Front 242 Albums (12)
What The Critics Say
Seeing as how analog synthesizers started making a comeback in 2006/2007 after years of digital and laptop dominance had wiped them off the scene, the veteran Belgian industrial group Front 242 decided to re-load their early analog material into their new gear and head out on the road for what they called the "Worldwide Vintage Tour." All sounds were "carefully re-designed" to "match the spirit of their time" and while the band and their loyal fan base clog Internet message boards with discussions on how everything here is "re-invented," Moments... isn't much more than a live album with the usual updates. The good news is that it's a thoroughly exciting live album where classics like "U-Men," "Body to Body," and "Headhunter" sound louder, punchier, and more aggressive than they ever have before. The original recordings remain definitive as they are more complex and textured, but longtime fans will find their jaws on the floor as soon as they read "Funkahdafi" on the track list. It's just one of the well-chosen, surprise revivals that show up on the album's second-half, but anyone thrilled to see "7rain" in a rare set list appearance will be disappointed by the clumsy performance. Otherwise, this is just what the fan ordered, delivering on the opening number's promise of "We gonna bring you happiness." ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Front 242 never allowed the commercial world to embrace them, pulling back from the brink in 1993 with a pair of radical, difficult albums just as the rest of middle America appeared ready to embrace the Deutsch darlings of 120 Minutes. Since they undoubtedly had little to fear from the mainstream circa 2003 -- ten years after their last discernible studio album -- the trio returned to their vision of detached but hooky industrial angst with Pulse. The record begins with "SEQ666," a five-track suite of gritty, hi-res EBM instrumentals -- slightly updated, with the help of Cubase, but clearly recognizable and pure joy to fans of mid-'80s classics like Official Version. Following are a few tracks of thematic pop ("Together," "Triple X Girlfriend") and an able evocation of the era when Front 242 were the kings of grim, catchy Teutonic angst ("Headhunter," "Tragedy [For You]"). The rest of the record is muddled, taken up by extended, multi-track suites that prove the trio's continued programming prowess but are also as inscrutable as much of the material on their most difficult record (1993's 05:22:09:12 Off). Similar to the return of industrial kingpins Ministry a few months earlier, though, Pulse sounds like the record Front 242 wanted to make, the type they could make only once the pressure was off. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide
'Re-Boot: Live '98'
Release Date 7/21/1998
Tracks 14
Label Metropolis
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Following the extensive 1993 tour, Front 242 took a temporary break which many assumed to be permanent after nothing was heard from the band for four years, while the individual members pursued other recording projects and work. 1997 brought a return to action in the live arena, and while no new songs were on offer, the bandmembers stated that they wanted to try new techno-inspired arrangements and presentations of many old songs. The results can be heard on Re:Boot, taken from two European dates in 1997 and 1998. Front 242 itself prefers this album to Live Code as a document of its in-concert work, and as fine as Live Code is, it's no surprise why the quartet thinks the way it does -- Re:Boot really is a killer album. Kicking off with a rampaging version of Evil Off's "Happiness (Modern Angel)," Re:Boot serves up both the expected hits -- "Masterhit," "Headhunter," "Welcome to Paradise" -- and a slew of strong album cuts. "Moldavia," with de Meyer and 23, here credited with his real name Richard Jonckheere, borrowing the call-and-response chants from "Neurobashing" is especially great to hear, as is the massively supercharged closer "Punish Your Machine." As in the past, Codenys sat out performing in favor of working the mixing desk, with Tim Kroker adding drums with appropriately mechanistic, punchy percussion. De Meyer and 23 still have the knack for firing up a crowd and delivering their barked lyrics with the appropriate level of command and seething emotion. Where Front 242 change things around with the songs, the results can be fascinating -- "Melt," for example, turns into a slow, moody crawl, mixed up with subtle breakbeats on the chorus. "In Rhythmus Bleiben" also gets an impressive energy charge, while "Religion" turns into an astonishing, Prodigy-tinged rave monster. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
'Live Code'
Release Date 1/1/1994
Tracks 13
Label Play It Again Sam [Pias]
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Taken from a radio broadcast of a Dutch concert, Live Code captures the touring lineup of Front 242 going through a set drawing heavily on Fuck Up Evil material, but with a fair share of the earlier classics as well. In later years, the band dismissed this record in favor of Re:Boot, but regardless of the contractual obligations behind its existence, Live Code still makes a good treat for Front 242 fans. Kicking off with a nicely fried take on "Der Verfluchte Engel," Live Code exhibits a distinctly 1993 atmosphere for the group -- older songs are supercharged with both the freeflowing aggression of Fuck Up Evil and hints of the fractured experiments of Evil Off. Codenys, as was his general practice, sat out performing on stage in favor of manning the mixing desk, while the other three, supplemented by a guest percussionist, fired things up and tore down the house. De Meyer and 23 in particular pump up the vocal aggro throughout, proving to be a great vocal tag team as well as rabble rousers. No new songs appear and it's not the best starting place for new listeners to the band, partially because the sheer thickness of the studio sonics are unavailable, but Live Code still provides plenty of aural entertainment. The more rock-tinged efforts from Fuck Up Evil have an appropriately blunt kick here, such as the heads-down charge of "Motion" and a corruscating rip through "Religion," which closes the set. Three Front Vy Front-era highlights also are deserved standouts here, starting with an invigorating call and response rage through "In Rhythmus Bleiben." Even more powerful, though, is the traditional pairing of "Headhunter" and "Welcome to Paradise," together turning into a monster take with electric guitar snarls and lyric changes (the "man" in "Headhunter" is now being sold "to make us rich and famous") working a brilliant transformation. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
A combination remix collection and wholly separate album, 05:22:09:12 Off (aka Evil Off) is a semi-sequel to 06:21:03:11 Up Evil, appearing about six months after the release of the first disc. Not only is it a fine companion piece to the earlier disc, it easily stands on its own, finding the band thoroughly engaged in some of its most extreme, experimental music ever. A fair amount of the record is given over to darker plunges, with grinding industrial noise and moody, rumbling sonics used as the basis for many a composition, while other songs explicitly flirt with hardcore techno via hyperactive rhythms. More than a few compositions -- the rhythms on "GenEcide" being a great example -- sound like they're forecasting a lot of subsequent avant techno work on Warp Records and elsewhere. Another radical departure involves the use of female vocals throughout; no direct credits are given for the singer or singers, unfortunately, but contemporary interviews referred to a New York-based trio that would be appearing on the album. Combined with Daniel Bressanutti and Patrick Codenys' thrilling reinvention of their sound throughout -- little here sounds like the "typical" Front 242 familiar from Front by Front or the like -- the vocals make 05:22:09:12 Off a fascinating listen. The key tracks are "Animal" and "Angel," both of which crop up in a variety of different forms throughout 05:22:09:12 Off. "Animal" itself appears in three radically different versions at the start of the disc, ranging from understated minimalism to crisp but oddly distanced rhythms, as well at least one other take later on. "Angel," meanwhile, surfaces as both "Modern Angel," with the female singer delivering her lines with sheer threat and command over the acid-touched forward crunch of the music, and the appropriately titled "Speed Angel." Three songs reappear from 06:21:03:11 Up Evil in remix form, including a fair take on "Melt" and a wonderful mix of "Crapage" called "Junkdrome." ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The first of two releases for Front 242 in 1993, 06:21:03:11 Up Evil (aka F*ck Up Evil) found the foursome rebounding from the somewhat sterile Tyranny (For You) with a varied, vicious assault. Incorporating guitar noise more readily than ever before, but most often chopped up and heavily treated for the band's own particular purposes, 06:21:03:11 Up Evil contains some of the band's most virulent, explosive songs. All titles are one-word long, simple, and straightforward, with names like "Flag," "Mutilate," and "Crapage." There's almost a straight-up rock feel to a number of tracks as well, as the drumming on "Waste" and the quite anthemic "Melt" shows. It's hardly Front 242's grunge move, though -- Jean-Luc de Meyer and the generally little-heard Richard 23 may have a more openly emotional rasp and rage in their voices, especially de Meyer, but the relentless beat of industrial/electronic body music lives on. Leadoff single "Religion" continues the group's winning vein on that front, feedback roars and a huge beat setting an edgy pace before a body slam of a chorus kicks in, de Meyer raging over the top, "Let me burn you down!" The winning secret of the album is that a fair number of songs also demonstrate a careful subtlety, as with the sly mood-setting of "Skin," with its chopped-up electro/hip-hop beats providing the propulsion behind desperate whispers and ominous synth buzzes. The immediately following "Motion" provides an even more upfront blend of styles, with a quiet start and gentle singing suddenly shifting into a pounding call-to-arms percussion attack, all while de Meyer chants, "progress, progress!" again and again. Other successes in this vein include the strange prettiness of "Stratoscape," featuring a low, purring bassline and crisp beats offset against soft keyboard sparkles and chimes, and "Fuel," which includes minimal ambient buzz, more upfront dance/beat chaos, and varying combinations of the two. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
What should have been an amped-up consolidation of the group's considerable strengths, coming off the blazingly brilliant Front by Front album, instead was a sometimes successful but sometimes repetitive effort. As a major label debut, Tyranny (For You) shows no sign of compromise for greater airplay -- it's Front 242 straight up, powerful, pounding, and following its own muse. It's just not quite as spot-for-spot successful as Front by Front, though technically the group sound even more comfortable with sampling and the art of atmospherics. Where it falls apart is the relentless one-note nature of the experience, with only the occasional variety in the beats per minute on tracks. Front 242 shouldn't be sounding like uninspired imitators who have only the one idea, but more than once songs like "Trigger 2" seem to be just that. The high points of Tyranny, though, are stunners. With the cinematic, slow groove of "Sacrifice" leading things off -- a wonderful, threatening start, heightened by compressed orchestral samples and the heavy echo and low whispers of de Meyer and 23 -- the group collectively pour it on for "Rhythm of Time," a great, charging single. Even more compelling is the sheer mania of "Tragedy (For You)," the leadoff single from the album as a whole, starting with a quick collage of random sounds before settling into the aggressive, nervous bassline. De Meyer's straightforward delivery of the cryptic lyrics, notably about the only time on Tyranny that he's quite so noticeable and upfront, immeasurably adds to the track's power, with 23 topping things off on the choruses. Another winner is "Neurobashing," one of the band's best instrumentals, with yells and crowd chants turned into a mesmerizing call-and-response exchange over an absolutely nonstop beat. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Official Version was fantastic, but this album was something else again. Easily one of the greatest industrial albums ever made, bar none, Front by Front hit like a bombshell on its listeners and influenced more bands and songs than can be counted. Even the album art design, with everything from a rough pixel computer font cover to harsh video stills and blunt slogans, is a work of art, perfectly in sync with the electric mania inside (unfortunately, in the late '90s the entire Front 242 catalog was reissued with "high-tech" graphics). From the rampaging start of the album, "Until Death (Us Do Part)," not a single note, sample, guttural syllable, or headache-inducing drum hit is out of place. The album's most deservedly famous track can make an equally good case for being the definite EBM song: "Headhunter." A portrait of capitalism as mercenary terrorism with a wickedly compelling mock orchestral bass providing lead melody, "Headhunter" deserves notice not merely for the pounding music but the astonishing vocal arrangements. Richard 23 and Jean-Luc de Meyer serve up the memorable step-by-step chorus in perfect balance, the latter delivering each step like an order from on high while 23's singing adds on even more frenetic energy. The overall feeling of militaristic, blunt efficiency encompasses music, artwork, and lyrics -- thus utterly appropriate song titles like "Circling Overland" and "First In/First Out." "In Rhythmus Bleiben" stands out as a particularly fine song in a series of them, the melange of computer squeals and glitches, building percussion, chaotic vocal samples, and a downright anthemic chorus resulting in one killer tune. The 1992 reissue does the original CD one better by also including another mix of "Headhunter," as well as the entire Never Stop EP. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
