16 Volt
Encyclopedia
16Volt is an industrial rock band featuring Eric Powell and Mike Peoples with various other performers added for live shows.
's Dave Ogilvie
on production, 16Volt released debut album, Wisdom, in 1993. Skin
followed in 1994, after which the project met Hate Dept.
on the Remix Wars
EP
. 16Volt's third album, LetDownCrush, signaled the end of Powell's relationship with Re-Constriction; SuperCoolNothing
, issued in 1998, appeared on the Slipdisc imprint of Mercury
/PolyGram
. Demography appeared in fall 2000. They also provided the combat soundtrack for the game Primal
which, despite positive reviews, failed to sell as expected. A sample CD was provided with the limited edition version of the game, along with a commercial soundtrack sold later which both boosted interest in the band (especially in countries outside the US where they were not well known).
16Volt had a cameo appearance in the Cult PS2 game Primal
, where they played in a club in the opening cut scene as well as supplying combat music such as 'Happy Pill', 'Suffering You', 'And I Go', 'Keep Sleeping', 'At The End' and 'Alkali'.
The band made a highly successful recent comeback with their first release of original material for nine years, with 2007's FullBlackHabit
. This album included 'Suffering You', a track originally included as a demo on SuperCoolNothing V2.0.
On September 8 16Volt released its sixth major studio album "American Porn Songs". The song 'Alkali' previously used in the Primal Album has also like 'Suffering You' been redone and included in the album. In addition, on the official site, 16Volt's entire back catalog was available to download for free.
16 Volt released their seventh studio album entitled, "Beating Dead Horses" in May 2011 on Metropolis Records
's Carrie, contained their single, 'Keep Sleeping', as part of the soundtrack.
was released, containing twelve 16Volt songs as the combat soundtrack, most of which were from their fourth album, supercoolnothing. An official CD release of the soundtrack was later produced by (the now defunct) Dark City Music, but has since become out of print
.
. They released three albums and a 'best of' together between 1996 and 2001.
Eric Powell (founder of 16Volt) on Vocals and Kraig Tyler (from Crazy Town
), Carlton Bost (from Deadsy
) on guitar, Paige Haley (from Orgy
) on bass and Mikey Cox (from Coal Chamber
) on drums. The finished roughly an albums worth of material, which could be downloaded from their website, and played several gigs before splitting up.
A full album is apparently in the works, utilizing female vocals.
History
Powell became interested in music early on, and formed 16Volt in 1988. While shopping his demos several years later, he met up with a college-radio music director who agreed to release the recordings on his newly formed Re-constriction label. After working with Skinny PuppySkinny 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....
's Dave Ogilvie
Dave Ogilvie
Dave "Rave" Ogilvie is a Canadian record producer and musician. He is a producer of industrial music and has been associated with bands such as Skinny Puppy , Doughboys, The Birthday Massacre , Marilyn Manson, Jakalope , Killing Joke, Queensrÿche, Alexz Johnson, Fake Shark...
on production, 16Volt released debut album, Wisdom, in 1993. Skin
Skin
-Dermis:The dermis is the layer of skin beneath the epidermis that consists of connective tissue and cushions the body from stress and strain. The dermis is tightly connected to the epidermis by a basement membrane. It also harbors many Mechanoreceptors that provide the sense of touch and heat...
followed in 1994, after which the project met Hate Dept.
Hate Dept.
Hate Dept. is a synthesizer-laden post punk band, created in 1991 by Seibold. The group releases albums and performs music in the same vein as Nine Inch Nails, Skinny Puppy and The Prodigy. Seibold is a multi-instrumentalist who manages to write, record and release Hate Dept. albums without the aid...
on the Remix Wars
The Remix Wars: Strike 3 - 16 Volt vs. Hate Dept
The Remix Wars, Strike 3: 16 Volt vs. Hate Dept. is the 3rd remix album released by 21st Circuitry Records. It features three songs by each artist, remixed by the other artist. Stiched was originally recorded on 16 Volt's second album Skin. Dreams of Light and Motorskill were both originally...
EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
. 16Volt's third album, LetDownCrush, signaled the end of Powell's relationship with Re-Constriction; SuperCoolNothing
SuperCoolNothing
SuperCoolNothing is the fourth album by 16 Volt. With the first release out of print, 2000 copies of the album were re-released by Dark City Music with new cover art. The first 100 copies were signed by the band...
, issued in 1998, appeared on the Slipdisc imprint of Mercury
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
/PolyGram
PolyGram
PolyGram was the name of the major label recording company started by Philips from as a holding company for its music interests in 1945. In 1999 it was sold to Seagram and merged into Universal Music Group.-Hollandsche Decca Distributie , 1929-1950:...
. Demography appeared in fall 2000. They also provided the combat soundtrack for the game Primal
Primal (video game)
Primal is an action-adventure video game released in 2003 for the PlayStation 2. It was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe aka SCE Studio Cambridge. It tells the story of Jennifer Tate, a 21-year-old woman searching for her boyfriend through a series of demonic realms...
which, despite positive reviews, failed to sell as expected. A sample CD was provided with the limited edition version of the game, along with a commercial soundtrack sold later which both boosted interest in the band (especially in countries outside the US where they were not well known).
16Volt had a cameo appearance in the Cult PS2 game Primal
Primal (video game)
Primal is an action-adventure video game released in 2003 for the PlayStation 2. It was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe aka SCE Studio Cambridge. It tells the story of Jennifer Tate, a 21-year-old woman searching for her boyfriend through a series of demonic realms...
, where they played in a club in the opening cut scene as well as supplying combat music such as 'Happy Pill', 'Suffering You', 'And I Go', 'Keep Sleeping', 'At The End' and 'Alkali'.
The band made a highly successful recent comeback with their first release of original material for nine years, with 2007's FullBlackHabit
FullBlackHabit
FullBlackHabit is the fifth album by 16 Volt, five years after the release of SuperCoolNothing.-Track listing:# I'm Just a Mess - 3:46# Come For You - 3:24# Cables & Wires - 3:28# Suffering You - 3:07# And You Are All Alone Again - 3:54...
. This album included 'Suffering You', a track originally included as a demo on SuperCoolNothing V2.0.
On September 8 16Volt released its sixth major studio album "American Porn Songs". The song 'Alkali' previously used in the Primal Album has also like 'Suffering You' been redone and included in the album. In addition, on the official site, 16Volt's entire back catalog was available to download for free.
16 Volt released their seventh studio album entitled, "Beating Dead Horses" in May 2011 on Metropolis Records
Albums
- WisdomWisdom (album)Wisdom is 16 Volt's debut album, which was released in 1993 under the Re-constriction label.-Track listing:# Motorskill - 5:11# Wisdom - 4:04# Head of Stone - 5:10# Filthy Love of Fire - 5:21# Hand Over End - 4:15# Will - 4:58# Dreams of Light - 5:31...
(1993) - Skin (1994)
- LetDownCrushLetDownCrushLetDownCrush is the third album released by 16 Volt in 1996. The album was produced by founder Eric Powell with the song writing help of Marc LaCorte.- Track listing :# Swarm - 3:23# The Dreams That Rot in Your Heart - 3:28# A Cloth Like Gauze - 4:03...
(1996) - SuperCoolNothingSuperCoolNothingSuperCoolNothing is the fourth album by 16 Volt. With the first release out of print, 2000 copies of the album were re-released by Dark City Music with new cover art. The first 100 copies were signed by the band...
(1998) - DemographyDemography (album)Demography is a collection of old, unfinished tracks by Industrial band 16 Volt. Most notably this collection contains the "Imitation Cassette" Demography is a collection of old, unfinished tracks by Industrial band 16 Volt. Most notably this collection contains the "Imitation Cassette" Demography...
(2000) - This is a collection of early (pre-'Wisdom') demo work, including the entire 'Imitation' cassette (1991). - SuperCoolNothing V2.0SuperCoolNothing V2.0SuperCoolNothing V2.0 is the re-release of the fourth album by 16 Volt, and comes with a bonus disk of remixes and demos. Several tracks of the album are featured in the video game Primal.-Track listing:Disc 1:# I Fail Truth# Everyday Everything...
(2002) - The Best of Sixteen VoltThe Best of Sixteen VoltThe Best of Sixteen Volt is a compilation featuring tracks from the first four 16 Volt albums as selected by fans through the band's website...
(2005) - FullBlackHabitFullBlackHabitFullBlackHabit is the fifth album by 16 Volt, five years after the release of SuperCoolNothing.-Track listing:# I'm Just a Mess - 3:46# Come For You - 3:24# Cables & Wires - 3:28# Suffering You - 3:07# And You Are All Alone Again - 3:54...
(2007) - American Porn SongsAmerican Porn SongsAmericanPornSongs is the sixth studio album by the industrial metal band 16Volt.-Track listing:# Alkali - 4:55# Enjoy The Pain - 3:02# With Fire And Burning - 3:54# American Porn Song - 3:54# Blessed - 3:43# To Hell - 3:43# It All Turns Bad - 4:18...
(2009) - Beating Dead HorsesBeating Dead HorsesBeating Dead Horses is the sixth studio album by the industrial metal band 16Volt.-Reception:-Track listing:#Beating Dead Horses - 3:46#The Wasteland That Is Me - 4:03#Fight or Flight - 2:55#Burn - 4:16#You Will All Go Down - 4:14...
(2011)
Singles/eps
- The Dreams That Rot In Your Heart (1996)
- The Remix Wars: Strike 3 – 16 Volt vs. Hate Dept (21st Circuitry21st Circuitry21st Circuitry was a record label based in San Francisco, United States that was founded in early 1991 and released electro-industrial, industrial rock and similar styles of music. Bands that were signed to or distributed material through the label included Covenant, Unit:187, Hate Dept., Xorcist,...
- 1996)
Compilation appearances
- "Shut Up Kitty" (1993)
- "The Dreams That Rot In Your Heart" (1996)
- "The Remix Wars: Strike 3 - 16 Volt vs. Hate Dept." (1996)
- Don't Blow Your Cover: A Tribute to KMFDM (2000)
- A Gothic-Industrial Tribute to The Smashing PumpkinsA Gothic-Industrial Tribute to The Smashing PumpkinsA Gothic–Industrial Tribute to The Smashing Pumpkins is a 2001 tribute album, featuring a variety of artists covering songs from the American alternative rock band Smashing Pumpkins.-Track listing:# "Rhinoceros" – Günter Schulz & En Esch...
(2001) - Various Artists - Hordes of the Elite (Glitch Mode RecordingsGlitch Mode RecordingsGlitch Mode Recordings is a music collective based in Chicago, Illinois. The label releases heavy electronic music in a variety of genres, including industrial music, industrial rock, power noise, and digital hardcore...
- 2006) - "TPCM2: Judgement Day Remixing The Massacre" (2008)
- "Electronic Saviors: Industrial Music To Cure Cancer" - 2010
The Rage: Carrie 2
The movie, a sequel to Stephen KingStephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
's Carrie, contained their single, 'Keep Sleeping', as part of the soundtrack.
Primal
In 2003, the videogame PrimalPrimal (video game)
Primal is an action-adventure video game released in 2003 for the PlayStation 2. It was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe aka SCE Studio Cambridge. It tells the story of Jennifer Tate, a 21-year-old woman searching for her boyfriend through a series of demonic realms...
was released, containing twelve 16Volt songs as the combat soundtrack, most of which were from their fourth album, supercoolnothing. An official CD release of the soundtrack was later produced by (the now defunct) Dark City Music, but has since become out of print
Repo! The Genetic Opera
The Band contributed to the soundtrack of the cult musical film, Repo! The Genetic OperaRepo! The Genetic Opera
Repo! The Genetic Opera is a 2008 horror-rock opera musical film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman. The film is based on a play written and composed by Darren Smith and Terrance Zdunich....
.
Wizard of Gore
In 2008, the band helped to remaster the soundtrack for the movie for the directors cut releaseSide projects
To date, 16Volt have contributed to three major side-projects, of which only one (h3llb3nt) has seen a commercial release.H3llb3nt
16Volt's first, and most successful, sideproject, H3llb3nt, was a collaboration between Eric Powell, Jared Louche, Bryan Black and Charles LeviCharles Levi
Charles Levi is the bassist for My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult and project .44. He has appeared on other artists' albums, such as Chemlab and Pigface, as well as being in the films The Crow and Black From the Dead. Levi also recorded bass for Sister Machine Gun's The Torture Technique, as well...
. They released three albums and a 'best of' together between 1996 and 2001.
Ringer
Ringer was 16Volt's second side project, a rock group featuring talent from several industrial artists. The main lineup consisted ofEric Powell (founder of 16Volt) on Vocals and Kraig Tyler (from Crazy Town
Crazy Town
Crazy Town is a rap rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1995 by Bret Mazur and Seth Binzer. The band is best known for their 2001 single, "Butterfly", which reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart...
), Carlton Bost (from Deadsy
Deadsy
Deadsy is an American synth rock band from California. The band is known for its visual iconography and signature characteristics assigned to each band member. Each musician is identified by a specific color, stage name, and graphic tied into the band's theatrical nature. The band has released...
) on guitar, Paige Haley (from Orgy
Orgy (band)
Orgy is an American synth rock band formed in 1996, from Los Angeles, California. Orgy described their music as "death pop".-History:Orgy was formed in 1996 by vocalist Jay Gordon and guitarist Ryan Shuck. Bassist Paige Haley, guitarist Amir Derakh, and drummer Bobby Hewitt soon completed the line-up...
) on bass and Mikey Cox (from Coal Chamber
Coal Chamber
Coal Chamber is an American alternative metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1993. Prior to Coal Chamber, Dez Fafara and Meegs Rascón formed the band She's In Pain in 1992. The two decided to create Coal Chamber. They disbanded in 2003 after ten years together, but announced a reunion in...
) on drums. The finished roughly an albums worth of material, which could be downloaded from their website, and played several gigs before splitting up.
Graphic
The latest 16Volt side-project, Graphic is a collaboration between Powell and Bildeaux, which has so far only released one song, 'The Things You Do' on the 2006 compilation album, Komposi003.A full album is apparently in the works, utilizing female vocals.
External links
- Official site
- Official Myspace
- iTunes link to komposi003 (the album containing the Graphic track)