Front Line Assembly will release their first new album in almost six years in early 2019. Having rejoined the group in 2016 in a touring capacity, ‘Wake Up The Coma’ also marks the studio return to FLA of Rhys Fulber, thus reuniting him with founder member Bill Leeb in the duo line-up that has already made so many classic electronic records together. The opening salvo from the record is the teaser single ‘Eye On You’, which features Robert Görl of DAF. Crushingly heavy but with a highly atmospheric mid-section, it is accompanied by a pair of industrial strength techno remixes from the renowned French producer Terence Fixmer and Canadian duo Orphx that sound simultaneously old-school and bang up to date.
Front Line Assembly – Bio
Bill Leeb began Front Line Assembly in 1986, releasing several albums between 1988-92 that saw his group acknowledged as electronic/industrial/EBM scene heavyweights alongside Front 242, Nitzer Ebb and Skinny Puppy (Leeb had been a member of Skinny Puppy prior to forming FLA). Aided by writing partner Michael Balch, the 4th FLA studio album, ‘Gashed Senses & Crossfire’ (1989), was promoted with debut European and US tours that saw the duo accompanied on stage by teenager Rhys Fulber. Balch left the group later that year to join Ministry and Revolting Cocks, with Fulber stepping up to co-create the classic ‘Caustic Grip’ and ’Tactical Neural Implant’ albums in 1990 and 1992.
The next two FLA records, ‘Millennium’ and ‘Hard Wired’, saw the group flirt with industrial metal sounds in tandem with their trademark electronics, while Fulber also became a go-to producer for many well-known guitar based rock and metal acts. Replaced by Chris Peterson in 1997 for the next three albums, he rejoined the group in 2003 having in the meantime enjoyed a worldwide hit single with Leeb via their side-project Delerium. The song ‘Silence’ (feat. Sarah McLachlan) from their 1997 album ‘Karma’ became a huge club record in remixed form, eventually charting at no. 3 in the UK in October 2000. It is widely acknowledged as one of the best dance records of that era.
Fulber left FLA again in 2005 to concentrate on his own Conjure One project in tandem with production work, while Leeb was by now making new music with other collaborators. The group’s most recent album, ‘Echogenetic’, was released in 2013 and was seen by many as their best since the early 90’s. Incorporating elements of glitch and dubstep into their trademark cinematic and club oriented sonic DNA, they created a potent hybrid that came across as an upgraded version of their most successful pure electronic releases and blurred the boundary between electronic industrial and what is generally perceived as modern electronica. A remixed version of the record entitled ‘Echoes’ was issued in 2014.
