Combichrist

One of the most popular acts in the electro-industrial-related "aggrotech" movement, Combichrist is an American metal band formed by Norwegian Icon of Coil founder Andy LaPlegua, who is the main force in the studio, assisted by a revolving cast of bandmates on-stage. Falling somewhere between KMFDM and Ministry, the project began with the 2003 debut LP The Joy of Gunz, a caustic blend of head-splitting noise and pulsing dance beats. Their aggressive, violent style would define subsequent releases, with their overall sound getting progressively heavier and darker on albums such as 2007's What the F**k Is Wrong with You People? and 2010's Making Monsters. After the release of 2019's One Fire, the project worked through lineup and management changes, as well as the global pandemic, returning in 2024 with tenth album CMBCRST.Getting his start with numerous bands in his home nation of Norway (including Icon of Coil), LaPlegua launched this Atlanta-based project in 2003 with the album The Joy of Gunz, released by the German label Out of Line. Two years later, Everybody Hates You became Combichrist's first release on the American label Metropolis. The "Get Your Body Beat" single was purposefully released on July 6, 2006 (6/6/6) and gave the band their first Billboard chart position with six weeks on the magazine's dance chart. The track landed on their 2007 album, What the F**k Is Wrong with You People?, a breakthrough effort which also featured the club hits "Electrohead" and "Deathbed." The year 2008 saw their audience increase thanks to a support slot on Mindless Self Indulgence's tour of the U.S., along with their Frost EP: Sent to Destroy. An appearance on the Underworld: Rise of the Lycans soundtrack, plus a new album, Today We Are All Demons, kicked off 2009. That year, they toured with Wes Borland's Black Light Burns and joined Rammstein for a European jaunt, which led to an opening slot on the German industrial metal band's U.S. tour, including a series of sold-out Madison Square Garden shows. In 2010, they also released the throbbing Making Monsters, which included songs composed by LaPlegua that went on to be featured on No Redemption, the soundtrack to the video game Devil May Cry. Combichrist's seventh LP, We Love You, was released in 2014. It featured added electronic flourishes reminiscent of dubstep while retaining the hard crunch of their previous releases. Two years later, after announcing their eighth album, LaPlegua performed a solo gig at Complex in Glendale, California. The set list comprised rarities and remixes. Later that year, This Is Where Death Begins arrived. Produced by Oumi Kapila (Filter) and LaPlegua, the effort was followed by an extensive tour. In 2017, Combichrist released the single "Broken: United." That track reappeared on the band's ninth album, One Fire, which was released two years later. A retrospective of sorts, it saw LaPlegua drawing on ideas from across the breadth of the group's 15-plus-year career. Not much was heard from the project in the coming years. Their first new music released following the COVID-19 pandemic was the 2022 single "Heads Off," which eventually landed on their tenth full-length, 2024's CMBCRST.
© David Jeffries & Neil Z. Yeung /TiVo

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