitly claim EBM as a descriptor on the liner notes of their 1984 album No Comment and cemented their claim to the genre when given the lead track on the seminal Play It Again Sam compilation This Is Electronic Body Music in 1988.[2]

Legacy and cultural influence

In the 80s, Front 242 strived to project a visual mystery and anonymity to accompany their aggressive physical stage performances. The band's ethic is largely responsible for defining the "Rivethead" style of industrial and EBM culture which included the wearing of military gear, such as flak jackets, camouflage, and combat boots, as well as hairstyles, sunglasses, accessories, tattoos, and piercings.[43]

During the 1991 Gulf War, US Navy ships continuously played a list of songs by Front 242 and other bands such as the Ramones, The Clash, and Ministry as a means of boosting morale and aggression during combat operations. The band were informed of this by military personnel who attended their 1993 tour.[44]

A broader public was exposed to Front 242's music in 1992 in the film Single White Female, starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh. In the film, obsessed roommate Leigh ties Fonda to a chair but leaves her with the television remote control. In order to attract attention, Fonda tunes in to a music video channel and turns up the volume. The video playing at the time is Front 242's "Rhythm Of Time",[28] from the album Tyranny (For You). Also in 1992, the television commercials for the film K2 were set to the Front 242 song "Moldavia", from the same album.

In 1997 Billboard Encyclopedia featured Front 242 in their "Top 500 Best Producers in Rock History."[45]

Band members

  • Jean-Luc De Meyer – lead vocals and lyrics
  • Daniel Bressanutti – mixing console, programming, live mixing,
  • Patrick Codenys – keyboards, programming, samplers
  • Richard Jonckheere ("Richard 23") – electronic percussion, backing vocals
  • Tim Kroker – electronic drums (guest drummer for live shows)

Occasional band members and collaborators

  • Dirk Bergen – credited as keyboardist on Geography
  • Jean-Marc Pauly – credited for writing and composing vocals on 06:21:03:11 Up Evil
  • Pierre Pauly – credited for writing and composing vocals on 06:21:03:11 Up Evil
  • Kristin Kowalski – credited as writer, composer and vocalist on 05:22:09:12 Off, Animal, and Angels Versus Animals
  • Eran Westwood – credited as writer, composer and vocalist on 05:22:09:12 Off, Animal, and Angels Versus Animals
  • John Dubs – credited as writer and composer on Animal and Angels Versus Animals
  • Jean-Marc Lederman – credited as remixer on Angels Versus Animals
  • Valerie Jane Steele – credited as writer on Don't Crash

Discography

Side projects and guest appearances

  • 32Crash – Jean-Luc De Meyer
  • The Art Corporation – Daniel Bressanutti
  • Art & Strategy – Daniel Bressanutti, Patrick Codenys. Single-track CD included with book 'Art & Strategy 92'
  • Bigod 20 – Jean-Luc De Meyer, on track "The Bog"
  • Birmingham 6 – Jean-Luc De Meyer
  • Cobalt 60 – Jean-Luc De Meyer
  • Coder 23 – Patrick Codenys, Richard 23
  • Cyber-Tec Project/C-Tec – Jean-Luc De Meyer
  • Front Line Assembly – Jean-Luc De Meyer – Guest Vocals on track "Future Fail", Artificial Soldier Album
  • Gaiden – Patrick Codenys
  • Glis – Jean-Luc De Meyer – Guest Vocals on "The Irreparable" and "La Béatrice" ("Nemesis" Album)
  • Grisha Zeme – Daniel Bressanutti, Patrick Codenys
  • Haujobb - Jean-Luc De Meyer, on Track (and music video) "We Must Wait"
  • Holy Gang – Richard 23
  • Implant – Jean-Luc de Meyer, on track "The Creature"
  • thefucKINGFUCKS – Patrick Codenys
  • Komor Kommando – Jean-Luc De Meyer – Guest Vocals on track "John the Revelator", Alfa Matrix Re:Covered – A Tribute to Depeche Mode Album
  • LaTchak – Richard 23
  • Male Or Female – Daniel Bressanutti, Patrick Codenys
  • Ministry – Richard 23, background vocals on track "The Nature Of Love"
  • Modern Cubism – Jean-Luc De Meyer
  • Nothing but Noise – Daniel Bressanutti, Dirk Bergen
  • Parade Ground – Patrick Codenys on Album "Rosary"
  • Psy’Aviah – Jean-Luc De Meyer – Guest Vocals on track "Ophelie", Eclectric Album
  • Prothese – Daniel Bressanutti, Dirk Bergen
  • Punish Yourself – Jean-Luc de Meyer, on Track "Voodoo Virus"
  • Red Sniper – Patrick Codenys
  • Revolting Cocks – Richard 23
  • Speed Tribe – Daniel Bressanutti, Patrick Codenys
  • Troissoeur – Daniel Bressanutti, as Remixer
  • Underviewer – Patrick Codenys, Jean-Luc De Meyer

Sources

"Front 242". Belpop. Season 1. Episode 5 (in Flemish). 16 December 2008. Canvas.

References

  1. ^ Bush, John. "Front 242". AllMusic. Retrieved 13 May 2012.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Reed, S. Alexander (2013). Assimilate: A Critical History of Industrial Music. Oxford University Press. pp. 176–180. ISBN 9780199832583.
  3. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 7:35
  4. ^ "Front 242 interview". Waste.org. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g . front242.com. Archived from the original on 22 March 2008. Retrieved 25 March 2010.
  6. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 1:45
  7. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 4:10 & 13:40
  8. ^ a b Doerschuk, Robert L. (September 1989). Milano, Dominic (ed.). "Front 242: The Aggressive Edge of Rhythm & The Power of Recycled Culture". Keyboard. Cupertino, CA: Miller Freeman Publications. 15 (8): 50–57. ISSN 0730-0158.
  9. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 11:50
  10. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 45:55
  11. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 14:02
  12. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 15:10
  13. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 5:37
  14. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 16:40
  15. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 19:50
  16. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 23:50
  17. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 29:30
  18. ^ Jourgensen, Al; Wiederhorn, Jon (2013). Ministry: The Lost Gospels According to Al Jourgensen. Da Capo. pp. 75–76. ISBN 9780306822902.
  19. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 32:00
  20. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 34:45
  21. ^ Fletcher, Tony; Frampton, Megan. "Front 242". Trouser Press. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  22. ^ "Support acts - Depeche Mode Live Wiki". dmlive.wiki. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  23. ^ "Front 242 Chart History: Singles". billboard.com. Nielsen Media Inc. Retrieved 25 March 2010.
  24. ^ "Front 242 Album & Song Chart History: Billboard 200". billboard.com. Nielsen Media Inc. Retrieved 25 March 2010.
  25. ^ Garofalo, Reebee (2008). Rockin' Out: Popular Music in the USA. Pearson Prentice Hall. p. 421. ISBN 978-0-13-234305-3.
  26. ^ Romanowski, Patricia (1995). The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. Fireside. ISBN 978-0-684-81044-7.
  27. ^ Thompson, Dave (2000). Alternative Rock. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 377. ISBN 9780879306076. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  28. ^ a b Phillips, D. (October 1997). . New World Destruction Channel. Archived from the original on 8 March 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  29. ^ . 4 September 2007. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007.
  30. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 4:51
  31. ^ . 15 June 2008. Archived from the original on 6 June 2008.
  32. ^ . 5 September 2008. Archived from the original on 7 July 2008.
  33. ^ "Front 242 issues remastered edition of last studio album". ReGen Magazine. 15 April 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  34. ^ Van Isacker, Bernard (12 February 2020). "Front 242 announces 'Black To Square One' US Tour 2020". Side-Line. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  35. ^ Van Isacker, Bernard (6 February 2020). "Front 242 announces extra EU tour dates". Side-Line. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  36. ^ "ColdWaves and Front 242 announce rescheduled dates for 2021". Re-Gen Magazine. 19 June 2020. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  37. ^ Van Isacker, Bernard (14 May 2021). "Front 242 announces updated USA tour schedule for 2021". Side-Line. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  38. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 3:15
  39. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 2:45
  40. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 3:34
  41. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 8:28
  42. ^ Dicker, Holly (21 August 2018). "Join in the chant: Inside the cult of EBM". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  43. ^ Woods, Bret D. (6 June 2007). Industrial Music for Industrial People: The History and Development of an Underground Genre (Masters thesis). Florida State University. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  44. ^ Canvas (2008) Event occurs at 41:10
  45. ^ Urselli, Marc (1 June 2002). "Interview: SpeedTribe". Chain D.L.K. Retrieved 23 September 2020.

External links

  • Official website

front, belgian, electronic, music, group, that, came, into, prominence, during, 1980s, pioneering, style, they, called, electronic, body, music, they, profound, influence, electronic, industrial, music, genres, background, informationoriginaarschot, belgiumgen. Front 242 is a Belgian electronic music group that came into prominence during the 1980s Pioneering the style they called electronic body music they are a profound influence on the electronic and industrial music genres 1 Front 242Background informationOriginAarschot BelgiumGenresEBM electronicYears active1981 1981 presentLabelsAnother Side Red Rhino Europe Animalized Wax Trax Epic XIII Bis Records Alfa MatrixSpinoffsCobalt 60 C Tec Revolting CocksMembersJean Luc De MeyerDaniel BressanuttiPatrick CodenysRichard JonckheereTim KrokerPast membersDirk BergenJean Marc PaulyPierre PaulyKristin KowalskiEran WestwoodJohn DubsJean Marc LedermanWebsitewww wbr front242 wbr com Contents 1 History 1 1 Formation 1 2 Rising popularity 1 3 1990s 1 4 2000s 1 5 2008 present 2 Influences and style 3 Legacy and cultural influence 4 Band members 4 1 Occasional band members and collaborators 5 Discography 6 Side projects and guest appearances 7 Sources 8 References 9 External linksHistory EditFormation Edit Front 242 were formed in 1981 in Aarschot near Leuven Belgium by Daniel Bressanutti and Dirk Bergen who wanted to create music and graphic design using emerging electronic tools Prior to forming Front 242 Bressanutti worked on a music project called Prothese that had already produced several one off tracks 2 The front part of the name comes from the idea of an organized popular uprising and the fact that the word can be translated in many languages while retaining the same meaning 3 The number 242 was chosen because it s just sort of a design work 4 The first single by the duo Principles with b side Body To Body was released in 1981 5 Patrick Codenys and Jean Luc De Meyer had separately formed a group called Underviewer at around the same time The groups merged in 1982 after Underviewer had given their demo tapes to Bressanutti who was working at a music instruments shop at the time Hill s Music in Brussels 6 Daniel was so impressed he asked Patrick and Jean Luc to join Front 242 2 Recordings by the band were initially created in Daniel s apartment studio where all the entire band and their equipment were packed into a 2 5m x 2 5m room 7 The band incorporated as an artistic association in Belgium which allowed them to access government assistance and made it easier to afford better studio equipment 8 Bressanutti Codenys and De Meyer took turns on vocals at first until they settled on De Meyer as the lead vocalist early recordings with Bressanutti on vocals were subsequently released in 2004 De Meyer came to write most of the lyrics although Valerie Jane Steele wrote several tracks including Don t Crash Despite falling into specific roles however the band sought to project a more anonymous mysterious image replete with dark sunglasses and militaristic uniforms so that they could not be easily identified 9 Bressanutti took this anonymity to the extreme leaving stage entirely to run live shows from the sound board behind the audience 10 The band self released their first album Geography in 1982 11 and shortly after signed to the Belgian indie label consortium Les Disques du Crepuscule who later re released the album 2 Their next single U Men was released the same year as was the band s first music video produced by Marcel Vanthilt and played on the program RoodVonk on VRT Vlaamse Radio Televisie Flemish Radio amp TV The video proved a challenge not only conceptually given the band s insistence on anonymity but because of the small budget ultimately the video was shot on location in Daniel s bedroom 12 In 1983 the band brought on Richard Jonckheere a k a Richard 23 who they became familiar with through Richard s own noise concept as a percussionist and second vocalist to help boost the band s live presence 13 Not long after Dirk Bergen left the band to manage the group and pursue a graphic design career 2 Also in 1983 the band released the EP Endless Riddance Rising popularity Edit Front 242 became a popular musical group in Belgium particularly for their infamous live performances that involved loud sound aggressive stage presence smoke and bright flashing lights 14 The music press in Belgium was less receptive sometimes interpreting their militaristic appearance dark music and samples from war movies especially given the backdrop of the Cold War and terror incidents in Belgium as being pro fascist an interpretation that the band firmly rejected 15 Their second album No Comment released in 1984 5 was the first to introduce the term electronic body music in association with their sound via the liner notes which stated Electronic body music composed and produced on eight tracks by Front 242 2 The band followed the release with a European tour 16 It was around this time that Front 242 had some collaborations with Luc van Acker who was a familiar presence at Hill s Music On one occasion Luc brought his guitar and gear to the band s studio where samples of the session were used in composing the track No Shuffle Luc was also known to take the stage with the band at times 17 Front 242 signed with the American label Wax Trax in 1984 At the behest of Alain Jourgensen who was working with Wax Trax at the time Front 242 was invited to be the support band for Ministry during their upcoming tour in the United States This tour led to the creation of Revolting Cocks by Richard 23 Luc van Acker and Alain Jourgensen 18 In 1985 the band played the Seaside Festival and the first ever Pukkelpop Festival in Belgium An incident between the band and security at Pukkelpop resulted in more poor reflections and accusations in the press 19 That year they also released the Politics of Pressure EP and a 12 for No Shuffle In 1986 Front 242 turned down a contract with ZTT Records and instead signed with the Red Rhino RRE label in Europe 20 a sub label of Play It Again Sam who released Backcatalogue and Official Version in 1987 5 Trouser Press credited Official Version with helping Front 242 emerge from relative obscurity to become a significant cult force selling records all over the world 21 In the fall of 1987 Front 242 supported Depeche Mode on the first European leg of their Music for the Masses tour 22 In 1988 Front by Front was released and in December of that same year Headhunter with a video by Anton Corbijn 5 became the band s first club hit reaching number 13 on the US Billboard Dance Club Play Songs chart 23 1990s Edit Tyranny For You released in 1991 became the band s highest charting album reaching 95 on the Billboard 200 24 Tyranny For You was the first album they released under contract with a major corporate label Sony Epic 5 after the widespread popularity of Front by Front Sony Epic also acquired the rights to the band s back catalog from Wax Trax and issued re released versions of the albums with new cover art and bonus tracks taken from singles and EPs 5 In 1992 Bressanutti returned to combining graphic arts with music taking his lithographs on tour to three U S galleries Bressanutti also composed a solo half hour atmospheric recording called Art and Strategy or The Art Corporation to play during viewings of the lithographs and released it in a limited edition of 1 000 CDs Front 242 s style shifted abruptly with each of their next two albums released in rapid succession in 1993 on Epic s sub label RRE originally planned as a double CD 06 21 03 11 UP EVIL and 05 22 09 12 OFF the numbers correspond to letters spelling FUCK UP EVIL and EVIL OFF The band describes the two albums as based on the duality of good and evil 5 However strains were emerging with the band members apparently having different artistic views Despite these tensions they performed on the main stage of the 1993 Lollapalooza tour 25 Neither of these albums had significant input from Richard 23 and 05 22 09 12 OFF only included their lead vocalist Jean Luc De Meyer on a remixed track originally from Up Evil On the other hand a variety of new contributors were listed as members of Front 242 on these albums Jean Marc Pauly and Pierre Pauly of the Belgian electronic group Parade Ground on Up Evil and 99 Kowalski Jon Dubs and Eran Westwood on Off 26 99 Kowalski is the stage name of Kristin Kowalski making a tradition out of Richard 23 s idea of number as name Kowalski Dubs and Westwood were originally members of a New York City band called Spill who Bressanutti and Codenys had brought to Belgium to produce their debut album After the recording sessions fell apart they contributed to Front 242 on the Off release After the release of 06 21 03 11 Up Evil and 05 22 09 12 Off there was no new material from Front 242 under any lineup Instead the band released a stream of live recordings and remixes However this period also saw a proliferation of side projects an inordinate number of which involved De Meyer Earlier Richard 23 played in the Revolting Cocks and De Meyer had a side project doing vocals for Bigod 20 for their single The Bog in 1990 In 1995 De Meyer met Marc Heal of Cubanate at a Front Line Assembly concert and the two of them collaborated along with Ged Denton and Jonathan Sharp to record as Cyber Tec Project for the new and short lived Cyber Tec record label 27 After the departure of Sharp and the demise of the Cyber Tec label the remaining group continued working under the name C Tec De Meyer also took over as vocalist for Birmingham 6 for their 1996 album Error of Judgment 1996 also saw the debut album Elemental from Cobalt 60 which De Meyer formed with Dominique Lallement and Frederic Sebastien of Reims France members of Kriegbereit This was the start of a number of releases from Cobalt 60 which also did the soundtrack for the video game Wing Commander V 28 Meanwhile Richard 23 recorded with the groups Holy Gang and later LaTchak The four core members of Front 242 regrouped in 1998 to compose radically reworked versions of many of their songs which they then performed on their first tour in five years appropriately called the Re Boot tour They acknowledged the influence of The Prodigy and their Fat of the Land album in crafting the new more techno style of Re Boot The new tour material was the subject of Front 242 s new recording contract in the U S with Metropolis Records Front 242 also indicated at this time that they were recording new material However they had little activity after 1998 making occasional appearances in Europe and Mexico while Codenys recorded under the name Gaiden with Steve Stoll in 2001 2000s Edit 2002 saw the beginning of a wave of new material from Bresanutti and Codenys and then from Front 242 In August 2002 a DVD CD two disc set called Speed Tribe was released by Dance com The DVD was a collaboration with experimental documentary filmmakers Rod Chong and Sharon Matarazzo who filmed the 2001 24 Hour Le Mans In the video the racecars clouds rain and spectators form an impressionistic visual backdrop for the music Several months later the first release from Male or Female also known as Morf a new project for Bresanutti and Codenys along with vocalist Elko Blijweert In 2002 and 2003 Morf released an album an E P a double album and a DVD CD two disc combo on the Belgian record label Alfa Matrix and went on tour through the U S Then 2002 and 2003 also saw the release of the new material from Front 242 in a decade the EP Still amp Raw and the album Pulse released on XIIIBis Records in Europe and Metropolis in the U S These represented another iteration of Front 242 s explicitly stated goal of reinventing itself The style of the two new releases is more mellow than some of their past work using more glitchy and bleepy sounds As well it uses the manipulated voice as a musical instrument The new releases have a much more emotional style from De Meyer which was presaged in his later recordings with C Tec and particularly Cobalt 60 on its album Twelve Front 242 promised a new U S tour to perform new material from these releases They have made occasional appearances in Latin America and Europe even being rejoined by Dirk Bergen for a reunion concert in Aarschot De Klinker club in 2004 under the original lineup of Bresanutti Bergen Codenys and De Meyer This performance was kept secret until two days before the show but when the scene magazine Side Line and the band s label Alfa Matrix launched the news tickets were quickly sold out The band has now also set itself to re release its entire back catalogue both as a normal CD and as a limited edition consisting of a 2 CD set holding previously unreleased material For this the band is working together with the Belgian label Alfa Matrix that already took care of releasing the albums of the Front 242 side project Male Or Female The first re release is their debut album Geography this time newly remastered personally by Bresanutti to surprisingly powerful effect and including 3 extra tracks two hidden ones on the normal CD format Front 242 at Infest 2008 Meanwhile their enthusiasm for side projects has continued as Patrick Codenys started appearing with a new group called Red Sniper Bresanutti started recording with a new group called Troissoeur and Codenys and Richard 23 formed a quasi DJ project called Coder23 which toured in late 2004 and early 2005 as the opening act for VNV Nation De Meyer contributed vocals on two studio tracks for the Glis album Nemesis in 2005 The lyrical content of the two songs The Irreparable and La Beatrice were based on the poems of Charles Baudelaire Front 242 toured through twenty venues in North America in November 2005 their first tour as a full band since 2000 The band performed at the Roskilde Festival in 2006 The band s sold out two day performance at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels has been recorded for a future release via Alfa Matrix In December 2006 Front 242 announced from their MySpace page that they were writing music for a video game called Cipher Complex and provided a link to a teaser trailer with a short sample of one of their scores In 2007 De Meyer announced a new project 32CRASH via the Alfa Matrix label The band is preparing for an album release in October 2007 after the release of the EP Humanity 29 In August 2008 Front 242 played live at the Infest Festival in Bradford England In October 2008 Front 242 performed for the first time in Finland at the Alternative Party 2008 media arts festival 2008 present Edit In 2008 the band added two new members Tim Kroker on percussion and Sylvain Guigon on live video projection and effects 30 On 1 June 2008 the Alfa Matrix label announced that Front 242 would make an ultimate statement towards abusive audio compression by releasing the free two track download First Moment By 15 June the same year the tracks were made available for free on Alfa Matrix s site in medium and high bit rate MP3s WAV FLAC and M4A formats 31 Contrary to what fans and some media speculated the two track download was not new studio material Instead First Moments consisted of two previously unreleased live tracks U Men and Im Rhythmus Bleiben in rather stunning sound quality It is rumored that over 20 000 people downloaded the tracks within hours of being made available citation needed The label later confirmed that over 25 000 people downloaded the free tracks On 4 June 2008 Alfa Matrix announced the release of Moments The album was a live recording encompassing the best of Front 242 s compositions The album was shipped in several formats including limited CD box sets vinyl in different colors including 300 copy limited editions and as a one disc CD release 32 Front 242 Amphi festival 2014 On 15 April 2016 Alfa Matrix released the remastered edition of P U L S E The re release featured the companion Still Raw EP in multicolored two disc CD formats with the special collector box set limited to 1242 copies this box set included the album in vinyl and CD formats as well as a 1989 live recording a laminated live pass posters and the Alfa Matrix Sounds from the Matrix 017 compilation 33 In February 2020 Front 242 announced the Black To Square One US Tour with a planned 13 dates across the country which were to be preceded by a string of concerts in the EU 34 35 The US tour was rescheduled for 2021 and many of the European dates were postponed or cancelled due to the global COVID 19 pandemic 36 The rescheduled 16 date US tour was announced in May 2021 with the first show planned for 15 September 2021 in New York City 37 While Front 242 have not released new music since Pulse in 2003 on the Black To Square One US Tour they played three new songs Generator Fix It and Deeply Asleep There is no information on whether these songs or a new studio album will see a release Influences and style EditBressanutti cites Musique Concrete Avant Garde and the experimental music of Karlheinz Stockhausen as early influences 38 De Meyer cited Joy Division as an early influence for their dramatic content 39 The electro pop style of Fad Gadget also provided early inspiration for the band 40 While they were aware of enjoyed and learned from musical progenitors such as Klaus Schulze Kraftwerk and fellow countrymen Telex the band did not see their styles as particularly influential 41 When asked in a 1989 interview about Front 242 s being grouped with other industrial bands Codenys replied that they were somewhere in between Throbbing Gristle Kraftwerk and bands like that but wanted to be exclusive and to have nothing to do with any fashion 8 Despite the stated intention of remaining genre neutral Front 242 did latch onto a phrase to describe their style electronic body music or EBM a phrase that would expand into a genre in itself The band was not the first to use electronic body music as a music descriptor Kraftwerk used the phrase to describe their 1978 album Die Mensch Maschine translated The Man Machine and the German group Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft DAF used a similar term korpermusik to describe their music at the beginning of the 1980s 42 Despite not having coined the term originally Front 242 was the first to explicitly claim EBM as a descriptor on the liner notes of their 1984 album No Comment and cemented their claim to the genre when given the lead track on the seminal Play It Again Sam compilation This Is Electronic Body Music in 1988 2 Legacy and cultural influence EditIn the 80s Front 242 strived to project a visual mystery and anonymity to accompany their aggressive physical stage performances The band s ethic is largely responsible for defining the Rivethead style of industrial and EBM culture which included the wearing of military gear such as flak jackets camouflage and combat boots as well as hairstyles sunglasses accessories tattoos and piercings 43 During the 1991 Gulf War US Navy ships continuously played a list of songs by Front 242 and other bands such as the Ramones The Clash and Ministry as a means of boosting morale and aggression during combat operations The band were informed of this by military personnel who attended their 1993 tour 44 A broader public was exposed to Front 242 s music in 1992 in the film Single White Female starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh In the film obsessed roommate Leigh ties Fonda to a chair but leaves her with the television remote control In order to attract attention Fonda tunes in to a music video channel and turns up the volume The video playing at the time is Front 242 s Rhythm Of Time 28 from the album Tyranny For You Also in 1992 the television commercials for the film K2 were set to the Front 242 song Moldavia from the same album In 1997 Billboard Encyclopedia featured Front 242 in their Top 500 Best Producers in Rock History 45 Band members EditJean Luc De Meyer lead vocals and lyrics Daniel Bressanutti mixing console programming live mixing Patrick Codenys keyboards programming samplers Richard Jonckheere Richard 23 electronic percussion backing vocals Tim Kroker electronic drums guest drummer for live shows Occasional band members and collaborators Edit Dirk Bergen credited as keyboardist on Geography Jean Marc Pauly credited for writing and composing vocals on 06 21 03 11 Up Evil Pierre Pauly credited for writing and composing vocals on 06 21 03 11 Up Evil Kristin Kowalski credited as writer composer and vocalist on 05 22 09 12 Off Animal and Angels Versus Animals Eran Westwood credited as writer composer and vocalist on 05 22 09 12 Off Animal and Angels Versus Animals John Dubs credited as writer and composer on Animal and Angels Versus Animals Jean Marc Lederman credited as remixer on Angels Versus Animals Valerie Jane Steele credited as writer on Don t CrashDiscography EditMain article Front 242 discography Geography 1982 No Comment 1984 Official Version 1987 Front by Front 1988 Tyranny For You 1991 06 21 03 11 Up Evil 1993 05 22 09 12 Off 1993 Pulse 2003 Side projects and guest appearances Edit32Crash Jean Luc De Meyer The Art Corporation Daniel Bressanutti Art amp Strategy Daniel Bressanutti Patrick Codenys Single track CD included with book Art amp Strategy 92 Bigod 20 Jean Luc De Meyer on track The Bog Birmingham 6 Jean Luc De Meyer Cobalt 60 Jean Luc De Meyer Coder 23 Patrick Codenys Richard 23 Cyber Tec Project C Tec Jean Luc De Meyer Front Line Assembly Jean Luc De Meyer Guest Vocals on track Future Fail Artificial Soldier Album Gaiden Patrick Codenys Glis Jean Luc De Meyer Guest Vocals on The Irreparable and La Beatrice Nemesis Album Grisha Zeme Daniel Bressanutti Patrick Codenys Haujobb Jean Luc De Meyer on Track and music video We Must Wait Holy Gang Richard 23 Implant Jean Luc de Meyer on track The Creature thefucKINGFUCKS Patrick Codenys Komor Kommando Jean Luc De Meyer Guest Vocals on track John the Revelator Alfa Matrix Re Covered A Tribute to Depeche Mode Album LaTchak Richard 23 Male Or Female Daniel Bressanutti Patrick Codenys Ministry Richard 23 background vocals on track The Nature Of Love Modern Cubism Jean Luc De Meyer Nothing but Noise Daniel Bressanutti Dirk Bergen Parade Ground Patrick Codenys on Album Rosary Psy Aviah Jean Luc De Meyer Guest Vocals on track Ophelie Eclectric Album Prothese Daniel Bressanutti Dirk Bergen Punish Yourself Jean Luc de Meyer on Track Voodoo Virus Red Sniper Patrick Codenys Revolting Cocks Richard 23 Speed Tribe Daniel Bressanutti Patrick Codenys Troissoeur Daniel Bressanutti as Remixer Underviewer Patrick Codenys Jean Luc De MeyerSources Edit Front 242 Belpop Season 1 Episode 5 in Flemish 16 December 2008 Canvas References Edit Bush John Front 242 AllMusic Retrieved 13 May 2012 a b c d e f Reed S Alexander 2013 Assimilate A Critical History of Industrial Music Oxford University Press pp 176 180 ISBN 9780199832583 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 7 35 Front 242 interview Waste org Retrieved 27 April 2017 a b c d e f g Band front242 com Archived from the original on 22 March 2008 Retrieved 25 March 2010 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 1 45 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 4 10 amp 13 40 a b Doerschuk Robert L September 1989 Milano Dominic ed Front 242 The Aggressive Edge of Rhythm amp The Power of Recycled Culture Keyboard Cupertino CA Miller Freeman Publications 15 8 50 57 ISSN 0730 0158 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 11 50 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 45 55 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 14 02 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 15 10 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 5 37 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 16 40 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 19 50 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 23 50 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 29 30 Jourgensen Al Wiederhorn Jon 2013 Ministry The Lost Gospels According to Al Jourgensen Da Capo pp 75 76 ISBN 9780306822902 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 32 00 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 34 45 Fletcher Tony Frampton Megan Front 242 Trouser Press Retrieved 10 May 2021 Support acts Depeche Mode Live Wiki dmlive wiki Retrieved 16 September 2020 Front 242 Chart History Singles billboard com Nielsen Media Inc Retrieved 25 March 2010 Front 242 Album amp Song Chart History Billboard 200 billboard com Nielsen Media Inc Retrieved 25 March 2010 Garofalo Reebee 2008 Rockin Out Popular Music in the USA Pearson Prentice Hall p 421 ISBN 978 0 13 234305 3 Romanowski Patricia 1995 The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock amp Roll Fireside ISBN 978 0 684 81044 7 Thompson Dave 2000 Alternative Rock Hal Leonard Corporation p 377 ISBN 9780879306076 Retrieved 14 April 2011 a b Phillips D October 1997 Front 242 Interview New World Destruction Channel Archived from the original on 8 March 2012 Retrieved 14 April 2011 32CRASH announces pre sales debut album 4 September 2007 Archived from the original on 30 September 2007 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 4 51 Front 242 First moment free 2 track download 15 June 2008 Archived from the original on 6 June 2008 Front 242 Moments digipak CD Limited 2CD Carton Box Kommando t shirt 5 September 2008 Archived from the original on 7 July 2008 Front 242 issues remastered edition of last studio album ReGen Magazine 15 April 2016 Retrieved 21 March 2019 Van Isacker Bernard 12 February 2020 Front 242 announces Black To Square One US Tour 2020 Side Line Retrieved 22 August 2021 Van Isacker Bernard 6 February 2020 Front 242 announces extra EU tour dates Side Line Retrieved 22 August 2021 ColdWaves and Front 242 announce rescheduled dates for 2021 Re Gen Magazine 19 June 2020 Retrieved 22 August 2021 Van Isacker Bernard 14 May 2021 Front 242 announces updated USA tour schedule for 2021 Side Line Retrieved 22 August 2021 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 3 15 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 2 45 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 3 34 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 8 28 Dicker Holly 21 August 2018 Join in the chant Inside the cult of EBM Resident Advisor Retrieved 25 September 2020 Woods Bret D 6 June 2007 Industrial Music for Industrial People The History and Development of an Underground Genre Masters thesis Florida State University Retrieved 22 September 2020 Canvas 2008 Event occurs at 41 10 Urselli Marc 1 June 2002 Interview SpeedTribe Chain D L K Retrieved 23 September 2020 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Front 242 Official website Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Front 242 amp oldid 1122819039, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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