To put it bluntly, I'm a noob to industrial. I have checked out a few bands like Swans, Psychlon Nine, In Slaughter Natives, etc. and I'm looking for more. I know I would like Aggrotech if it wasn't for the annoying synth parts that a lot of the bands have, but the harsh drum machine and vocals are good. I also want more of the industrial/ambient mix I like the really dark, brooding atmosphere it creates. My last request is for some older sounding stuff in like Swans that is really heavy. Can any of you help me out here? I would really appreciate it since most of the stuff I've come across on my own sounds like techno.

Best thing I can think of is Thorns. Some of it is quite industrial...mechanical might be a better word. The self-titled album has one long ambient piece which fits perfectly, even in the middle of the album.

Also give P.H.O.B.O.S. a try. It's industrial doom metal, but I don't know if that's what you're after. It has more of an evil feel about it, but try it anyway.

Can't think of any others at the moment without delving into techno/electronica.

EDIT: This was posted in The Tavern, so I guess you're not looking for metal. Disregard my post.

I guess Throbbing Gristle is an obvious one. I'm no expert myself and am also relatively new to the genre but they seem to be one of the favourites.

A total must IMO is:

Godflesh - Streetcleaner

not a must, but still very worthy is:

Ministry - The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste

Continuing on to less accessible styles....

For Euro industrial, try the early works from Laibach. Theres a good compilation available that covers '80-'84. One of my favorites.

Einsturzende Neubauten are considered by some to be the OG industrial band. Look for the early material (70's - early 80's). Not a big fan myself, but Ill throw it out there anyway.

Laibach are wonderful. Nova Akropola, for example, has this wonderful martial atmosphere that explores all sorts of different worlds while maintaining this atmsophere that I've never quite heard replicated.

That, and the vocals are destructively menacing, in comparison to Throbbing Gristle's somewhat mentally cracked melancholic british-accented rambling.

Swans have a more Noise approach, not Industrial at all.

Check out Thee Maldoror Kollective. I'm not that big into Industrial but this group is awesome.

TG is another worthy selection. Maybe start with Rafters. Unless you have TONS of cash laying around, then pick up their 24-disc set, TG24. Lots of rare and not-thought-to-exist recordings. Good luck trying to find it though.

Thirding Throbbing Gristle. Just because they are that awesome. 20 Jazz Funk Greats is their best-known and probably most accessible album, but I'm very partial to the 2nd Annual Report.

Laibach, Coil, and Einsturzende Neubaten are a couple of big names, sure, and definitely worth checking out. But I'm just curious how we can get this far in the thread and not mention Front 242. I KNOW they're EBM, and defined themselves as such, but Geography and Pulse are definitely more old-school industrial than the modern groups calling themselves EBM.

Well thanks for letting me know like I said I'm a noob.

Thats why I didnt mention them...more EBM than industrial. I prefer a grittier, noise oriented and darker approach myself. Nothing wrong with 'em, just not what I thought should be recommended based on the OP.

Thanks for the recs everyone, keep 'em comin'

Listen to a few and let us know what you are into (try amazon for a few samples). If you want more metal oriented, check out Godflesh - Streetcleaner. More straight up I, try Laibach. Easier to add recs if you give some feedback.

Cheers!

Well, then I have two words for you: Lustmord and Inade. They're typically classified as dark ambient these days but dark ambient is in some sense the modern evolution of industrial; it arose out of an attempt at using industrial recording/composing techniques to create ambient textures (as opposed to harsh, loud noises). Lustmord is oen of the originals, dating back to the mid-80's. Get Carbon/Core by Lustmord and The Crackling of the Anonymous by Inade.


Also, if you like In Slaughter Natives, do be sure to check out Sophia. It's Jouni's other project; I especially like the releases The Seduction of Madness and Herbstwerk.

If you enjoy Industrial, I'd recommend some Martial acts like Death In June.

Industrial is a hugely varied genre of music, so I'd suggest you take a broad look at the genre and then decide which bands to initially pursue from there. The pure, stripped down original industrial acts like Neubauten, more rock-influenced acts like Front Line Assembly, dark and atmospheric industrial like Throbbing Gristle and Laibach, full on rock/metal industrial like KMFDM...all hugely diverse and different from each other. Take a few songs from each of the most-well known acts, see which style you're most partial to, and then go from there.

I myself prefer stuff in the KMFDM/Ministry vein, as they're more metal-influenced, but then again if you want something completely detached from metal something like Kollaps by Einsturzende Neubauten could be your best bet. Like metal, it takes quite a while to explore industrial music to its full capacity, and its a wonderful journey seeing which sub-genres, and which bands within those that you are most partial to. Have fun

Two words: Skinny Fucking Puppy

Sophia is a project of Petter Pettersson/Bjargo of Arcana, Crypt Of Kerberos and Tyrant.

OP, check out Karjalan Sissit.

Three letters: EBM.

Even less industrial than Front 242.

I know you said you don't like aggrotech but have you heard any Combichrist. Killing Joke's "Pandemonium" is also a good industrial rock album.

Cabaret Voltaire, early Pitchshifter (early being the keyword here).

I was gonna say that! David Bowie had a weird industrial type cd called Earthling that I really liked too. But yeah, get Skinny Puppy first, and maybe some Front Line Assembly.

Throbbing Gristle and Kraftwerk are among the pioneers of experimental electronic music. for industrial i recommend all Skinny Puppy albums up to 'Last Rights' and Ministry from the albums 'The Land of Rape and Honey' to 'Psalm 69'. that should be a good, basic insight that can help lead you further into the genre. and while only older Nine Inch Nails albums have any real industrial traits to them, and the band is not an "industrial" band, the albums 'Pretty Hate Machine', 'Broken', and 'The Downward Spiral' can help you to get the sound down a bit easier too. and EBM is a different genre from industrial. it takes influence from it, but is more dance-based rather than harsh. examples include old Front Line Assembly, old Meat Beat Manifesto, Front 242, Suicide Commando, Nitzer Ebb, Haujobb, Leaether Strip.

don't be fooled by everything labeled "industrial" either. most of it is not industrial and has nothing to do with the genre. the term has been way overused for far too long. real industrial died in the mid 90s. Rammstein, Marilyn Manson, Dope and Static-X are not Industrial. electronic blips or beats don't automatically qualify a band as "industrial", just like guitars and screaming don't always mean a band is "metal".

I have Streetcleaner and I think its great, I'm really liking lustmord's stuff and I would probably like Laibach's heavier stuff (any specific albums?) I have some Karjalan Sissit and I'd really like more stuff like that


The only thing that turns me away from aggrotech is the annyoing synth parts that every group has, if there is some out there without that then I would probably listen to it.


I looked them up but I got some kind of neofolk stuff (it wasn't bad though)

Combichrist has diarrhea for lyrics.

Machine and Collusion by Dead World (Jonathan Canady's former band)

Dissecting Table: rest assured they do not sound like techno.

I can only recommend industrial from the time that I was really into it, which was a long time ago...

I would start with the following as must have's for classic industrial:

1. Ministry - The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste, The Land of Rape and Honey, Twitch and Psalm 69.

2. KMFDM - Don't Blow Your Top, UAIOE, Naive, Money and Angst

3. Rammstein - Herzeleid, Sehnsucht and Mutter

4. Front 242 - Front by Front and Official Version

5. Front Line Assembly - Tactical Neural Implant and State of Mind

6. Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine and Downward Spiral

7. Einstürzende Neubauten - Ende Neu

8. Revolting Cocks - Beers, Steers, and Queers

9. Skinny Puppy - Last Rights and Too Dark Park

That should give you a really good start on the classic front....

I guess it depends what you mean by techno, because some of the beats used by the early industrial bands like Throbbing Gristle and early Cabaret Voltaire do sound somewhat like like early Detroit techno, which actually came afterwards, except for the screaming vocals and various distorted sounds in the industrial stuff. And then there's also newer stuff, mainly from Germany, which combines underground hard techno with industrial, often without vocals.

Killing Joke's "Pandemonium" is awesome, but I don't think it's really industrial, just because it has a few electronic sounds and samples doesn't make it industrial.

If you want some more modern things you could try the Muckrackers and Psyclon Nine, the latter of which features black metal style vocals.

I'd recomened to you CNK (Count Nosferatu Kommando/Cosa Nostra Klub)
they're very good and both of their albums are quite enjoyable

Skinny Puppy
Numb
yelworC

You can hear Numb and yelworC on my youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/user/XwoooahX



Here are my other Industrial / EBM bands that I like:

Absent Minded (Endless Pain album)
Altmark Electros
Apoptygma Berzerk (The Apocalyptic Manifesto album)
And One
Bigod 20
Blutengel
Borghesia
Combichrist
Dissecting Table
Download
Front 242
Front Line Assembly
Heimataerde
Hocico
Laibach
Leaether Strip
Mentallo & The Fixer
Mind.In.A.Box
Necessary Response
Necro Facility
Paranoid
Placebo Effect
Putrefy Factor 7
UnterArt
Velvet Acid Christ
:wumpscut:

I appreciate the help but it would help me SO much if you told me a little bit about the bands in lists. Also I have a question, how would you guys classify Terrorfakt?

Skinny Puppy - the king of Industrial IMO. They got me into it. Every album pre-The Process is essential. Can take quite a few listens to "get".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xodnJOGAetI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guutS4j015I

Numb - really fun stuff here, fast and angry, some guitars thrown in as well. Get Christmeister and Death On the Installment Plan.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ing_wxY4oM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14J6oslYht8

yelworC - THE DARK LORD OF INDUSTRAIL. there are two yelworC's imo. Old and new. I pefer old as it is more straight up in your face beats. New stuff is more atmospheric and soundtrack like. You can find samples of new and old stuff on youtube and see what you prefer.

OLD:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r9M_3edKmc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQPRPDI_ZxI


Absent Minded (Endless Pain album) - old school EBM. cool synths and hard hitting beats. great album imo.

Apoptygma Berzerk (The Apocalyptic Manifesto album)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLCJGtPLTOw

And One
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7n69uQf5vM

Blutengel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asfex0mTSwQ

Combichrist
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRa3BU5bl-s

Front Line Assembly - start with Tactical Neural Implant

Hocico - check out Odio Bajo El Alma

Laibach - check out WAT, Opus Dei, and Volk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3SvjSu4R-8

Leaether Strip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhbZM0u_jpk

Mentallo & The Fixer - where angels fear to tred is their best

Mind.In.A.Box
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRDuj26aAe8

Necessary Response
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIYj1plkVWM

Necro Facility - skinny puppy clone

Paranoid - really 80s sounding but fun... check out Strain

Placebo Effect - Check out Galleries of Pain (like yelworc but not as dark)

Putrefy Factor 7 - like old yelworc but slower, still nasty

UnterArt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJXP4fX3jws

Velvet Acid Christ - really dark stuff, pretty harsh (its all different so check it out for yoruself)

:wumpscut: - check out embryodead first