I'm sure we were here like 15 years ago when you had this money and every day the
value would change. It was really crazy and things were totally different. Maybe
even 16 17 years ago but yeah I think that's the only time we were ever here.
That's when Liebach were really big you know. Yeah that's what I wanted to ask you
because Slovenia has a quite long tradition of industrial music. Are
you familiar with Slovenian bands like Liebach, Borgizia, have you ever heard
from them? Oh yeah well we used to like yeah all that actually the woman who books
our tour she's Liebach's manager Sabine. So yeah we've known them Borgizia for way
back in the wax tracks days you know like I said that was at least 15 years ago
so that's when we came here so. You're now 24 years I think in in front line
assembly I mean you are actually you are kind of front line assembly. Yeah you
know I mean more or less. How would you consider music and a scene and also
industrial change through that period like in the 80s I would say that people
had this strong need for identification through music. Would you consider that
but nowadays maybe music is more a consumtional thing. What do you what do
you think is industrial still has this potential of identification or is it more?
Well I was me and you know Reese Fober you know we were kind of
talking about all this not too long ago and I guess our theory and he really
believes now that all the you know music is so defined now that like we're in the
80s if you were into metal you would also go to an industrial show you know
you'd go see ministry you know like the whole a fear factory you know we worked
on their music and there was a crossover so when we toured on Hardwire we had a
thousand to fifteen hundred people every night but half of them were metal heads
you know or just into electronics now everything's really categorized you know
you've got your you've got your RC and you got your metal seat and you got your
DJC the trans seat you know and nobody seems to cross you know they just stick
to their little group so there's more music but the group all the areas are
smaller in that way so it but you know everything's evolved to you know like
people say well you know industrial isn't what it used to be but it can't be
everything has to change everything has to evolve kids now all about you know
computers technology you know political views in the world political
correctness everything's changed so I guess for this this small scene I think
it's a very small scene to keep alive and it has to evolve and change to you
know it can't be like test department you know four guys with angry sticks with
burning barrels under a bridge screaming about you know the system you know I mean
I guess everything's changed you know but I still think there's like a core you
know when you go to all the Gothic festivals in the summer and you see
10-20,000 people there's still people that are into it you know young people so
I guess it's called evolution you know yeah but when we talk about change yes
considering frontline assembly is pretty much actually one of the rare
industrial bands which keeps kind of a line you know inside of the music right
of one you know a sound which is really through it doesn't change much you know
like for example from two for two where you have these almost dance right music
in the 90s frontline assembly are always with these rough vocals and hard
sounds you never got this need okay you have delirium but you never have had
this need to to change the sound of frontline assembly in maybe such ways
as well yeah you know I mean I mean skinny puppies the same way they don't
really change their sound over well I think nowadays you know when you talk
to record labels it it's even more important to have sort of a signature
sound because for young bands it's almost impossible to make money and start
because there's so many bands and MySpace YouTube so now what what you see now is
more the older bands starting the tour again because they have a name a name
brand and stuff and people kind of know that and like that so I think I think
it'd be pointless I mean if we were gonna change I think we should just start a
whole new project you know like like I said you know we do have delirium with
all the female singers which is pretty different you know so I have that side
that I can get out you know it I still think I'd like to do and a real like
perfect circle kind of one acoustic album with really heavy sounds and slow and
more ballads you know like just one whole record like that I noticed on the
last album the last song right it has a piano right it's quite odd right for
front-line assembly yeah I play yeah I mean I just came up with that part at
the end but I'd like to do that I think that would be you know like a band like
the Swans yeah of course like you know that that kind of I mean I don't know
if people would like it but for me as an artist I still feel like that's an
unfulfilled part which I'd like to do and make it even more with some guitar
souls and stuff but slow right and heavy so more set stuff yeah so I'd still like
to do that I mean you know maybe that will be the end of the band who knows
right but I think that could still I think people might still be open to that
you know it wouldn't be dance music right how do the ideas for your music
evolve especially for the lyrics you were much more I would say on the
beginning it would be more about techniques maybe about the dark sides of
the of the human being and all that stuff I noticed that now it's much more
socially oriented like you speak a lot about war and such stuff right well you
know like I think this this record is probably my book my most personal lyrics
because you know like of everything we've gone through one song you know
afterlife is about the passing of my father a year ago you know when I met him
and two years ago in Vienna and then two months later he died and so the song is
about him and you know I would never think about doing a song like that 15
years ago we always talk about cyber space and you know like technology but
so I think this is the most personable lyrics on this one and I kind of just
didn't worry too much whether it was not exciting for people but it meant
something to me because you know I think time is running out for all of us so you
need to do all these things that are important to you so in that way the
lyrics and this one are very personable you know and I don't want to just talk
about bullshit I mean so I found that that way I didn't think for a line would
be like maybe for such a personal place because I thought the lyrium was always
more you know like not religious but more deep in that way but as it turned
out it worked out okay and I and I got it and it made me feel better so but you
know you can't do that unless you've been doing it for a while right so that
you have something to to draw from so that's what most of the lyrics are
about in this record you know it's a lot of and you know I don't want to take it
as far as politics go I don't like to take sides but I just see such a
credible injustices and crazy red tape diplomas from government and it drives
me nuts so I just like to point them out to people but I like to people make up
their own mind I think it's much better than beating them on the head saying you
know look you have to be I think that's boring do you think nowadays music can
still have this impact on society like it used to you know what I don't know I
think a lot of young people don't care they they're so computerized now you
know they have they have 20 seconds of tension span to listen to a song then
they're bored they have their iTunes things you know they have a thousand
songs and they're one song from each artist they don't even listen to albums
anymore by artists I'm pretty much sure that most of the youngsters don't even
know that they listen to a bunch of your music on on the most legendary game
actually that ever occurred you know quake free right yeah I'm sure how did
that happen I mean how do you get on on on a into a computer game well that was
just the people that were doing it in actually in Texas because nine-inch
nails was involved in the first one they were just fans and the guy just sent
me an email said hey you know you want to we're big fans are you interested and
we said of course and and it just went from there it was really simple you
know like sometimes the best things just come really easy and when you really try
hard it never works but it's a pretty aggressive game would you consider
industrial as an aggressive and that's not yeah it should be I think it should
be challenging you know like I don't think you can just listen to frontline
when you're just want to relax you know I mean I think it should be challenging
and that's why it has a small crowd because most people they just want music
in the background when they're working at home typing thinking but I think our
music demands attention so it's it's just for a small group of people that are
willing to always be you know to like that challenge you know when they put it
on so how is it you worked with a lot of names a lot of you had a lot of
musicians inside of front line assembly who also I would say developed a lot of
musicians for other bands but nowadays you you work with pretty much younger
generations than you right and you used to be how is it to work with with young
people I mean we talked about younger generations and well it's really funny
because Jeremy in the band you know he's 26 and I think Jared's they're the same
age they're both 26 and they said when they were I mean I guess they were like
four years old when me and Reese started making songs but they said when they were
in their teens the first stuff they ever heard is our stuff and it just to them
we were icons we were these gods we appeared because they were just kids in
high school you know so for them to come into this scene and to into this band it
first of all they're really excited but to me you know a good band is like a good
soccer team you know you need young players you need experienced players
you need everything to make a good team and that's what you know this is not
because they have a lot of young ideas a lot of enthusiasm they always kick my
ass and say let's go on tour come on and I'm like I don't know you know I've been
around the world 50 times but they have this energy like it's untarnished it's
a real energy so I think together it put new life into the band and I'm sure
they want to do a few more records yet but how do songs evolve is this is just
your outer work or is it no you know what this this record really was all four
of us me what I guess Chris Peterson isn't here you know but I've worked with
him for a long time too piano we would go to each other's house and everybody
has their own studio and we would come up with ideas and then we would all get
together and we would share those ideas and put them up and then we work on that
and so it was a real the first record were equal equal ideas from everybody
involved except for the lyrics of course but which before it would either be just
me or Chris or me and Reese so that was really cool it was like a real band thing
you know so your European tour is kind of getting to an end it's what it's
getting to it's right to its end how would you say how in your viewpoint how
is the scene nowadays is it's well you know it's sporadic I mean it there's
always a few bands that are like flavor of the month you know that everybody
wants to see and then you've got your bands you know his historical value
bands it what would you consider frontline assemblies well I think we're
more of a historical band you know when ironically enough when when we played the
Belgian Gothic festival the two headlining bands were us the skinny
puppy and you know the for two days there was all these young Gothic bad stuff
and blah blah blah but then in the end when we showed up everybody showed up
and what's kind of a cool feeling still like that people respect that and even
and you know there was a lot of young people that they they get the history of
it and do you still do old stuff like I don't know oh yeah you play biomechanics
yeah that's that's one of our outro so I mean it's like an anthem or something
yeah so you know it yeah I still think like you know I think all the bands like
and then of course you got bands like you know like nine-inch nails who became
huge but you know Trent always said in his interviews skinny puppy was one of
his biggest influences he used to open for us skinny puppy when he was just two
guys you know and then obviously you know now he plays big stadiums right why
do you think that frontline assembly never got onto such I mean puppy
didn't either you know anymore you know we're doing the same I think it's just
because we don't have the crossover appeal of the the rock side of it you
know where Trent was able to get all the rock and roll people involved hey what
are you doing with my mic can't give it here no no I actually tell them the boss
yeah yeah I'll be in the stock if we're like yeah okay all right you don't like
your gear to be touched I'm just bugging we just play little games all day like
he was hoping it wasn't on the bus so he had to go outside right anyways so yeah
I just think you know it but you know it you know the best way to look at it is
you know like just because you know when you when you go to McDonald's restaurant
this company has sold more hamburgers in the world and everybody right and then
there's other restaurants that make that don't nearly sell as much but are also
established a smaller and ever way higher quality and and the food's actually
good for you and I think that's how we are you know like just because you
somebody sells more doesn't necessarily mean it's better you know and you know
crowds can just they flock to whatever is trendy whatever their friends are
listening to but like I said I think our music and puppies you know it just
evokes more thought and it's not for everybody you know so but I think we
like it that way I think if we would have I don't think we were destined to be
this big rock band you know so for our listeners especially for younger
listeners maybe don't know what can we expect from today's show I mean you know
it you can't it's really hard to put it into a sentence you know I mean it's
like yeah if people that have like in Hungary last night the show was a sell
out and people were crazy I mean that's the irony last night it was totally
sold out the shows in Sweden were sold out and you come to Ljubljana and maybe
tonight is not gonna be so many people so people that know the band you know
they know the history they they could sort of you know there's more to it than
just watching a band play you know if you know the band how long they've been
to what they represent you know what they're playing then it has more
significance so but I think for like it's young people I mean we're it's a
pretty live band and we rock pretty hard and I don't know you either like it
or you don't you know future plans is this now this this order I mean the
band members is this now a lineup which will last for a little bit longer than
yeah I mean I think Chris wants to like come back and tour in America and stuff
and then we'll have five people and you know me and Reese always talk and you
know we're just in the middle of making a new delirium album for next year so
it's always something you know I mean I'm sure front lines not gonna ever get
bigger or anything but I think you know if it all ended tomorrow I think we've
we've made our point you know we did what we kind of wanted to do and and then
all you can ask for right and then again you assembled a lot of people for
other bands of course you know like so yeah you know I think you know I mean
tactical neural two years ago in the British press was named the sixth most
important electronic album to be ever made I mean to me that's enough period I
can go home now what else do you want you know I mean that that to me makes a
statement beyond all other statements you know and with delirium you know we
we've had like six gold records and fear factory Reese produced went gold in
America you know I mean that's so much stuff you know it's it's hard to
encapsulate it all in this band but out of this band grew a lot of stuff you
know so so it's interesting in that way sure you had great impact well thanks
a lot hey Norris and I hope that you will have a great gig tonight and play for
whoever's here you know I mean I know there's a history here and I'm not so
sure we just because we haven't been here so long whether it's the lack of
that or whatever it is but you know maybe next time right but it's such a
great venue you know I'm pretty much sure it's gonna rock maybe maybe we
should have played in some bunker somewhere in the middle of nowhere in
Ljubljana the outskirts and some all we have a lot of such places yeah I think
that this one will be pretty nice yeah okay thank you okay thank you thank you
