Braindead Soundmachine
Encyclopedia
Braindead Soundmachine were an industrial rock
band and the brainchild of founding members Cole Coonce, Warren Croyle (aka "Mr. Reality"), and the late Ikky Shivers. Eschewing the genre industrial
, they coined the name metaldisco in reference to their musical style.
, California
in 1989 as a joint effort between Coonce and speed metal record producer Croyle, as they conceptualized "metaldisco," a genre that melded Black Sabbath
riffs topped by disco-y rhythm guitar and ethereal female vocals. The band was rounded out by Shivers, a Los Angeles sound engineer, whose aural contribution consisted of non-musical screeching noises coerced out of his collections of refurbished vintage analog synthesizers.
Following Coonce's edict that "singers are like spark plugs, you screw them in and then you screw them out," Braindead utilized the services of sundry female vocalists, including those of Joan Jones from Sun 60, Khalsoum Salloum and JenJen (Jenny Homer from Downy Mildew).
As "a band obsessed with drag racing, drag queens and the apocalyptic downfall of the entertainment industry," Braindead reveled in the absurdity of life in Los Angeles, as well as in its own anarchy.
The band followed a simple ethos that "there are no mistakes", with only one rule: "no chord changes".
The band's zen anarchic approach to making music was also informed by its insistence that Yoshi, a transplanted Japanese transvestite working as a cocktail waitress in East Hollywood, was in fact "Dogvillasan", a deity (or "Coyote God") summoned by the group in the song of the same name.
In 1990, and with the band's theology, philosophy and musical approach finalized, Braindead procured a recording contract with Chicago's Wax Trax! Records
, which put out the band's first long-playing compact disc, Come Down from the Hills and Make My Baby.
Singles from that album included "I'm in Jail", and a throbbing, discordant cover of Patsy Cline
's "Walkin' After Midnight
" (whose release included remixes of the song produced by KMFDM
founder Sascha Konietzko
).
In 1992, Coonce scored the Greg Araki indie film "The Living End
", a "queer" road movie that also featured Braindead's version of the Jesus and Mary Chain song that gave the film its title.
As Wax Trax! began to succumb to a eventual collapse and bankruptcy, Braindead sought to extricate itself from their contract.
With their release eventually granted, Braindead's second album, Give Me Something Hard I Can Take To My Grave, was distributed on Shiver Records in the US, and Artlos in Europe.
The group disbanded in 1994 during pre-production for its never-released third album, after Mr. Reality suggested taking the band's ethos of only using one chord per composition into further musical deconstruction by mandating new songs use only "one note," an idea that Coonce found unworkable.
After its creative collapse, the three founding members quit music and procured employment as sound engineers in game shows and the adult film industry, an existential downturn documented in Coonce's memoirs about the music business, released in 2005 and also entitled Come Down from the Hills and Make My Baby.
In 1995, the band re-grouped for its final musical endeavor, recording the source music in Dan Zukovic's cult film "The Last Big Thing". With its scathing satirical attack on the entertainment culture of Los Angeles, the film's ethos is quite similar to Braindead's.
Eventually Coonce changed occupations and became a freelance drag strip journalist of some renown, writing for publications as varied as National Dragster, Hot Rod Magazine
and WIRED. This pursuit peaked with feature-length book on the history of the land speed record
, Infinity Over Zero.
In 2007, JenJen collaborated with Coonce in a new musical venture entitled Prozac Pop Machine. Their first single is "Shampoo" and is currently available podcast-only.
Croyle is now CEO of the multi-media conglomerate Reality Entertainment. Originally an outlet for ponderous and aggressive speed metal bands, in 2006 Reality signed seminal disco music superstars KC and the Sunshine Band
to a recording contract, a move which Croyle heralded by stating that: "KC has affected generations of music lovers around the world, we are thrilled to have KC on the Reality roster." It could be argued that with its signing of KC and The Sunshine Band, and by finally synergistically melding heavy metal with disco, Reality Entertainment succeeded where Braindead failed. Ikky Shivers died in June, 2001.
sound, Black Sabbath's bass lines and the guitar stylings of Chic
, Fela Kuti
and Funkadelic. The floaty, dreamy and drolly defiant female vocals are reminiscent of Julee Cruise
and Leslie Gore.
Industrial rock
Industrial rock is a musical genre that fuses industrial music and specific rock subgenres. Industrial rock spawned industrial metal, with which it is often confused...
band and the brainchild of founding members Cole Coonce, Warren Croyle (aka "Mr. Reality"), and the late Ikky Shivers. Eschewing the genre industrial
Industrial music
Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...
, they coined the name metaldisco in reference to their musical style.
History
Braindead Soundmachine was founded in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in 1989 as a joint effort between Coonce and speed metal record producer Croyle, as they conceptualized "metaldisco," a genre that melded Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
riffs topped by disco-y rhythm guitar and ethereal female vocals. The band was rounded out by Shivers, a Los Angeles sound engineer, whose aural contribution consisted of non-musical screeching noises coerced out of his collections of refurbished vintage analog synthesizers.
Following Coonce's edict that "singers are like spark plugs, you screw them in and then you screw them out," Braindead utilized the services of sundry female vocalists, including those of Joan Jones from Sun 60, Khalsoum Salloum and JenJen (Jenny Homer from Downy Mildew).
The band followed a simple ethos that "there are no mistakes", with only one rule: "no chord changes".
The band's zen anarchic approach to making music was also informed by its insistence that Yoshi, a transplanted Japanese transvestite working as a cocktail waitress in East Hollywood, was in fact "Dogvillasan", a deity (or "Coyote God") summoned by the group in the song of the same name.
In 1990, and with the band's theology, philosophy and musical approach finalized, Braindead procured a recording contract with Chicago's Wax Trax! Records
Wax Trax! Records
Wax Trax! Records was an independent record label in the United States. Wax Trax! began as a record shop in Denver, Colorado opened by Jim Nash and Dannie Flesher. They sold the store in 1978 and, in November of that year, opened a new one under the same name at 2449 North Lincoln Avenue in...
, which put out the band's first long-playing compact disc, Come Down from the Hills and Make My Baby.
Singles from that album included "I'm in Jail", and a throbbing, discordant cover of Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
's "Walkin' After Midnight
Walkin' After Midnight
"Walkin' After Midnight" is a song by written by Alan Block and Donn Hecht and originally recorded by American country music artist Patsy Cline. The song was originally given to pop singer Kay Starr; however, it was rejected by her record label. The song was left unused until Hecht rediscovered the...
" (whose release included remixes of the song produced by KMFDM
KMFDM
KMFDM is an industrial band led by German multi-instrumentalist Sascha Konietzko, who founded the group in 1984 as a performance art project...
founder Sascha Konietzko
Sascha Konietzko
Sascha Konietzko , also known as Sascha K and Käpt'n K, is a German musician and producer. He is the founder, frontman, and "anchor" of industrial rock band KMFDM. Konietzko jokingly purports himself to be the father of industrial rock...
).
In 1992, Coonce scored the Greg Araki indie film "The Living End
The Living End (film)
The Living End is a 1992 film by Gregg Araki. Described by some critics as a "gay Thelma and Louise," the film is an early entry in the New Queer Cinema genre. The Living End was nominated for a Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in 1992....
", a "queer" road movie that also featured Braindead's version of the Jesus and Mary Chain song that gave the film its title.
As Wax Trax! began to succumb to a eventual collapse and bankruptcy, Braindead sought to extricate itself from their contract.
With their release eventually granted, Braindead's second album, Give Me Something Hard I Can Take To My Grave, was distributed on Shiver Records in the US, and Artlos in Europe.
The group disbanded in 1994 during pre-production for its never-released third album, after Mr. Reality suggested taking the band's ethos of only using one chord per composition into further musical deconstruction by mandating new songs use only "one note," an idea that Coonce found unworkable.
After its creative collapse, the three founding members quit music and procured employment as sound engineers in game shows and the adult film industry, an existential downturn documented in Coonce's memoirs about the music business, released in 2005 and also entitled Come Down from the Hills and Make My Baby.
In 1995, the band re-grouped for its final musical endeavor, recording the source music in Dan Zukovic's cult film "The Last Big Thing". With its scathing satirical attack on the entertainment culture of Los Angeles, the film's ethos is quite similar to Braindead's.
Eventually Coonce changed occupations and became a freelance drag strip journalist of some renown, writing for publications as varied as National Dragster, Hot Rod Magazine
Hot Rod Magazine
Hot Rod is an American monthly magazine devoted to hot rodding, —modifying automobiles for performance and appearance.-History:Hot Rod is the oldest magazine devoted to hot rodding having been published since 1948. Robert E. Petersen founded the magazine and his Petersen Publishing Company...
and WIRED. This pursuit peaked with feature-length book on the history of the land speed record
Land speed record
The land speed record is the highest speed achieved by a wheeled vehicle on land. There is no single body for validation and regulation; in practice the Category C flying start regulations are used, officiated by regional or national organizations under the auspices of the Fédération...
, Infinity Over Zero.
In 2007, JenJen collaborated with Coonce in a new musical venture entitled Prozac Pop Machine. Their first single is "Shampoo" and is currently available podcast-only.
Croyle is now CEO of the multi-media conglomerate Reality Entertainment. Originally an outlet for ponderous and aggressive speed metal bands, in 2006 Reality signed seminal disco music superstars KC and the Sunshine Band
KC and the Sunshine Band
KC and the Sunshine Band is an American musical group. Founded in 1973 in Miami, Florida, their style has included funk, R&B, and disco. Their most well known songs include the disco hits "That's the Way ", " Shake Your Booty", "I'm Your Boogie Man", "Keep It Comin' Love", "Get Down Tonight", "Give...
to a recording contract, a move which Croyle heralded by stating that: "KC has affected generations of music lovers around the world, we are thrilled to have KC on the Reality roster." It could be argued that with its signing of KC and The Sunshine Band, and by finally synergistically melding heavy metal with disco, Reality Entertainment succeeded where Braindead failed. Ikky Shivers died in June, 2001.
Musical style
In interviews, Braindead has never been shy about citing their influences. They ripped off N.W.A's hip hop drum machineDrum machine
A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...
sound, Black Sabbath's bass lines and the guitar stylings of Chic
Chic (band)
Chic was an African American disco and R&B band that was organized during 1976 by guitarist Nile Rodgers and bassist Bernard Edwards. It is known best for its commercially successful disco songs, including "Dance, Dance, Dance " , "Everybody Dance" , "Le Freak" , "I Want Your Love" , "Good Times"...
, Fela Kuti
Fela Kuti
Fela Anikulapo Kuti , or simply Fela , was a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, pioneer of Afrobeat music, human rights activist, and political maverick.-Biography:...
and Funkadelic. The floaty, dreamy and drolly defiant female vocals are reminiscent of Julee Cruise
Julee Cruise
Julee Cruise is an American singer, and actress.With a distinctive, airy voice, Cruise has recorded three albums, but is probably best known for the lead vocal on "Falling," the theme song for the cult U.S. television series Twin Peaks...
and Leslie Gore.
Albums
- Come Down from the Hills and Make My Baby (Wax Trax!, 1991)
- Give Me Something Hard I Can Take to My Grave (Shivers Records, 1993)
Singles and EPs
- I'm in Jail b/w Dogvillasan (Nitro Records, 1990)
- I'm in Jail (Wax Trax!, 1991)
- Walkin' After MidnightWalkin' After Midnight"Walkin' After Midnight" is a song by written by Alan Block and Donn Hecht and originally recorded by American country music artist Patsy Cline. The song was originally given to pop singer Kay Starr; however, it was rejected by her record label. The song was left unused until Hecht rediscovered the...
b/w Everybody, EverybodyEverybody Everybody (song)"Everybody Everybody" is a song recorded in 1989 by the Italo-house music band Black Box. It was the third single from their debut album Dreamland and was released in 1990 in most countries worldwide.-Chart performances:...
(Wax Trax!, 1992) - Where the Pavement Ends b/w Soon Come, Goddammit (Artlos, 1993)
External links
- Braindead Soundmachine Official Braindead Soundmachine website
- MySpace Braindead Soundmachine Myspace
- Walkin' After Midnight Braindead Sound Machine- Walkin' After Midnight video
- Prick Magazine COME DOWN FROM THE HILLS & MAKE MY BABY book review
- Los Angeles Alternative Press COME DOWN FROM THE HILLS book review