As genre progenitors pushing beat-driven industrial, corrosive metal, and electronic body music in the late ’80s and early ’90s, Front Line Assembly helped formulate this hybrid style before acts like nine inch nails carried it into the mainstream. Initially, FLA dealt with the dark synth atmospherics heard on their official debut, 1987’s The Initial Command. The addition of EBM dance beats followed, heard on releases such as 1989’s Gashed Senses & Crossfire and 1992’s Tactical Neural Implant. As the genre incorporated more metal influences, so did the band, who injected jagged guitar riffs and aggressive sampling on 1994’s Millennium. After returning focus to electronic, techno-oriented beats, FLA entered the 21st century with a trio of releases that landed the group on the Billboard charts for the first time with 2006’s Artificial Soldier. They repeated the feat in 2010 with Improvised. Electronic. Device. before turning their attention to video game soundtracks on AirMech (2012) and WarMech (2018). They remained active with studio efforts like 2021’s Mechanical Soul.

Through various lineup shifts over the decades, the act’s core duo is comprised of Bill Leeb (vocals, synthesizers) and Rhys Fulber (synthesizers, samplers). After working in the mid-’80s under the pseudonym Wilhelm Schroeder with Skinny Puppy , the Austrian-born Leeb formed the industrial/techno-based Front Line Assembly in 1986 with Fulber — who initially joined on as a studio assistant — and synth player Michael Balch. After a handful of compilation appearances and cassette-only releases, Front Line Assembly issued its first three full-length efforts — The Initial Command, State of Mind, and Corrosion — on a monthly basis between December 1987 and February 1988. Later in 1988, Corrosion, a subsequent mini-album titled Disorder, and a number of exclusive bonus tracks were compiled and released as Convergence.

In 1989, the group returned with the album Gashed Senses & Crossfire, which contained the dance-flavored singles “Digital Tension Dementia” and “No Limit.” A European tour in support of the record yielded a live album — simply titled Live — that was released and deleted on the same day in a limited edition of 4,000 pressings. After Balch departed Front Line Assembly in 1990, Fulber stepped in as a full partner; the streamlined duo soon released the electro-styled album Caustic Grip, while 1992’s Tactical Neural Implant found the group’s music moving in a harder-edged disco direction.

By 1994, their sound had evolved yet again, with the album Millennium displaying a newfound reliance on guitars; both the title track and “This Faith” scored as club hits. Fulber departed the lineup by 1997, while his replacement Chris Peterson debuted with 1998’s Monument. Implode appeared one year later. Sticking with a heavy dose of synth pop trance and throbbing melodies, Leeb and Peterson issued Epitaph in fall 2001. Rhys Fulber returned for the 2001 album Civilization and remained for the 2006 release Artificial Soldier, which found guitarist/keyboardist Jeremy Inkel joining the band. The remix album Fallout followed in 2007.

The group returned in 2010 with Improvised. Electronic. Device. ( Metropolis ), featuring new members Jeremy Inkel and Jared Slingerland, as well as “Stupidity,” with Al Jourgensen . After years of contributing previously released tracks to video game-related soundtracks, Front Line Assembly gave full focus to an entire album with AirMech, the electronic instrumental soundtrack for the video game of the same name, which was released in 2012. The next year, they returned with the dubstep-influenced Echogenetic — the remix album Echoes a year later — which they promoted on tour with Skinny Puppy . Echogenetic marked their highest chart success to date, topping the German Alternative Albums list and entering the top 20 on Billboard’s Dance/Electronic and Heatseekers Albums charts.

In early 2018, keyboardist Inkel passed away due to asthma complications at the age of 34. The band carried on, joining Die Krupps on a spring European tour before the release of AirMech sequel WarMech. Closing out the 2010s, they issued Wake Up the Coma, which featured a cover of Falco ‘s “Rock Me Amadeus” with Jimmy Urine , as well as appearances by Nick Holmes ( Paradise Lost ) and Chris Connelly ( Revolting Cocks ). A new decade in the band’s catalog was inaugurated with 2021’s Mechanical Soul, which recruited guests Jean-Luc De Meyer ( Front 242 ) and Dino Cazares ( Fear Factory ). FLA was featured on Black Asteroid ‘s 2022 single “Methane Rain.”

After years of anticipation within the electro-industrial scene, the legendary duo Mentallo & The Fixer have officially reunited. Brothers Gary and Dwayne Dassing, the masterminds behind the project, have returned to the studio.

Known for their intricate programming, chilling samples, and a signature blend of sci-fi dread and societal commentary, Mentallo & The Fixer dominated the 90’s industrial landscape.

2025 marks their first full-length album as a duo since 1997’s ‘Burnt Beyond Recognition’. Adding further to this, the band will embark on their first US tour since 2006, coinciding with the 30th anniversary of their classic album, ‘Where Angels Fear to Tread’. This offers longtime fans a rare opportunity to witness the band’s intense live performances and introduces a new generation to their groundbreaking sound, solidifying their legacy as true innovators of electro-industrial music.

CLOCKDVA are considered one of the pre-eminent pioneers of pre-and post-80s experimental music alongside, and in collaborative association with, Throbbing Gristle and Cabaret Voltaire. “Adi Newton has described the process of making music as his research. It represents a more thoughtful and reactive body of work than that which dominates his peer group in particular, Newton’s grasp of the philosophical connotations of technology place him apart from the majority of its practitioners.” (NME.COM)

CLOCKDVA’s acclaimed releases include the 1981 electroacoustic album THIRST—declared by Paul Morley of NME as one of the best debuts on a par with Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures and The Fall’s Dragnet— and the 1988 electronic masterpiece BURIED DREAMS. CLOCKDVA continue to present and release new music and critically acclaimed audiovisual works, with performances in Europe and the USA.

Paul Ion Barker is a producer, composer, and touring musician. His extensive production and writing work with Ministry extended from 1985 through 2004. He has been involved with bringing a wide range of other musical projects into fruition: Lard, Pailhead, Revolting Cocks, Flowering Blight, USSA, I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness, Malekko, recently as a touring member of Puscifer, and Lead into Gold.

Barker is the co-owner/cofounder of Malekko Heavy Industry Corporation, a guitar effects pedal/euro rack synthesizer module manufacturing company growing steadily since 2006. Malekko Heavy Industry, based in Portland, is held in high esteem by professional musicians worldwide.

Paul is presently producing another new Lead into Gold album, along with working up MINDUB SOUNDSYSTEM live performance sets, euro rack synths sets, and Malekko music.