If you like raw, harsh, mechanical and unconventional sound, then Industrial Music is for you. It can be particularly appreciated for its rawness and its inspiration by real factories – early bands used machinery, power tools and scrap metal as instruments to create a unique, often dystopian and aggressive sound. It started as a rejection of almost all traditional ways of making music, and it’s influence overtime can be seen as particularly powerful.

A great way to start digging into Industrial Music is the classic record The Second Annual Report (1977) by Throbbing Gristle. It was a groundbreaking album with an experimental approach that combined tape recorders, electronics, aggressive effects, unconventional melodic elements and distorted vocals in an excellent way. A few years later, the genre took a new form with Einstürzende Neubauten – Halber Mensch (1985), which used physical metal as percussion and can be seen as more chaotic, but in a great style. More danceable is Too Dark Park (1990) by Skinny Puppy that shined with harsh cyberpunk aesthetics and an intensity to be appreciated to this day.

Industrial Music was a key influence for later genres like Industrial Rock and dance music in the 80s and 90s. But already in itself, the late 1970s to 1980s Industrial Music is a great place to discover unique music and sounds. The use of noise created completely new soundpieces that deserve to be explored in depth. In the newsletter, rare examples of that will be highlighted.