Pigface | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Genres | |
Years active |
|
Labels | Invisible |
Members | See "Members" |
Pigface is an American industrial rock supergroup formed in 1990 by Martin Atkins and William Rieflin.[3]
History
Pigface was formed from Ministry's The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste tour,[1] which produced the In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up live album and video. For the tour, Al Jourgensen brought Atkins, Nivek Ogre and Chris Connelly. Also on the tour was Rieflin, regular Ministry drummer at the time. While Atkins enjoyed the dynamic of playing with a second drummer, he felt that the lineup was capable of doing much more than being, what he has frequently called, "a Ministry cover band." Once the tour was over, Atkins and Rieflin decided to continue working together and recruited several of their tourmates. Pigface was born with the intention of keeping a revolving-door style collaboration with many experimentally-minded musicians, many of whom, especially early on, had recorded for the influential industrial music record label Wax Trax!.
Trent Reznor was also an early partner,[4] before Nine Inch Nails became a household name. "Suck," co-written and sung by Reznor, was something of an underground hit, and Reznor later re-recorded the song for the Broken EP.
Rieflin left Pigface after the first tour, leaving Atkins as the sole founder of the group. With hundreds of musical collaborators to record and perform with Pigface, it has ensured that each album, tour, and song is unique. However, this practice has led to some negative criticism due to a perceived lack of continuity.
In 2009, Full Effect Records, a Detroit-based label, announced the signing of Pigface.[5] The Pigface album, 6, a collection of songs already recorded over the span of the previous five years, was released soon after the announcement was made. Unlike with the previous releases, there was no tour to support the album.
After a seven-year hiatus, Pigface returned for two Chicago performances in November 2016. The first was a rehearsal show held at Reggie's on November 24. On November 25, the band performed at House of Blues: Chicago. Both shows saw the band performing with several first-time members as well as the return of members like Lesley Rankine, En Esch, Mary Byker, Curse Mackey, Dirk Flannigan and Fallon Bowman.
Several offshoot bands of Pigface, all smaller sized all-star groups featuring Martin Atkins as a common member, have released albums during the time Pigface was active. These bands include Murder, Inc., The Damage Manual, Ritalin, Martin Atkins And The Chicago Industrial League, Spasm, and The Love Interest.
In March 2019, Atkins announced that Pigface would tour again for the first time in fourteen years with thirteen dates scheduled for the East coast and Midwest in November 2019.[6] On February 12, 2020, a larger, national tour was announced to be taking place throughout May, June and July of that year. However, on April 2, 2020, Atkins made the announcement that, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the tour had been canceled.
Rieflin died on March 24, 2020, from cancer at the age of 59.[7]
Members and collaborators
The following is a partial list of musicians who have contributed to Pigface at some point in the band's history, whether it be appearing live as a band member, performing on an album, or contributing a remix of a Pigface song.[8]
- Martin Atkins (Public Image Ltd, Ministry, Killing Joke, Brian Brain, Murder, Inc., Rx)[3]
- William Rieflin (Ministry, Revolting Cocks, KMFDM, R.E.M., Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3, Swans, King Crimson)[3]
- Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails, How to Destroy Angels)[3][9][10]
- Paul Barker (Ministry, Lead into Gold, Revolting Cocks)[3]
- Chris Connelly (Ministry, Murder, Inc., The Damage Manual, Revolting Cocks)[3][10]
- En Esch (KMFDM, Slick Idiot)
- Nivek Ogre (Skinny Puppy, ohGr, Rx)[3]
- Matthew Schultz (Lab Report, Lard)
- William Tucker (Regressive Aid, Ministry, Revolting Cocks, KMFDM)
- David Yow (The Jesus Lizard, Scratch Acid)
- Steve Albini (Big Black, Rapeman, Shellac)[10]
- Danny Carey (Tool, Green Jellö)[11]
- Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Fear)
- Genesis P-Orridge (Psychic TV, Throbbing Gristle,[3] Thee Majesty, Splinter Test)
- Dean Ween (Ween, Moistboyz, Dean Ween Group)
- Black Francis (Pixies, Frank Black and the Catholics)
- Joey Santiago (Pixies, The Martinis)[12]
- Michael Gira (Swans, Angels of Light)[3]
- J.G. Thirlwell (Foetus, Clint Ruin, Steroid Maximus)
- Paul Raven (Killing Joke, Prong, Murder, Inc., Ministry, Godflesh)[13]
- Youth (Killing Joke, The Fireman)
- Paul Ferguson (Killing Joke, Warrior Soul, Murder, Inc.)
- Alex Paterson (The Orb)
- Duane Denison (The Jesus Lizard, Tomahawk)[10]
- Lydia Lunch (Teenage Jesus and the Jerks)[10]
- Charles Levi (My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult)
- Groovie Mann (My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult, Excessive Force)[14]
- Buzz McCoy (My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult)
- FM Einheit (Einsturzende Neubauten)
- Caspar Brötzmann (Caspar Brötzmann Massaker)
- David Wm. Sims (The Jesus Lizard, Unfact, Rapeman, Scratch Acid)
- Chris Randall (Sister Machine Gun)
- Louis Svitek (Zoetrope, Ministry, Lard, Mind Funk, M.O.D., Project .44)
- JS Clayden (Pitchshifter)[15]
- Jello Biafra (Dead Kennedys, Lard, Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine)[10]
- Andrew Weiss (Regressive Aid, Gone, Rollins Band, Ween, Butthole Surfers, Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine)[10]
- Chris Haskett (Rollins Band)[10]
- Chris Vrenna (Tweaker, Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson)
- Jim Marcus (Die Warzau)
- Hanin Elias (Atari Teenage Riot)
- Meg Lee Chin (Crunch, Teknofear)
- Edsel Dope (Dope)
- Naoko Yamano (Shonen Knife)[10]
- Atsuko Yamano (Shonen Knife)[10]
- Michie Nakatani (Shonen Knife)[16]
- Taime Downe (Faster Pussycat, The Newlydeads)
- Beefcake the Mighty (a.k.a. Michael Bishop) (Gwar, Kepone, American Grizzly, Sarah White & The Pearls)
- Slymenstra Hymen (a.k.a. Danielle Stampe) (Gwar, Girly Freak Show, Brothers Grim Sideshow)
- Mick Harris (Napalm Death, Scorn, Lull)
- Fallon Bowman (Amphibious Assault, Kittie)
- Keith Levene (The Clash, The Flowers of Romance, Public Image Ltd)
- Douglas McCarthy (Nitzer Ebb)
- Mary Byker (Apollo 440, Gaye Bykers on Acid)[3]
- Noko (Apollo 440, Magazine, The Cure)
- Algis A. Kiyzs (Swans)
- Marc Heal (Cubanate, C-Tec)
- Jeff Ward (Low Pop Suicide, Ministry, Revolting Cocks, Lard, Nine Inch Nails, 1000 Homo DJs)
- Matt Walker (Filter, The Smashing Pumpkins, Morrissey)
- Hope Nicholls (Sugarsmack, Fetchin Bones)
- The Enigma (Human Marvels, Jim Rose Circus, Brothers Grim Sideshow, Show Devils)[17]
- Leila Bela
- Sally Timms (The Mekons)[18]
- Mark Walk (Ruby, Skinny Puppy, ohGr)
- Flour (Rifle Sport, Breaking Circus, Flour)
- Kim Ljung (Zeromancer, Seigmen)
- Anders Odden (Magenta, Apoptygma Berzerk, Cadaver, Celtic Frost, Satyricon)
- Cynthia Plaster Caster
- Mike Dillon (Les Claypool's Fancy Band, Ani DiFranco, Critters Buggin)
- John Bergin (Trust Obey)
- Ullrich Hepperlin (Godhead)
- Julian Beeston (Nitzer Ebb, Cubanate)
- Günter Schulz (KMFDM)
- Penn Jillette (Penn & Teller)
- Justin Broadrick (Godflesh, Jesu, Napalm Death)
- Gaelynn Lea
- Larry Thrasher (Psychic TV, Thee Majesty, Splinter Test)
- Randy Blythe (Lamb of God)
- Justin Pearson (The Locust, Dead Cross, Retox)
- Add-2
- Joe Letz (Combichrist)
- I Ya Toyah
Discography
Studio albums
- Gub (1991)
- Fook (1992)
- Notes From Thee Underground (1994)
- A New High in Low (1997)
- Easy Listening... (2003)
- 6 (2009)
References
- 1 2 Prato, Greg; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Pigface Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
- ↑ Kot, Greg (18 December 1998). "Sculpted Chaos". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 8 May 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Buckley, Peter (2003). The Rough Guide Rock: The Definitive Guide to More than 1200 Artists and Bands (3rd ed.). Rough Guides. pp. 870–871. ISBN 1-84353-105-4.
- ↑ Assimilate: A Critical History of Industrial Music. Oxford. 2013. pp. 256]. ISBN 978-0-19-983258-3.
- ↑ "Pigface return with '6'". Archived from the original on 29 March 2012.
- ↑ Atkins, Martin. "2019 Tour". Martinatkins.bigcartel.com. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
- ↑ "Bill Rieflin, Drummer for King Crimson, Ministry, R.E.M., Dies at 59". Variety.com. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
- ↑ Atkins, Martin (5 October 2007). "Official MySpace Page: Pigface".
- ↑ Huxley, Martin (1997). Nine Inch Nails. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 62. ISBN 0-312-15612-X.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Pigface Biography". Billboard. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
- ↑ "Martin Atkins: Great Wall Of Sound". Drum! Magazine. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
- ↑ The Best Of Pigface (Preaching To The Perverted) (Media notes). Pigface. Invisible Records. 2001.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ↑ Cooper, Ryan. "Interview: Paul Raven Of Ministry". Retrieved 22 August 2010.
- ↑ "Who To Blame For What You've Been Listening To". post.queensu.ca. Archived from the original on 9 June 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- ↑ "Former PITCHSHIFTER Frontman To Tour With PIGFACE". blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on 14 January 2004. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- ↑ "NoNaMe :: Pigface - Notes From Thee Underground". nnm.ru/. Archived from the original on 8 October 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- ↑ "THE ENIGMA IS A HARD THING TO FIGURE OUT". prickmag.net. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- ↑ "Pigface". radcyberzine.com. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
Bibliography
- Atkins, Martin (2007). Tour:Smart: And Break the Band. Soluble LLC. ISBN 978-0-9797313-0-3.