Skinny Puppy, Download, Etc. FAQ v3.3
Corey
Here's the latest update, some minor changes only but it seemed time to
repost
brap on,
Corey
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The Skinny Puppy (and related project)
F A Q
(Frequently Asked Questions)
Version 3.3
Last Updated 8/31/99
A comprehensive guide to the projects of
cEvin Key, Nivek Ogre, and Dwayne Goettel
Written and maintained by
Corey (clar...@iop.com)
With
SKUMM (ande...@up.lib.mi.us)
(Noted sections quoted from Nettwerk's customer service)
With thanks to and help from:
Chemical Wire; Artmaker; Rene H.C.; Dead Shot; Kevin Lewis; Greg Clow;
Todd Zachritz; Dierdre; Kristy Holt; JDL; MagerValp; Sevorg; L'Ogre2'3;
FFreddy; Scott Graham; David Pattee; Sean Graham; Blaine Lefort; James
Annet; ToM; Patrick Campbell; Amphion; Peter Nielsen; Lord Leto II;
Jo-Ann Greene; Peter Cieghn; Subconscious Communications and their web
site; Aaron; cEvin Key; Nettwerk (esp. Armand Sebris and Adam Drake);
everyone who contributed but whose name I lost; and of course Skinny
Puppy and everyone involved with it.
Dedicated to the life and music of Dwayne R. Goettel
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Please do not reproduce or alter this document in any way for any purpose
other than your personal use without my permission. If you'd like to
reproduce, publish, mirror, etc. this document I'd be more than happy to
oblige, but please contact me first. Thanks!
This document and its author do not support or endorse the sale or purchase
of 'bootleg', 'counterfeit', or 'pirate' material in any way. Any mention of
such items contained in this FAQ is for the purposes of having complete
information only. Any mention of 'bootlegs' refers only to the non-profit trade
of such material.
Any questions, corrections, additions, comments, etc. can be mailed to me
at clar...@iop.com Feedback is greatly appreciated!
You can obtain the latest version of this FAQ on the web at
http://www.monmouth.com/~sgoldberg/index.htm
or by requesting it from me through e-mail at the above address
Brap On...
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(a new method of update notification is coming soon, please bear with me...)
I-General Questions
II-Member Info
III-Other Personnel
IV-Questions By Album/Era
=Back and Forth=
=Remission=
=Bites=
=Mind: The Perpetual Intercourse=
=Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate=
=VIVIsectVI=
=Rabies=
=Too Dark Park=
=Last Rights=
=The Process=
=Brap=
=Ain't It Dead Yet? (live)=
V-Miscellaneous Questions
VI-The Videos
VII-Other Projects and Bands
=Subconscious Communications=
=Download=
=aDuck=
=Doubting Thomas=
=The Tear Garden/The Legendary Pink Dots/Twilight Circus=
=Hilt/The Flu/Lee Chubby King=
=PlatEAU=
=Involution=
=cEvin Key Solo=
=Cyberaktif/Front Line Assembly=
=A Chud Convention=
=Hell O' Death Day=
=The Lung Goblins=
=Mark Spybey/Dead Voices On Air=
=Ministry/Revolting Cocks/PTP=
=Mutual Mortuary=
=W.E.L.T.=
=Pigface=
=Ritalin=
=Raw Dog=
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Frequently Asked Questions
"Answer me. Can't you talk? Can't you move? Answer me!"
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I-General Questions-
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-How did the band start?
Skinny Puppy began when cEvin Key and Nivek Ogre met up and discovered that they
had similar tastes for the extreme. cEvin, extremely frustrated with playing in
a pop band (see Images In Vogue question below), had the urge to create
something that was raw and real. Having learned a great deal about the technical
aspects of electronic music from his time in Images In Vogue, cEvin felt he knew
enough to be able to do it on his own, and started experimenting. Eventually he
met Ogre, who was at the time interested in playing music. Ogre began adding
lyrics to cEvin's music due to his writing experience. They begin writing songs
as a reaction to everything they hated about pop music. Manipulating and
mutilating sound that was already in existence, Puppy began creating "audio
sculpture". They quickly completed their first demo/tape/album called Back and
Forth and distributed it around Vancouver. A friend of cEvin's was starting up a
record label called Nettwerk. Skinny Puppy signed to Nettwerk and released their
first album (well, technically an EP) called Remission in 1984. The rest is
history.
-Where did they get the name Skinny Puppy? What does it mean?
cEvin had come up with the name Skinny Puppy even before he had met Ogre, while
he was doing some experiments on his own (one of which was Meat Flavour). While
the name can be interpreted a number of different ways and has many different
levels of meaning, the basic idea is that of an abused, neglected animal who
doesn't speak much but when he does it is a pain filled yelp. This concept may
have been created after the name was already envisioned, but still holds true.
Early on, the concept for the band was to look at the whole world through the
eyes of a dog, "seeing through the keyhole", as it were. This resulted in Ogre's
lyrics for K-9, which became what is in some ways the first Puppy song.
-What were their influences?
There were many bands that were influential to Skinny Puppy. One of the
major, early influences was Throbbing Gristle, the band that began the
Industrial Records label in the late '70s. Another heavy influence was the
pioneering German synth band Kraftwerk. cEvin said once that when he got
his first Kraftwerk album, he got rid of the rest of his record collection and
started over. Some have said that early Skinny Puppy was a melding of
these two ends of the musical spectrum. Other influential bands include
SPK, Cabaret Voltaire, Nocturnal Emissions, Portion Control, and the
Legendary Pink Dots. It has also been suggested that Ogre's taste for live
performance art is a result of him being a fan of Alice Cooper as a kid. cEvin
has also said once that one of his major influences was his very first concert,
Emerson Lake and Palmer.
-Where is <dialogue sample here> from?
Many spoken samples and sounds were taken from movies. A definitive list
of the sources for each song's samples can be found at the Skinny Puppy
Internet Database (http://skinnypuppy.webjump.com).
Another place to find info on samples by Skinny Puppy and any other band
(including projects like Doubting Thomas) is the Top Sample List
(http://phobos.astro.uwo.ca/%7Eetittley/top_samples/samples.html). Skinny Puppy was the long reigning champ as highest sampling band but has now been eclipsed by none other than Wilhelm's FLA.
-<Insert Album A> sounds nothing like <Insert Album B>, wtf?
Skinny Puppy were not a band to repeat themselves. Rather than stagnating
their sound constantly changed, grew, and morphed. No one album can
give a complete indication of what they sounded like. Everyone has their
favorite, so get 'em all and decide for yourself.
-How many people listen to Skinny Puppy?
At the time of their breakup Skinny Puppy had sold over 1,000,000 records,
which works out to an average of one record sold about every 6 - 7 minutes
over the course of their 13 year existence. And that doesn't even include
singles, side projects, and sales after the breakup. Download's album The
Eyes Of Stanley Pain alone had reached almost 20,000 sales in less than a
year and a half of release, which roughly works out to one copy of the
album sold about every 30 minutes. And, yes, this section exists simply for my own amusement.
-What new stuff is coming out?
Since this FAQ is more of a permanent document than a constantly updated
news source, this is not your best bet for the most up to date information
on new releases. Please check Litany, the Skinny Puppy/Download/Ritalin
news site (http://userpages.aug.com/sgraham/)for the most up to date info.
It is an excellent site and is frequently updated.
However, here's a list of recent, planned, or possible Puppy related releases
-Subconscious Compilation 2 - Wild Planet
-PlatEAU: Space Cake
-Skinny Puppy: Back and Forth series 5
-Download: Moth EP
-Download: Resilient EP (remixes by other artists)
-The Tear Garden: (new album)
-Ogre/Walk (W.E.L.T.): (new material)
-The Legendary Pink Dots: Collaborations (comp. w\ Tear Garden tracks available
only directly from LPD themselves)
-Skinny Puppy: 12" Anthology vol. 2 and B-side compilation (following the
deletion of Nettwerk's current singles)
-As of yet unnamed collaboration between cEvin and Rhys Fulber.
Possibilities exist for upcoming Rx, Download/PlatEAU, and Tear Garden shows
exist.
The planned full-length releases by Hilt, Kone, aDuck, and Doubting Thomas have
apparently been either cancelled or put on hold.
Also keep an eye on the Subcon site for possible online exclusives coming soon!
-What's this I hear about new Puppy material? Is this true?
Apparently cEvin has stated that he would like to collaborate with Ogre
again, but Ogre has said that he is not interested in doing so at this point. If
they were to work together again it is not clear whether it would be new
"Skinny Puppy" material or something new.
-Where else can I find information on Skinny Puppy?
In they days since their breakup, the number of Skinny Puppy related web sites
has skyrocketed, and as a result I can not even attempt to list them all here.
However, here are some key sites to check out in no particular order:
Litany: Skinny Puppy / Download / Ritalin news
http://userpages.aug.com/sgraham
The best place to find the most up-to-date news and information.
The Skinny Puppy Internet Database
http://skinnypuppy.homepage.nu
The best site for finding samples sources and clips of the samples themselves,
plus tons of other goodies.
Brap...The Skinny Puppy and Download Discography
http://www.evansville.net/~tgodsend/brap.html
The ultimate guide to all SP related recordings
Epilogue (the Skinny Puppy related mailing list)
http://students.washington.edu/maximill/epilogue/
E-mail discussion forum for all things SP related. The above address contains
the archives as well as subscription information
Skinny Puppy Central
http://www.waste.org/~skumm/
Comprehensive general site. Formerly 'the unofficial homepage'.
Skinny Puppy's Last Rites
http://www.nucleus.com/~philip/
Another great all around site. Was at one point 'officially' sanctioned by the
former band members
Subconscious Communications
http://www.jps.net/~ckey/
The official site for the subconscious team.
The Skinny Puppy Web Ring
http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/jdeell/puppy/ring.htm
A hub for some of the many sites that are not included above but have a plethora
of useful information, images, etc.
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II-Member Info-
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-Who were Skinny Puppy?
Skinny Puppy started out as cEvin Key (Kevin Crompton) and Nivek Ogre
(Kevin Ogilvie). cEvin created most of the music and Ogre did the lyrics
and vocals. Early on Ogre contributed, however minimally, to the music,
playing some synths, some percussion, and handling some of his own vocal
treatments. When they began recording at Mushroom Studios for the first
time in early '84, they hooked up with producer Dave Ogilvie, who had
worked with cEvin as an engineer on Images In Vogue. He assisted the Puppies on
their first studio-recorded track, Sleeping Beast*, which appeared on Back and
Forth series 1 and later in a more refined form on Remission. Dave (a.k.a. Rave)
provided free studio time for Skinny Puppy to work on some of the tracks
on Remission. Rave would remain a major contributor to the band through
most of their existence. When they started playing live, they needed another
keyboardist and brought in their friend Wilhelm Schroder. Wilhelm didn't
know very much about music, but really wanted to play so Key showed him
the ropes. Wilhelm played bass synth on some early tracks and on the Bites
tour (plus moaning on Stairs and Flowers). He was never listed as an actual
member on any of the releases, however. For a variety of reasons, he quit
the band halfway through the recording of the third album, Mind: The
Perpetual Intercourse, and went on to start Front Line Assembly as Bill
Leeb. To fill the void, cEvin brought in Dwayne R. Goettel (see question
below), a classically trained and technically skilled keyboardist. The two
instantly clicked and Dwayne became a vital member of the band. This
lineup lasted for the rest of the bands' history. When Skinny Puppy broke up
on June 12, 1995, Ogre went his way and cEvin and Dwayne went theirs.
Tragically, Dwayne died of a heroin overdose on August 23, 1995. His
legacy, as that of Skinny Puppy, forever lives on.
*While interviews with the Puppies indicate this song is actually
Smothered Hope, Sleeping Beast's appearance on and the liner notes of B&F 1
seem to point in a different direction. Any info on this is appreciated.
-What is cEvin Key doing now? Where can I reach him?
His main project is Download at the moment and he is working on some other side
projects, including The Tear Garden and PlatEAU. Currently it seems he is
working on compiling the sequel to Paradigm Shift. cEvin Key has an email
address (ck...@jps.net). He seems to respond on a fairly regular basis and is
very good natured and generous about answering fans' questions.
-How the hell do you pronounce cEvin's name?
Nowadays at least, he pronounces it just like "Kevin".
-How did cEvin get the nickname Kenny King?
Someone was calling cEvin to the phone, and mispronounced his name as
Kenny King. And so, a new nickname was born. This is said to have happened on
the same day as the Cincinnati arrest incident, but that seems to conflict with
the name King appearing on the earlier Lee Chubby King project (see below).
-What was cEvin doing before Skinny Puppy?
cEvin performed with many bands before starting Skinny Puppy. His first band
(of sorts) was called the Fuck Brothers and consisted of cEvin and his friend
Dick Hardy (apparently that is actually his real name) and began when cEvin got
made fun of after having a bad haircut. After this inspiration, they recorded
their first 'album' on eight-track tape. Later, they recorded a second album
called 'Live at Istanbul' inserting crowd noise between songs. This was recorded
over an old Tangerine Dream eight-track which was later stolen. Many years
later, cEvin was the drummer for the synth-pop band Images in Vogue. In addition
to cEvin, the band also included Glen Nelson (brother of Al Nelson), Joe
Vizvary, Gary Smith (who later became a film producer who worked with Jim
Vanbebber, see questions on Charlie's Family and Chunkblower), Don Gordan (who
later left and formed the band Numb), and Dale Martindale. Their recordings
featured cEvin on drums until 1985, when cEvin quit on the date of the release
of Bites.
-What is Ogre doing now? Where can I reach him?
Ogre's most recent project is Rx (formerly known as Ritalin). An album has just
been released and possibilities for singles or a tour exist. W.E.L.T, Ogre's
project with Mark Walk, had finished an album. Apparently the deal Ogre
had with American Records got muddled and the album was put into limbo
when Warner Bros. absorbed American Records. The delay was furthered by Ogre's
reluctance to release the album at a time when certain other "artists" who he
feels are "exploiting" his past work are in the public eye. He's now trying to
get the rights to release this material, but plans on re-recording and editing
it before its final release. In addition, the name W.E.L.T. will probably have
to be changed due to the other band named Welt. Ogre has recently spoken of new
material which he and Mark Walk recorded in Seattle. He has also recently taken
part in the last two KMFDM albums and toured with the band. He was to appear on
the most recent Pigface album but, in fact, does not appear on the album. He did
have an email address (pu...@netcom.com) but it has been dormant for some time
now and apparently no longer exists. I am sorry, but I do not know how to reach
Ogre. While he may use e-mail, he has not made his address public. And, yes
ladies, he is spoken for.
- What was Dwayne up to before Puppy? How did he get involved in the band?
Dwayne, who grew up in Edmonton, was in a band by the name of the Pinstripe Club, who recorded as Psyche after Dwayne left. He was also in a band called Voice (at one point also named Office) which did record an EP for a local independent label. Another c
alled Water, which featured a female vocalist, never recorded but had opened for Puppy on the Bites tour. As the story goes, Wilhelm Schroder (later Bill Leeb) did not want to go on another tour with the band and Dwayne, having opened for Pup, fit the bil
l and was free. cEvin and Dwayne quickly found that they worked well together and began jamming. This resulted on their first song, Antagonism. Dwayne was a member of Skinny Puppy until their breakup June 12, 1995.
-Are Dave "the Rave" Ogilvie and Kevin "Nivek Ogre" Ogilvie related or
the same person?
Absolutely not, it's all just a coincidence as far as the same last names go.
Certain incorrect information has been printed in the past, but aside from a
close relationship, they are not related in any way.
-OK, two Ogilvies I can buy...but three? Who is this Rosie "Mowse"
Ogilvie?
Rosie Ogilvie is Dave Ogilvie's wife. She does backing vocals on Tear Or
Beat as Mowse and performed with Ogre and Rave at some animal rights
benefit shows.
-Who is the Green Guy?
Some say the green guy is the person who provided the pot during the
recording process, others say its Dale Plevin who played bass on some
tracks, still others say it was cEvin under the influence, and yet others
say it's a name for Marijuana altogether.
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III-Other Personnel
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(Special thanks to Todd Zachritz for help with this section!)
A (?) indicates someone whose identity and/or name is somewhat in question.
-Who are they, what did they do, and what are they doing now?
-Ric Arboit
Recorded the audio for 'Ain't it Dead Yet?' and assisted in the mixing of
'Chainsaw', 'Cage', and 'Assimilate (r23)'. Was, and may still be, an executive
at Nettwerk.
-Sir Arthur (?)
Re-edited 'Testure (12" mix)'
-Martin Atkins (a.k.a. Atkyns)
Martin, already an accomplished drummer with credits including P.I.L., performed
on Ministry's 'The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste' tour. It was on this tour
that he hooked up with Ogre and formed Pigface, a band with a constantly
revolving membership. Ogre appears on many Pigface releases and has toured with
them multiple times. After Roli Mossiman was let go from 'The Process', Martin
Atkins was brought in to produce. Although he was eventually replaced by Rave,
some of his contributions are still present on the final album, including his
background voices on 'Death'. Martin receives a co-writing credit for the track 'Candle'. He later joined with Ogre for the Rx/Ritalin project. Martin continues to record and tour with Pigface, and manages Invisible Records.
-Keith Auerback (a.k.a. Fluffy)
Chicago area producer/engineer and associate of Al Jourgensen, Keith co-mixed
Fascist Jock Itch with Al Jourgensen and Jeff Newell.
-Blixa Bargel
Longtime member of pioneering band Einstuerzende Neubauten, and legend in his
own right, Blixa contributed vocals, piano, and production on the Cyberaktif
track 'Paradiessiets' as well as piano and FX on the Cyberaktif b-side
'Meltdown'.
-Ben Bass (?)
Credited with participating in Hilt's 'Journey to the Center of the Bowl' album.
-Murry Elias
Along with Justin Strauss, remixed both 'Stairs and Flowers (Def Wish mix)' and
'Stares and Flowers (Too Far Gone)' (a.k.a. 'Stairs and Flowers (dub)').
-Tom Ellard
Lead man of Severed Heads, Tom Ellard was associated with Puppy early on.
He produced and performed on 'Assimilate' and performed on 'Chainsaw'. In '86
SP and Severed Heads went on a joint tour. Ellard worked as an engineer
for some of the Doubting Thomas sessions, but walked out due to a falling
out with the band. He is credited with engineering on two tracks on the
Infidel album and 'impromptu' remix of 'Blowfish' from 'Paradigm Shift'.
-Meklaker Fletcher (?)
Credited with authoring the Hilt track 'White Stuff' in 1978 according to the sleeve. However, BMI does not list anyone out of the ordinary Hilt band members as authoring this song, so Fletcher is most likely a pseudonym for another member of Hilt. Also c
redited with mixing and production assistance on 'Call the Ambulance...'
-Lee Fraser (a.k.a. Bagman)
Aside from Sheep on Drugs and his solo Bagman project on the Invisible label,
Lee performs additional keyboards and programming on 'Bedside Toxicology'.
-Steven R. Gilmore
Longtime SP cover artist, SRG did the artwork to almost ever Puppy related
release, in addition to a host of other bands on the Nettwerk label. After
'Rabies' SP switched to Jim Cummins for their artwork, but returned to SRG for
'the Process'. Steven may have also done the artwork for 'Paradigm Shift'. Most
recently he designed the sleeves for 'Bedside Toxicology' and 'Remix Dys
Temper'.
-Chris Greene
Chris mastered and co-mixed 'Bedside Toxicology'. During the mastering process
he contributed additional post production on three songs. He also plays violin
on the track 'Downtown'. Chris remixed the track 'K Y Re:Amin' for an Invisible
remix compilation.
-Don Harrison (a.k.a. Dutch)
Don was a member of, or at least participant in, Hilt for all of the band's releases. He also played in a band called Sons of Freedom.
-David Jackson
Dave is responsible for the chainsaw on the SP track of the same name. He also
worked on many of their tours and was even involved in a few onstage antics.
-Kevin Kane (a.k.a Kevin Eleven)
Kevin performs on and co-authors the Hilt tracks 'Orange Pony' and 'Green Love'.
-Al Jourgensen (a.k.a. Alien/Alain Jourgensen; Buck Satan; Hypo Luxa etc.)
Al is the lead man of Ministry and is involved in a variety of side-projects.
He can be credited with, at least partially, creating the 'WaxTrax! Sound' with
his many projects. At some point, Ministry and Skinny Puppy crossed paths and Al
and Ogre became friends. Ogre contributed vocals to the infamous PTP track 'Show
Me Your Spine', which was never released. Later, Ogre and Dave Ogilvie toured
with Ministry on the Land of Rape and Honey tour, notably performing 'Smothered
Hope' as part of the set. Al was brought in to co-produce Rabies and contributes
heavily to that album, playing guitar, singing some background vocals, and co-
writing some tracks. Al's presence caused somewhat of a clash within SP, as it
was felt that he was trying to break up the band so that he could have Ogre for
the Revolting Cocks project. After Rabies was completed, both Ogre and Rave
contributed to the Ministry album The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste and the
following tour (documented on the In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up video
and live album). Ogre also sung on two tracks for the next Revolting Cocks
album, 'Beers Steers and Queers', although he is not credited. Dave Ogilvie may
have contributed as well, specifically the guitar solo on 'Get Down'. Ogre and
Al's planned collaboration, W.E.L.T. recorded at least one track, the much
bootlegged 'Noreen'. At this point Ogre and Al had a falling out and went their
separate ways. Al continues to record with Ministry, having distanced himself
somewhat from the 'electro-industrial' scene that he helped to create.
-Peggy Lee
Performs strings on 'To Be An Angel Blind...' and 'III'. May also be Pepperdine
who performs strings on 'Cult'.
-Naomi MacLeod
Performs the vocals on the Doubting Thomas track 'IDL' and is credited with co-writing the track according to BMI. She has a number of other songs to her credit but I am not sure what other work she has been involved with. If anyone has info, please let
me know.
-Ken Marshall (a.k.a. HiWatt)
Like Anthony Valcic, Ken Marshall has worked as an engineer and mixer for
SP for many years. He was at one point considered a 'member' of Download
but does not tour. An accomplished producer/engineer on his own, he has worked
extensively with Numb, which (incestuously enough) features Don Gordon of Images
In Vogue.
-Betsy Martin
Performs guest vocals on the Hilt track 'Stone Man' and is credited with co-writing the track according to BMI.
-Mattman (?)
Credited as participating on Hilt's 'Journey to the Center of the Bowl'.
-Jason McNinch
Performs guitar on 'And When' and dobro guitar on 'Exfoliate' from 'Bedside
Toxicology'. McNinch is an accomplished producer/engineer and played with the
now defunct band called Lick.
-Ryan Moore
Ryan was a session musician for Mushroom studios and first worked with cEvin on
Hilt. He was brought in to play on The Tear Garden's second album and eventually
became a permanent member of the Legendary Pink Dots. He also performed on
Download's EOSP tour. In addition to his work with the dots he has a solo
project called Twilight Circus which has released a number of albums.
-Alan Nelson (a.k.a. Chubby Tuna)
Al was a member of one of cEvin's early bands, Illegal Youth (originally named
No Exit but changed after another band started using the name) and brother of
Glen Nelson, the keyboardist of Images In Vogue. Al later became SP's film man
and worked with cEvin again on The Flu, Hilt, and Lee Chubby King.
-Glen Nelson
Brother of Al Nelson, Glen was a keyboard player in Images In Vogue.
-Jeff Newell (a.k.a. Critter)
Associate of Al Jourgensen and the Ministry camp, Jeff co-mixed 'Fascist Jock
Itch' from Rabies, as it was mixed at Jourgensen's long time studio Chicago
Trax.
-Chep Nunez
Edited both 'Stairs and Flowers (Def Wish mix)' and 'Stares and Flowers (Too Far
Gone)' (a.k.a. 'Stairs and Flowers (dub)'.
-Dave Ogilvie (a.k.a. Rave)
Dave was Skinny Puppy's 'secret' fourth member and producer. He worked as an
engineer on Images In Vogue and provided the studio time for Puppy's first
sessions. He was SP's live sound man and remained an integral part of the band
until the beginning of 'the Process' recordings. American Recordings felt Skinny
Puppy needed 'new blood' and offered him only a secondary production position.
He declined the offer but returned later to save the album with cEvin after
most of the recording was completed. He is currently working at Nothing
Studios and is an accomplished remixer and producer aside from SP. Check
the Dave Ogilvie production discography at
(http://www.evansville.net/~tgodsend/rave.html)
-Genesis P'Orridge
Genesis was a founding member of the band Throbbing Gristle and the Industrial
Records label. After the breakup of Throbbing Gristle he moved on to create the
band Psychic TV and the organization Thee Temple of Psychick Youth. He met Ogre
and began working with him in Pigface. Genesis was brought in as a 'creative
consultant' for 'The Process' album and worked along with Ogre on the Process
Internet project, having introduced Ogre to the then defunct Church of the
Process of Final Judgement. He contributed vocals to many of Download's releases
through mail and most recently appeared on 'Music For Cats'. Unfortunately he
has never appeared live with Download. Although he was scheduled for the NYC
stop on the EOSP tour he did not appear.
-Pepperdine (?)
Performs viola and cello on 'Cult'. Possibly Peggy Lee who performs on 'To be an
Angel Blind...' and 'III'.
-Dale Plevin (a.k.a. Mr. D. Plevin, Dale Pleven, and possibly the Green Guy)
An old friend of cEvin, Mr. D Plevin plays occasional bass, 12 string, or
fretless bass on a variety of SP projects. It is rumored that he is the
infamous 'green guy'.
-Marc Ramaer
Worked with Puppy in a production and engineering capacity on a number of
releases.
-Greg Reely
Greg worked with Puppy in a production and engineering capacity on a number of
releases, having known cEvin since working on Images in Vogue in production and
engineering areas. Greg is credited with performing piano on 'Rash Reflection'. He also is given co-writing credit on the Hilt track 'Get Out of the Grave, Alan' with BMI. He has recently worked with Front Line Assembly and Fear Factory.
-Lee Salford
Once a member of Section 25, Lee worked on the Lee Chubby King 12" as well as
the Tear Garden's 'Tired Eyes Slowly Burning'.
-Marc Shaffer
Performs guitar on the Hilt track 'Standing on the Rim' and is also credited with co-writing the track according to BMI.
-Chris Sheppard
Local Toronto DJ and SP friend, Chris helped mix the 12" version of 'Dig It' and
is mentioned on the vinyl etching "Sheppard washes the blood". Chris has
released his own techno and dance music under various names.
-Adrian Sherwood
Well known producer and musician in his own right, Adrian remixed 'Addiction
(first dose)', 'Addiction (second dose)', and 'Deep Down Trauma Hounds (remix)',
all from the 'Addiction' single. More recently he remixed 'Tin Omen (main mix)'
for 'Remix Dys Temper'.
-Smiley (?)
Credited with recording Hilt's 'Yellow Sunshine (Explosions In My Head)'. This is very possibly a pseudonym for someone otherwise known for working with SP in a production, engineering, or mixing capacity.
-Steve Spapperi
Assisted Adrian Sherwood in his remixes for the 'Addiction' single.
-Pat Sprawl (a.k.a. Pat Sproule)
Pat was a guitarist with the band Dead Surf Kiss, who had an album produced by
Dave Ogilvie. As the story goes, Ogre saw them perform and immediately asked him
to work with SP. He performed much of the guitar on The Process album. He has
since played with Sister Machine Gun, Pigface, and Drown.
-Mark Spybey
A one time member of Zoviet France, Mark met and subsequently jammed with
cEvin. Some of these jams appeared on Mark's main project, Dead Voices On
Air. He was present for the recording of the Process and became part of the
jams that led to Download. He remained a member of Download until the end of
the EOSP tour. He performed on the Tear Garden track 'Malice Through The Looking
Glass' and appears on the track 'Blotter' from Music For Cats, though this
recording may predate his split with Download. He has continued with Dead Voices
On Air as well as other projects including Propeller and Spasm. Both Mark and
cEvin say they'd like to work together again, but geography does not currently
permit.
-Justin Strauss
Along with Murry Elias, remixed both 'Stairs and Flowers (Def Wish mix)' and
'Stares and Flowers (Too Far Gone)' (a.k.a. 'Stairs and Flowers (dub)'.
-Jennifer Superstar (?)
Credited with participating on Hilt's 'Journey to the Center of the Bowl' album. While the credit is not specific my instincts tell me that she may be responsible for the vocals at the end of 'Birdwatcher'.
-Greg Sykes
Greg consistently worked with Steven R. Gilmore on SP sleeves, handling the
typesetting for many of the albums.
-Troll (?)
Performs guitar on 'Cult'. His/her identity is a mystery, however it has been
suggested that Troll is simply another pseudonym for Ogre.
-Anthony Valcic (a.k.a. Fu)
Originally a member of Moev, one of two bands other than Puppy to begin the
Nettwerk label, Anthony worked with SP, as well as many of their side projects
in an engineering and editing capacity for many years. He performs keys on
Download's Glassblower and manned the soundboard for the EOSP tour. He remains
a fixture of Subconscious Studios and is an official member of Download and
PlatEAU.
-Martijn Van Der Kleer (a.k.a. Martijn der Kleer)
Martijn was the guitarist for the Legendary Pink Dots for many years and
contributes to many of The Tear Garden releases as a result. It is also rumored
that he performed the keyboards at the end of the track 'Download' from 'Last
Rights'.
-Mark Walk
Mark Walk was first introduced to the SP world as an associate of Martin Atkins.
He was brought in to help with the recording of 'the Process' when Martin took
over reigns as producer. He and Ogre hit it off and after Ogre had completed his
vocals for the album, the pair moved to Seattle and worked on the third
incarnation of the W.E.L.T. project for American Recordings. This material was
completed but never saw the light of day for a variety of legal reasons. Ogre is
currently trying to regain rights to it. In addition to W.E.L.T. and the
Process, Mark has worked on albums by Pigface and Ruby. Mark also remixed 'Dig
It' for 'Remix Dys Temper'.
-Sandy Weir
Vocalist who along with Dwayne formed the band Water. Water opened for SP in
Edmonton leading to Dwayne's membership in SP.
-Phil Western (a.k.a. DJ Philth; Cap'm Stargazer)
A friend of Dwayne, they released the original Subconscious 12" single
together. Philth was present during the Process recordings and was therefore
brought in for the jams that resulted in Download. He left Download briefly
after Dwayne's death, but returned to play on the EOSP tour and has been a
member ever since. He is a member of Download and PlatEAU and has performed on
'The Process' and 'Music For Cats'. He has a number of solo and other projects
including Off and Gone, Floatpoint, and Cap'm Stargazer. He was also supposedly
the guitarist and lead vocalist for the rumored but unreleased project called
The Lung Goblins.
-Jessika White
Photographer for the 'Bedside Toxicology' sleeve, Jessika is presumably Ogre's
new wife. She also appears on the front cover of the album.
-Wolfgang (?)
Appears in a clip on the Brap CD-ROM and is thanked on Rabies.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
IV-Questions By Album/Era-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
=Back And Forth (series 1 and 2)=
-What is Back and Forth series 1?
Back and Forth series 1 was their first, self produced tape released in early
'84. Intended to be a run of 50 copies, cEvin got tired of dubbing them and
only ended up making 35. Years later, some copies numbered 36-50 turned
up, and it has been suggested that Bill Leeb made them and sold them to
some fans for quite a bit of money, but he denies it. cEvin says that as far
as he knows there were only 35. In addition, copies 1-15 were individually
hand dubbed, while 16-35 were high-speed dubbed, resulting in lower
quality. All of these tracks appear in a remastered form on Back and Forth
series 2.
-How does B&F1 differ from B&F2? Where can I get it?
The differences between the tracks that appear on both releases are minimal at
best. Contrary to popular belief, they were not completely remixed and redone
for the B&F2 CD. However, B&F2 was made from the original, 4-track masters of
the songs NOT the mixed down master which was dubbed to make B&F1. For this
reason, some of the mixes and edits are slightly (with emphasis on slightly)
different. In addition, many of the track appear in shorter, edited form on
B&F1 and are in a fully restored form on B&F2. Other than the mix and edit, only
two tracks differ significantly between the two releases. 'Sleeping Beast'
features a few slightly different percussion sounds. This in fact may just be a matter of the mix again. 'Dead of Winter' features its own introduction, as it does not segue out of 'Sore in a Masterpiece'. Other than these slight variations, B&F1 offers
nothing new and is truly an item only of interest to incredibly anal fans, and more for its historical value than anything else. Bootleg dubs of it can be easily found, but again, despite what you may have heard, there is very little that cannot be found
on B&F2.
-What's that thing at the beginning of Smothered Hope (demo) on Back and
Forth series 2?
This appears to be a live improvisation, performed right before Smothered
Hope. When the drums from Smothered Hope begin to come in, the track
switches to an early demo for Smothered Hope, as the title suggests.
=Remission=
-Where is that picture of a man looking around a corner inside the
Remission / Back and Forth series 2 booklet from?
This is taken from a 1950 painting called "The Subway" by George Tooker.
=Bites=
-Who is that singing on the 'Centre Bullet'?
Previous information indicated that the vocals on this track are actually done by cEvin. However, this has recently been brought into question by some information suggesting that it is Ogre singing. Later on, cEvin redid this song under the Tear Garden n
ame with Edward Ka-Spel adding vocals.
-What is this extra track 17 on the Bites CD?
This track is called 'One Day' and was previously unreleased. The title
might be a reference to the original name of Puppy friends the Legendary
Pink Dots.
-What's with all the different versions of Bites?
While there were many different releases of Bites with different tracks on
them, the currently available '93 CD release includes every track ever
released on any version of Bites except 'Cage', which you can get on the
'Chainsaw' EP.
-Why are some of the same tracks that are on 'Remission' on 'Bites' as well?
While it is not clear from the tracklist, the duplicated tracks are different
versions of the songs. The versions of 'Film' and 'Icebreaker' on 'Remission' are different than the ones on 'Bites'. It should be noted that if you have one of the 'Remission and Bites' or 'Bites and Remission' compilation discs you will be missing out o
n a lot of material. If you want the complete picture, the way to get 'Remission' and 'Bites' are as two separate CDs.
-What was the tour like for this album?
The Bites tour of North America and Europe had the lineup of Ogre, cEvin,
and Wilhelm Schroder. The set involved giant medieval-looking platforms
that cEvin and Wilhelm stood on and played from. Skulls and televisions on
pedestals littered the stage. Ogre occasionally turned to a metallic rhythm
setup, which looked much like a swing set, playing and banging on a variety
of objects including cymbals, springs, and wind chimes. A life size (and
Ogre-esque) stuffed doll hung in effigy from the percussion set. Ogre,
manipulating his own vocals live on-stage, performed a variety of frightening
acts which included holding up a mirror to himself and the audience,
slashing his own throat, and, in the finale, smashing a skull against his head,
shattering it to pieces. A good example of what the tour looked like can be
seen in the 'Smothered Hope' and 'Far Too Frail' videos as well as in the inside
of the 'Back and Forth series 2' insert.
Setlist: Film / Assimilate / Solvent / Icebreaker / Blood On The Wall / Glass
Houses / The Choke / Social Deception / Last Call / Deadlines / Smothered
Hope / Encore: Brap\Improv / Basement / Far Too Frail
=Mind: The Perpetual Intercourse=
-Alright...let me guess...the version of 'Love' on 'Mind:TPI' is different than
the one on 'Bites'?
Yep. Good call:)
-OK, why are 'Addiction' and 'Deep Down Trauma Hounds' on here? Weren't
those originally released on 'Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate'? And where is
'Stairs and Flowers (Dub)' from?
The original vinyl/cassette release on Mind:TPI came out in '86. The last
song on the album was 'Burnt With Water'. The CD version was released in
'88, which was after 'Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate' (and it's companion
'Addiction' single) were released. As bonus tracks on the CD version of
'Mind:TPI', tracks from the 'Addiction' single were added, even though they
were from a later era. These two tracks are actually 'Addiction (second
dose)' and 'Deep Down Trauma Hounds (remix)', not the original versions of
the songs as the track listing suggests. Further bonus tracks were taken from
the 'Chainsaw' EP. These two tracks were 'Chainsaw' and 'Stares and Flowers
(Too Far Gone)', the latter retitled 'Stairs and Flowers (Dub)'.
-Why is 'Dig It' on the CD album the same as the remix on the 'Dig It' single?
For some reason, the original album version of 'Dig It' was replaced with the
12" remix for the CD release of 'Mind:TPI'. The version on the 12"
Anthology is also the 12" remix. The original album version is available on
CD on the compilation 'Industrial Revolution Second Edition'.
-What is the difference between the 'Chainsaw' EP/single and the 'Stairs and
Flowers' EP/single?
'Stairs and Flowers' was a slightly different version of 'Chainsaw' made for the
US market. The track 'Cage' was dropped for 'Stairs and Flowers' but the
cover art was exactly the same (except the title). 'Stairs and Flowers' was
available as a 12" only and is out of print, but the 'Chainsaw' EP is still
available on CD.
=Cleanse, Fold, And Manipulate=
-Who is that singing on 'Addiction'?
The low voice in 'Addiction' is, in fact, Ogre. His voice is heavily pitched
down resulting in quite a few people thinking it was a guest vocalist. It is
rumored that Ogre was taking a stab at Bill Leeb's vocal style with this
track.
-I heard of a song called 'Kill To Cure', what is it and why wasn't it released?
This was a song recorded around 87-88. It was never released but a bootleg
recording of a demo exists, and they performed it live during the early '88
European tour. The vocals for the demo version sound like a very early
scratch demo cut, and they were changed quite a bit for the live version. Its
not known exactly why this track wasn't released (any info on this would be
great).
-What was the tour like for this album?
The first leg of the tour is documented in the Ain't It Dead Yet? live video.
The second leg of the tour was a small tour of Europe done in early '88
(before VIVIsectVI) called Head Trauma. This tour is often confused with
the VIVIsectVI tour since the stage show was quite similar. The
performance involved Ogre as a laboratory scientist experimenting on
on a very lifelike stuffed dog (named CHUD after the horror movies). He
performed a mock vivisection of CHUD on-stage in order to show the
audience the horrors of vivisection. As the show progressed Ogre began
experimenting on himself, having his assistant, who was dressed like an
executioner, hand him syringes which he used upon himself. He even took a
shard of broken glass and sliced up his own stomach, much like he had
CHUD's. In the end, his assistant took control and strapped him into a giant
medieval-like chair. Struggling like a restrained animal, Ogre was hung
upside down as the chair was flipped, simulating the kind of "sudden head
trauma" experiments which were being performed on defenseless animals.
A press release for this tour appears on the Brap CD-ROM.
Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate Setlist: Intro / Anger / The Choke /
Addiction / Assimilate / First Aid / Dig It / One Time One Place / Deep
Down Trauma Hounds / Chainsaw / Brap (based on Draining Faces) /
Smothered Hope
Head Trauma Setlist: Intro / God's Gift (Maggot) / Assimilate / One Time
One Place / Addiction / Smothered Hope / Kill To Cure / The Choke / Deep
Down Trauma Hounds / Glass Houses / Brap (based on Draining Faces)
=VIVIsectVI=
-Why is the album called VIVIsectVI? What's the VI for?
This is a sort of wordplay to show the evil of vivisection. Switch the last VI
to the front and you get VIVIVIsect or 666 sect.
-I heard they got arrested in '88, why?
A person in the audience during a Cincinnati show on the VIVIsectVI tour
mistakenly thought that the stuffed dog CHUD, which Ogre ripped apart on stage
in order to show the horrors of vivisection, was a real animal and called the
police. After showing up backstage and finding that CHUD indeed was not real,
they basically tried to find a reason to be there and after some harsh words
were exchanged Ogre, cEvin, and their tour manager spent the night in jail on
disorderly conduct charges. Dwayne, who was actually rolling a joint as
the cops came in, managed to escape due to his unique power of invisibility.
-I heard about CHUD getting stolen, what happened?
After the show in Detroit, some girl managed to grab CHUD as a souvenir of
the show and left it in the back of her unlocked car after she got home. The
band followed her around the city. Ogre not only recovered CHUD but also
entered the girl's house and yelled at her parents.
=Rabies=
-Who is the Cyan credited with lyrics and vocals for Rain?
Cyan Meeks was Ogre's girlfriend at the time. She also did 'merchandising'
for Ministry's 'Mind...' tour.
-What exactly is this track Spahn Dirge? Where have I heard those lyrics
before?
'Spahn Dirge' is a live in-studio jam including everyone from the band. It
involved guests including Al Jourgensen. It appears as a B-side on
the 'Tin Omen' single and as a bonus track on the CD version of 'Rabies'.
Some of the lyrics are borrowed (and subsequently warped) from Revolting
Cocks' 'Attack Ships On Fire' and Led Zeppelin's 'When The Levee Breaks'.
-I heard 'Rabies' got remastered. How can I tell if I have the original or
remastered version? What's the difference?
The original master had been put through a Dolby noise reduction that
cEvin loathed, so he went back and remastered it for CD in '93. This CD
was re-released for the US market by Nettwerk in '98. It is most obviously
different from the previous, "un-re-mastered" US versions by both the clear
disc tray (the original had the solid colored, non-transparent disc tray which
has gone out of fashion in recent years) and the sticker on the cover which
claims "remastered" and "first time available in the US". If you have it on
vinyl or cassette, you've got the original master version.
Otherwise, read on.
Note: the following information was released by Nettwerk *before* the '98
re-release and thus does not pertain to it.
Here's the info straight from Nettwerk:
Skinny Puppy Rabies Remastered Quasi-FAQ
Here's the long story about Rabies and the "first master" vs. "re-mastered"
explanation:
- Rabies was first released in 1989 on LP and Cassette. This was at a time
when you still had to wait a few weeks for the CD to be done. The LP and
the Cassette at the time had a specific type of master that was still in
use for vinyl and cassette manufacture (as opposed to CD's.)
- When the CD first came out, it featured the same mastering as the
original LP and Cassette. This was only for the first two pressings.
- When those original copies ran out in Canada (at the time that's the only
place it was available) we put out a "remastered" pressing specifically for
CD. The CD has always had this master ever since. The remastered version
came out in early 1993. If you bought it anytime after that *IN CANADA*
you will have
this version of the CD.
- If you have any doubt in your mind whatsoever, you should be ordering it
from our mail order dept.
On a technical note: "Re-mastering" or just plain "mastering" is the art of
clarifying and raising the overall volume of all of the mixes on an album
(no matter what format) to a certain level so that it is the same volume
(or a more uniform volume anyway) for the whole disc. In the case of
"Rabies", you might also notice on the remastered version that the bass is
much "smoother" and "heavier". Very delicate art that one. :)
To be completely honest, the "un-remastered" version of "Rabies" is now
much harder to find than the remastered version.
I know what you're saying after reading that: "I'd like to get a copy of
this if it actually is different. How do I go about ordering it direct?"
Our mail order dept.'s email address is:
mail....@nettwerk.com
I hope that clears up a lot of stuff for some people.
Armand S.
Internet Services
Nettwerk Productions
in...@nettwerk.com
=Too Dark Park=
-Hey, my 'Too Dark Park' insert is different from my friend's. What's going
on?
The original release of the TDP CD included a fold-out, color lyric sheet
with the entire cover painting intact in the background. Later on this was
switched to a stapled booklet, with the painting in black and white and
chopped up among the pages. The change may have been made to make the lyrics
easier to read. However, with Nettwerk's '98 re-release of the album, the
original insert was apparently restored, along with the addition of a
transparent disc tray.
-Hey, my 'Spasmolytic' is missing a song that my friend's copy has. What's
going on?
'Choralone (Live in Houston)' was a bonus track on some CD and cassette
copies of the Spasmolytic single/EP. Some list it on the cover and have it,
some don't list it and have it, and some don't have it period. It is not
available on the vinyl version of the release. It may have only been
available on the Nettwerk release and not the Capitol version. If anyone has a
Capitol edition of this CD with the bonus track please let me know.
=Last Rights=
-Track 10 on Last Rights is missing...wtf?
The track that was track 10, entitled 'Left Hand Shake' was scrapped from
the album at the last minute due to the Timothy Leary samples throughout
the song having not having been cleared. Even though Leary himself
approved of the use of the samples, he found out later that he did not in fact
own the rights to them and the owner denied SP usage of the samples. The
song was pulled from the album. Interestingly (and frustratingly), some of
the same samples appear in the track 'Fistfuck' on Nine Inch Nail's Fixed EP.
-Where can I get this 'Left Hand Shake'?
The track can be found, in a variety of forms, as a bootleg. One version of
the song can be found on the original European version of 'Brap', put out by
the OffBeat Label. OffBeat went ahead and released it even though they
didn't legally have the right to do so. It also appears on the CD bootleg
Intolerance (this is not an endorsement). Puppy supposedly planned
to release it as a 7" given out at shows but this never happened.
-What's this story of Ogre having a convulsion during 'Knowhere'?
While Ogre and Rave were recording the vocals for 'Knowhere?', during a
period of Ogre's heavy drug addiction, Ogre took a shot of coke and had a
seizure. It is rumored that they were still recording as he went into the
convulsions, and that the recording actually appears on the final album.
-On my copy of 'Last Rights' the songs start 39 sec before the corresponding
track comes up. What gives?
The original pressing of the 'Last Rights' CD had an error which caused the
tracks to be shifted 39 seconds after the point the song starts. This resulted
in the first 39 seconds of 'Love In Vein' being cut off and 39 seconds of
space being added to the end of 'Download'. You can hear the beginning of
'Love In Vein' by rewinding the CD past the 0 second point. This pressing
error was quickly replaced and all new copies of 'Last Rights' do not have
this problem. Some still claim that the 'error' was actually done on purpose
so that you had to listen to the album as a whole, much like 'Ain't It Dead
Yet?'. It is doubtful, however, that they would intentionally cut off the first
39 seconds of a song.
-My copy of 'Last Rights' has all the right songs on the CD, but the on-disc
art only lists three songs, (Tormentor ext., Bark, and Nature's Revenge Dub). Wtf?
This seems to be a common phenomenon with copies of Last Rights ordered
from Columbia House. The music is correct, but the on-disc art is that of the
'Tormentor' single. Try contacting either Columbia House, Nettwerk, or Capitol about the problem. If you have any luck, please let me know so that I can include it here.
-What happened to the 'Love In Vein' single?
It was scrapped, but some or all of the content planned to be released on it
can be found on Brap (vol. 4). The version of Love In Vein on Brap is a
(possibly unfinished) remix.
-What was the tour for Last Rights like?
The Last Rights tour (of which the European leg was canceled due to Ogre's
knee injury) involved a variety of horrific imagery. cEvin appeared to play
live percussion throughout the show. The show involved Ogre interacting
with a staticy backing film, being tortured by his own guilt, spinning a
macabre tree with masks, arms, and other monstrous things hanging from it
constantly over his head, occasionally pulling objects off and wearing masks
for certain songs. The tree was originally called "The Tree of No Cares"
and was conceived as an extension of "The Chair of No Cares" from the
TDP show and Spasmolytic video. The tree trunk was made up of hundreds
of twisted, moaning faces and was scrawled with words like "Sex", "Greed",
"Self Dissect", "Vermin", and "Survive". The masks (AKA Torture Heads)
included a gas mask, a monster with its tongue hanging out, and a
screaming human head cut in half just below the eyes. Ogre's makeup
revealed his face as a twisted melding of flesh and metal. As the show
progressed, Ogre continued to turn to a Videodrome-inspired virtual
reality/drug machine through which he entered some other "dimension".
When Ogre entered the machine, his face appeared on the backing film,
giving us a glimpse into the other world in which he was being tortured as
well. The machine continued to destroy him, eventually splitting him into
two personalities, evident by a "second Ogre" growing out of his back. Late
in the show he held up a cross which began to bleed. Finally he dons a "guilt
suit" and becomes his own monster. The "Guiltman" monster suit was
complete with stitches, needles, chains, words such as "Forgive Me" carved
into the flesh, a gaping orifice in the belly with serpentine tongue hanging
out, and IV tubes sticking out of him. The show was capped with an encore
featuring a improvisation some refer to as Dirty Tricks (either it was an
unreleased song or a common thread in their improv) and Testure. This time
around Ogre added some new lyrics to the intro to Testure, partially
improvised. At at least one show they also played Spasmolytic during the
encore.
Setlist: Intro / Addiction / Love In Vein / The Choke / Harsh Stone White /
Improv / Tin Omen / Worlock / Knowhere? / Anger / Improv / VX Gas
Attack / Second Tooth / Killing Game / Circustance / Left Hand Shake /
Encore: Improv\"Dirty Tricks" / Testure
=The Process=
-I heard that there was a single for Candle? Where can I get it?
'Candle' was intended to be a single off this album, but went unreleased,
possibly due to American Record's disinterest in releasing further Puppy
material. They did, however, release a promo CD-single for this song. It
featured two tracks, 'Candle' and 'Candle (Edit)', the latter being the same as
the original with the instrumental ending cut off. The song 'Morpheous',
which was intended to be a B-side for this single, was released on the
compilation 'We Came To Dance Vol. X', where it is mistitled 'Morphedus'.
=Brap=
-What does Brap mean?
According to the Brap liner notes Brap is basically the term cEvin and
co. use for "getting high and recording". Alternatively it is the name used for
their live improvisation and, more generally, the term for their creation of
music in general. For this reason Brap is sometimes used to mean the
"genre" that all of their music falls under. The track on Remission titled
Brap is probably either an example of in-studio improv, or the track that
they took the name from. An improvisation (using Draining Faces as the
basis) appears on the live album Ain't It Dead Yet? under the name Brap.
-What exactly are all of these tracks on Brap? Live? Demos? Wtf?
Here it goes:
Disk 1 (Back and Forth vol. 3)
1. (multimedia)
2. Jackhammer: demo
3. Splasher: demo
4. Double Cross: demo
5. Yo Yo Scrape: demo, with vocals by cEvin!
6. Carry: demo
7. Guilty: demo
8. The Soul That Creates: demo, with vocals taken from My Voice Sounds
Like Shit
9. Brap: a live improvisation from either Logo Bochum Germany or Basel,
Switzerland at Geigerzahler 1986 using the track from Remission as the
basis. The full show can be found as a bootleg and on the bootleg CDs Kill
To Cure and Fractal Zoom.
10. Sparkless: demo
11. Dead Doll: demo of the track from Bites
12. Deadlines: demo of the track from Bites
13. Last Call: live version from the 9/26/86 CBC Brave New Waves
radio show. The full show is available as a bootleg. It happens to be damn
good.
Disk 2 (Back and Forth vol. 4)
1. (multimedia)
2. Uranus Canceled: a different version of the track Knowhere? from Last
Rights
3. All Eyes: a live improvisation from the Too Dark Park tour. Part of this
track can be found, along with other improv, as part of Walking On Ice
from the Spasmolytic single.
4. Reclamation: live from Too Dark Park tour
5. Spasmolytic: possibly a live in-studio demo take, with vocals added later
6. Grave Wisdom: a less finished version of the track. Also appears on the
Nettwerk Decadence boxed set as Grave Wisdom (alternate version)
7. Tin Omen: the first part of this track is live from the (crappy) CD bootleg
Heaven's Trash. The second part is a pro recorded live version.
8. God's Gift: live from Too Dark Park tour
9. Convulsion: live from Too Dark Park tour
10. Nature's Revenge: live from Too Dark Park tour?
11. Love In Vein: remix from the planned, but unreleased, single
12. T.F.W.O.: live version from Too Dark Park tour
13. Choralone: live version from Too Dark Park tour
Much of the live material is apparently taken from a fan-made (!) bootleg of
a show at the LA Palladium.
-Why is the track listing on 'Brap' reversed?
It was an attempt by Nettwerk to play on the Back and Forth concept.
Backwards and Forwards, get it? For the record, the track listing for disk 1
(vol.3) appears on the right side, while the track listing for disk 2 (vol.4)
appears on the left.
-What's with all these different versions of Brap?
A month or two before Nettwerk released Brap with multimedia content, an
early version, without multimedia and with a version of Left Hand Shake,
was released on Offbeat in Europe. This is commonly referred to as "Euro-
Brap". After Brap was released by Nettwerk domestically, Offbeat re-
released Brap, this time supposedly with a hologram cover, without Left
Hand Shake and with the multimedia content. This is commonly referred to
as "Digi-Brap".
-What's with this hole in the right side of the Brap digipak? Was there
supposed to be a booklet in there?
Nope. According to Nettwerk that was just a byproduct of the manufacturing process.
-I've heard there are secrets on the Brap CD-ROM, where?
One secret can be found on disk 1 (vol. 3) in the TDP monster screen which
you start at. Zoom in as close as possible on the stars above the monster-
face's head. At the center of one of these stars your icon will change to a
hand and you can click on it, taking you to a hidden area. The clickable
region is very small so it make some trying to find it.
Another "secret" can be found on disk 2 (vol. 4). Under certain conditions
you can click on the skull in the window (even though your icon doesn't
change to a hand...) and discover a small secret. Or maybe it is not supposed
to be secret?
-Wait a minute, these dates on the Brap CD-ROM clips don't sound right...
Some of the dates for the live clips on disc 2 (vol. 4) are surely incorrect. In
addition, some of the clips use material from different shows edited
together. The '84 K-9 performance is rumored to be footage from the very
first Puppy show ever.
=Ain't It Dead Yet?=
-When was Ain't It Dead Yet? recorded?
June 1, 1987 on the Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate tour.
-My copy of Ain't It Dead Yet? is all on one track, why?
The CD versions of this album were pressed as one track in order to
preserve the live experience of the show as a whole. Apparently, though, a
new version has just been released with each song on a different track.
-My copy of Ain't It Dead Yet? says it includes God's Gift (Maggot), but it
doesn't...wtf?
Someone apparently screwed up and confused One Time One Place with
God's Gift (Maggot). All versions of the album and video have One Time
One Place as the actual song present. A new version of the album has
appeared (see above question) with this error corrected.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
V-Miscellaneous Questions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-I heard Skinny Puppy were in a movie. Is this true?
Yep. Ogre, cEvin, and Dwayne appear in a very brief cameo as a gang of
thugs early in the movie The Doom Generation. It is an extremely quick
scene and you can barely make out the band, if at all. During the filming of
this scene cEvin fell off a car and broke his arm among other injuries.
-I heard there's a song called 'Ode To Groovy'. Where is it?
'Ode To Groovy' was a track released on the first volume of an animal rights
benefit compilation called In Defense Of Animals. While it is credited to
Skinny Puppy, it is actually just Ogre, Rave, and possibly Rosie. A text piece by Ogre was also included with the comp.
-I heard of a bootleg called Intolerance. What's up with it?
Intolerance is a CD bootleg which is not, by any means, what it says it is. It
is not the last Puppy show as it claims. It is from a 6/18/92 Miami show.
The audio is taken from a more complete video bootleg of that show. Intolerance also has a bunch of extra tracks which, while they claim to be unreleased, are stolen from commercially available releases. The only other interesting things present are a stu
dio version of Left Hand Shake (which was made from a dub...) and some strange Charlie-esque rant before live part of the disc starts. It is supposedly a limited edition of 2000, but it is not known if this is true. Some copies included an embossed metal
SP logo. I do not recommend buying this bootleg which seems tailored to steal from the band. Instead, track down the full 6/18/92 video and buy the commercial releases.
The track listing (as it actually appears):
-----------------------------------
1 Charles Manson rant?
Live from 6/18/92 Miami:
-------------------------------
2 Tin Omen
3 Worlock
4 VX Gas Attack
5 Second Tooth
6 Left Hand Shake
7 Brap-Improv / Testure
------------------------------
Studio:
8 Left Hand Shake (studio)
9 Cage*+
10 Stairs and Flowers (Too Far Gone)*+
11 Tin Omen (Reload)*%
12 Spahn Dirge (Live)#
* claims to be an unreleased version of the song, but it is in fact the version
I have listed...
+ from Chainsaw single/EP
% from Tin Omen single/EP
# from Rabies CD and Tin Omen single/EP
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VI-The Videos-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- What videos are out there?
Here's a list of all known Puppy videos, including official, fan made, etc. in
chronological order of the song's release. See below for more in-depth info.
Any additions are welcome.
Smothered Hope*
Smothered Hope (fan made)
Far Too Frail*
Assimilate (a band made clip with promotional info? more info requested)
Deadlines (fan made, on Brap CD-ROM)
Deadlines ("trippy computer graphics version" fan made)
The Choke (fan made)
Dig It*
Dig It ("Death"; fan made?)
Stairs and Flowers*
God's Gift (Maggot) (fan made?)
Addiction (fan made)
Deep Down Trauma Hounds (just clipped from the AIDY live video)*
Testure (version a)
Testure (version b)*
VX Gas Attack (from the TDP backing film?)
Worlock (X Rated)
Worlock (R Rated)
Worlock (A rated)
Tin Omen (from TDP backing film?)
Spasmolytic*
Spasmolytic (w\ title and credits sequence)
Rash Reflection (from the TDP backing footage missing from the bootleg)
Harsh Stone White ("live in Denver" from Spasmolytic single; fan made)
Killing Game*
laHuman8 (fan made; AKA "the abortion" video)
Candle
Curcible
Hardset Head
* appears on the official 1984-1992 Video Compilation
Official videos were also made for Download's Glassblower, The Tear Garden's
Sheila Liked The Rodeo, and Hilt's Stoneman.
Ogre also appears in the official video for Revolting Cock's Stainless Steel
Providers, though he does not perform on the song.
Out-take footage from the Spasmolytic video is also floating around as a bootleg
item.
-What official Puppy videos exist?
In addition to the live video and album called Ain't It Dead Yet?, there are
promotional videos for Smothered Hope, Far Too Frail, Dig it, Stairs and
Flowers, Testure, Worlock, Spasmolytic, Killing Game, Candle, Curcible,
and Hardset Head. All of these videos except for Worlock and the Process
videos (Candle, Curcible, and Hardset Head) appear on the official 1984-
1992 Video Compilation, which also includes Deep Down Trauma Hounds
from the Ain't It Dead Yet? video, and some very short audio-less clips from
the Last Rights tour. Clips of the videos also appear on the Brap CD-ROM.
It should be noted that two versions of both the Worlock and Testure exist,
Worlock in an X rated and an R rated version. The versions of Testure differ
only slightly in that one has a few more apparitions during the 'hallway' scene.
Also, the version of Spasmolytic which appears on the compilation omits the
title screen (which was just the cover of the single) and credits which were
previously circulating as bootleg versions. (In order to make the bootleg
unnecessary, the credits are available below).
-Why isn't Worlock included on the Video Compilation?
Here's the info straight from Nettwerk:
WHY ISN'T WORLOCK INCLUDED ON THE SKINNY PUPPY VIDEO
COMPILATION?
The video for "Worlock" was comprised of numerous (over 80 in fact) clips
that were cut out of horror films by various classification boards. It is
a non-stop gore-fest that was immediately banned by every video station
that had ever seen the video, as well as any border crossing guards
anywhere in the world. The video is considered pornographic for this
reason.
That's the first reason it's not included on the video release.
The second reason concerns the sheer mountain of legal paperwork that
would be required in order to get approval from every single director of
the over 50 movies that the clips were taken from. There is simply no way
for anybody to get a clearance to release this video in any form. Even if
we were able to get legal approval to use all the clips that are contained
in the video, we would be disallowed from ever shipping a copy anywhere in
the world due to the content. Complete catch-22.
So that is why the video for "Worlock" doesn't appear on the Skinny Puppy
video compilation. It's been a 4-year battle in the attempt to get that
video released in some form. It just isn't possible to do.
But the rest of the videos which do make an appearance are mostly
first-timers as far as anybody seeing them and a lot of the fans who are
quite familiar with the "Worlock" situation are still pretty happy to see
these videos being made available to the fans of the band.
(thanks to Dead Shot for transcribing this)
-What films are used in the Worlock video?
Here is a shot-by-shot transcription of the video generously written by
Kevin Lewis. A list of just the movies appears below.
The B&W shot of a guy reaching out to pull a lever -ERASERHEAD
Then there's another B&W clip of that guy -ERASERHEAD
The red lips in blue light talking -TENEBRAE
The clips of a masked man twitching about in a chair -DEATH WARMED UP
Then there is a real fast clip of an extreme close-up on a ravens eye -
OPERA
The silhouette of a police man head -MANIAC COP
Lips again (blue lighting) -TENEBRAE
Bandaged head gets a scalpel in the eye -DEAD AND BURIED /
?FACELESS?
Close up of part of the skull being removed exposing a slimy brain -DEATH
WARMED UP
Eyeball being poked out -THE BEYOND
Anatomical drawing on the optic orb -RE-ANIMATOR
Flesh ripping apart -FROM BEYOND
Fast clips of hallucinatory scene from -ALTERED STATES
Zit -DEMONS
Naked guy in white room in fetal position -DEATH WARMED UP
Hand getting stabbed w/ soldering iron -HENRY
Hallucinatory scenes (cross) from -ALTERED STATES
Outtakes from the video for STAIRS & FLOWERS
Smoke expanding and then reversing -RE-ANIMATOR
Fast clip of an inferno from -ALTERED STATES
CU of a girls eyes looking about (I don't know this one), but there is
footage super imposed over it of Peter Jackson (director) as Derek falling
off a cliff in -BAD TASTE.
Shot of elevator descending down from -HELLRAISER II: HELLBOUND
TV smashed over a guys head from -HENRY ("plug it in, Otis.")
Mouth opening with metal teeth -LUTHER THE GEEK
Repeating shot of spinning white padded walls -DEATH WARMED UP
Really fast clip of flames bursting center screen -ALTERED STATES
Repeating shot of knife rising -DEEP RED
Repeating shot of knife stabbing down -DEEP RED
Red liquid poured dumped into the sink -SUSPIRIA
Meat spinning -PARENTS
The guy getting his head cut in half by a power saw -INTRUDER
Letterboxed scene of a little girl (zombie now) getting shot in the head (cut
well to the beat) is from THE BEYOND.
Letterboxed scene of girl caught in barbed wire -SUSPIRIA
Letterboxed scene bloody girl getting hung by a telephone wire -SUSPIRIA
Shot of a gloved hand grabbing on to a machete -BAD TASTE
Man getting stabbed in the neck/jaw by a large knife -OPERA
CU of knife blade in mans mouth -OPERA
Then that crazy guy shooting his shotgun, blowing up a lamp -DEATH
WARMED UP
The silhouette of a man being ripped apart by like four others -RE-
ANIMATOR
Meat -?PARENTS?
Flash snap shots of bloody bodies & a CU of a paranoid man -DEATH
WARMED UP
Meat -?PARENTS?
Rip off poor saps head with the spine attached & bloody floor clip -BAD
TASTE
Dying girls hand slowly slide down -TENEBRAE
Light bulb breaking via razor blade -TENEBRAE
Video footage of an older man kissing a bound girl who shrugs to get away
(this shot replays like four times) -FROM BEYOND
The above clips inter cuts with the scene of the lips talking under blue
lighting, again -TENEBRAE
Blood on the Beatles (standees) car window -BAD TASTE
Hand cuffs being removed from bloody hands (broken thumbs) -
PHENOMENA
Woman's hacked off arm spurts out blood and paints the walls red (groovy)
-TENEBRAE
Heart getting stabbed, letterboxed -SUSPIRIA
Thumbs being broken on bloody cuffed hands -PHENOMENA
Jennifer Connally drowning in a pool of mud and maggots -PHENOMENA
CU of rotting flesh in that pool of mud and maggots -PHENOMENA
CU of a drain -SUSPIRIA
Bandaged quivering hand -???FACELESS???
Guy being shoved into his white padded cell -DEATH WARMED UP
Quick clip of hallucinatory scene -ALTERED STATES
Shotgun being fired -DEATH WARMED UP
Woman's face being smashed through glass -SUSPIRIA
Shotgun being fired -DEATH WARMED UP
CU of eye behind needles -OPERA
Neck being slit open -SUSPIRIA
Zoom into an open eye -SUSPIRIA
Insane man screaming through a gate -HELLRAISER II: HELLBOUND
Zoom in on a man sitting in the corner of a padded cell -DEATH
WARMED UP
Clip of a comb (w/handle) grabbed off the carpet & the comb handle
stabbing into Otis' eye & the bottle being smashed over Michael -HENRY
CU of a drain, again -SUSPIRIA
Metal teeth being filed -LUTHER THE GEEK
Meat being pushed through a meat grinder -PARENTS
CU of a woman's eye as a tear streams down her cheek -HELLRAISER II:
HELLBOUND
Man in a straight jacket screaming with what looks like inverted color -
DEATH WARMED UP
Mutant zit explodes on the neck -DEMONS
Zombie and all four grabbing out -RE-ANIMATOR
Aliens head getting cut in half via chainsaw -BAD TASTE
Screaming in that padded cell -DEATH WARMED UP
Woman getting scalped -DEMONS
Razor slashing upon a maggot infested chest -HELLRAISER II:
HELLBOUND
Guts plopping to the ground at the feet -BAD TASTE
Freaking out in that fucking padded cell -DEATH WARMED UP
Zoom out of an eye -HELLRAISER II: HELLBOUND
Hallucinatory scene (with the crucifix) -ALTERED STATES
The B&W shot of a guy reaching out (to pull a lever) -ERASERHEAD
The films:
Bad Taste
Maniac 2 (it was only a half hour promo for the film, the final film was never
completed because Joe -maniac- Spinell died)
Death Warmed Up
Hellbound: Hellraiser II
Intruder
Luther The Geek
Eraserhead
Re-Animator
From Beyond
Parents
Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer
Altered States
Combat Shock
The Beyond
Phenomena
Tenebrae
Demons
Opera
Deep Red
Suspiria
Dead And Buried
Another interesting point is that the sound during the "Restricted/X" intro
before the video is a sample from the movie Videodrome's title shot.
Special thanks to Kevin Lewis for this section.
-What are the Spasmolytic credits?
Skinny Puppy: Ogre, cEvin Key, D. Rudolph Goettel
Directed by Jim VanBebber
Produced by Gary Blair Smith
Co-Produced by Mark R.G. Yoshihara
Written by Kevin Ogilvie, Gary Blair Smith, Jim Vanbebber
Director of Photography: Danny Nowak
Production Designer: Al Benjamin
Special Make-Up Effects: Tim Gore
Editors: Jim Vanbebber, Kevin Ogilvie, Gary Blair Smith
On-line Editor: William J. Morrison
First Assistant Director: Gary Harvey
Special Effects: Al Benjamin, Ray Reedyk
Special Make Up Effects Assistant: Charlie Grant
Make-Up and Hair: David Jones
Wardrobe: Tracey Pincott
Property Master: Ray Reedyk
Art Department and Special Effects Assistant: Lionel Huppie
"Chair Of No Cares"
Concept: Ogre
Design and Construction: Ray Reedyk
"Stilt-Man"
Concept: Ogre
Design and Construction: Robert Comer
Title Graphics and Art: Jim Cummins
Gaffer: Shawn Milstead
Key Grip: Sandy Hegyi
Focus Puller: Mark Zagar
Clapper Loader: Nick Watson
Camera Assistant: Mike Chisolm
Trainee Camera Assistant: Christina Kasperczyk
Castin: Sue Brouse
Craft Service: Darci John
Best Boy: Nat Chase
Studio Manager: Bruce Beaulac
Wardrobe Assistant: Greg Crow
Gregor's Costume Design: Nick Newcombe
Trainee Assitant Director: Vince Coates
Wrap Crew: Tom Benny, Ryan Monroe, Donald Riggan, Vince Coates,
Kevin O'Leary, Mark Volsin, Mark Westhauer
Cast:
Gregor: Ogre
Minister: D. Rudolph Goettel
Postman: cEvin Key
Heroin: Shannon Keir
Stockdoc 1: Rave
Bride: Corrine Iles
Groom: Kevin Lesminster
Corporate Slug: Derek Peakman
Landlord: Dalton Fisher
Stockdoc 2: Greg Sykes
Stockdoc 3: Louise Jackson
Lighting, Grip Equipment, and Studio Supplied by William F. White
Camera Equipment Supplied by P.P.L. Camera Corporation
Filmstock Supplied by AFGA/ Western Imperial Magnetics Ltd., Kimberly
Schneider
Costumes and Wardrobes Supplied by S&M Costumes Inc.
Catering Provided by Peppermint Pate, Carol Simick
Insurance Provided by Sedgewick James, Bob Adams
Stock Processing and Cleaning Provided by Gastwon Film Labs Inc., Dave
Harden
Stock Transfer Provided by Gastown Post and Transfer
Monitors Provided by Granada Canada, Ray Stanton
Edited Facilities Provided by Lapost!, Larry Huber
Special Thanks To The Following:
Shane Lunny Productions
Blue Wave Productions
Brenda Collins
Anna
Kathy Benjamin
Curtis Petersen
Sincere Thanks to Chas. Balum and Chopper for Chopping Off Our Heads
-I just watched Far Too Frail...wtf?
Apparently, after shooting the footage for Smothered Hope, the band
decided to do an intentionally bad video for Far Too Frail using the same
footage. The result is nothing less than hilarious.
-What fan made videos exist?
There are many videos made by fans, including Addiction, Deadlines (2
versions), laHuman8, The Choke, Harsh Stone White (live from
Spasmolytic single), (more to come). There are also alternate versions of the
Official videos, probably done by fans, including Smothered Hope and Dig
It. The Deadlines fan-made video was, for some unknown reason, included
along with the official videos on the Brap CD-ROM. (Any info for this
section would be greatly appreciated).
-What is this Too Dark Park backing video I hear about?
The backing film used by the band for the Too Dark Park tour has been
leaked out as a video bootleg. The bootleg includes the entire backing film
with the exception of Rash Reflection, along with the band's audio backing
tape. The video floating around for Rash Reflection is most probably the
backing film used for that song along with the audio of the album version of
the song. Many of the films have been set to the album version of the
corresponding song to make a "fan video" for the song.
-So is there a Last Rights backing video bootleg as well?
Yep. Its not as common as the TDP video, though. A good chunk of the
footage is from the Killing Game video shoot. Also, the audio on this
bootleg is just the entire Last Rights album and the first four songs off of
Too Dark Park, not live or backing tape material.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VII-Other Projects and Bands-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
=Subconscious Communications=
-What is Subconscious Communications?
Subconscious Communications began as a record label initiated by Dwayne
in order to release his aDuck 12" (though it was then named Subconscious
Records.) After the breakup of Skinny Puppy, cEvin and Dwayne revived it
as a label to encompass all of their new releases. Subconscious
Communications is not a subdivision or imprint of Nettwerk, Cleopatra, or
any other label. It is a label which uses those and other record labels
for distribution. Subconscious exists as a studio and remix/film score
team as well. Check out the web site at http://www.jps.net/ckey
-What is Paradigm Shift?
Paradigm Shift is a compilation of Subconscious Communications' projects
along with some other related tracks. Dwayne had intended to use the title
Paradigm Shift for one of his solo works in the future. It includes the tracks
Power and Touched from the original and out of print Subconscious 12"
released by Dwayne's solo project, aDuck, and Philth. While Philth's track
was called My Heart Has Been Touched By Christ on the original 12", the
music was not changed for this compilation, on which it is just called
Touched. All of the other material on this album is previously unreleased,
including tracks by Download, Doubting Thomas, The Tear Garden, Dead
Voices On Air, PlatEAU, Skinny Puppy, Kone, and aDuck. A second
compilation is in the works
=Download=
-What is Download? What are they doing now?
Download is a project which grew out of cEvin and Dwayne's jam sessions
during the recording of The Process. These jam sessions involved friends
like DJ Philth and Mark Spybey. Download, named after the track on Last
Rights, is now cEvin's full time project. 3 albums, two EPs, and a
Soundtrack have been released. The band lineup continues to morph, and
has included participation from Ken Marshall and Anthony Valcic (both
long time Puppy friends and engineers), Genesis P-Orridge (of Throbbing
Gristle and Psychic TV), and Ryan Moore (as a guest on the live tour).
Mark Spybey left the band in April. The lineup for the latest album, III,
includes cEvin, Philth, and Anthony Valcic. Two Eps are still apparently
planned for release. The first is called Moth and is named after a track on
the album. The second will be called Resilient and will feature remixes by
other artists including Autechre. Download planned to tour following this
release but it never materialized.
-What is this Charlie's Family soundtrack I've heard about?
Charlie's Family is film directed by Puppy friend Jim VanBebber (who directed
the Spasmolytic video). Download released a soundtrack in a limited edition of
2000 to help finance the film's release. The soundtrack was only available on
the bands '96 tour and through Nettwerk mail order. This soundtrack has been re-
released by Metropolis, with the music remaining identical but the packaging
changing to a digipak with a slightly altered cover.
-What is Chunkblower and where can I get the soundtrack?
Chunkblower was a film by Jim Vanbebber that was never made. Only a
trailer (which can be seen, in part, on the Brap CD-ROM) was produced.
The project was scrapped when the horror movie market fell apart. cEvin
and Dwayne were to have recorded the soundtrack, but since the film was
never made, the soundtrack was never released and likely never produced.
One cool aspect of the trailer is that it features Dwayne and Bill Leeb
as the burning victims. Dwayne is even referred to as Squelch, also the
name of a Hilt song and music publisher. Note that the trailer has been edited down slightly on 'Brap', which results in the two pairs of victims appearing to be the same two people. This is the source of some confusion as the blonde victim in one pair is
female, while that in the other pair is Dwayne.
-I heard Download released a track on a CD with some magazine, is this
true?
Yes, they released a track called 'I Still Ate Her' on a CD which came with
issue 47 of the European magazine Future Music, which contained an interview with cEvin.
- I heard that there was going to be a Coil vs. Download remix EP?
It seems that whoever spread this information jumped the gun a bit. Both
bands claim that while they have been approached to do it, it will not happen
anytime soon, if at all.
-Why is 'Outafter' dedicated to Brandon Lee?
When the Crow film was being made, Skinny Puppy were asked to
contribute the main theme to the soundtrack. cEvin and Dwayne composed
a track, and Brandon supposedly loved it. Ogre, however, thought the track
was too "technoy" to be Skinny Puppy. The track was left unreleased until it
finally appeared as 'Outafter' on the Download album The Eyes Of Stanley
Pain. It is interesting that both Dwayne and Brandon Lee died leaving work
unfinished which was completed and came "Out After" their deaths.
-What is that voice saying in The Eyes Of Stanley Pain?
This voice apparently popped up during a Download session and after
warping it they decided it was saying "Eyes Of Stanley Pain" and named the
album after it. Its an open playing field, however, and there are other
phrases spoken by the voice, so take the proverbial ball and run with it.
At least some of this voice comes from a TV advertisement for Sprint Canada.
-I heard that there was a bonus track on the promo of the Sidewinder EP,
is this true?
Sort of. The promo version of Sidewinder features a track called 'Sidewinder
Snake' which was not on the commercially available version of the EP. The
track uses un-cleared samples from a track by Peter Gabriel and therefore
was unable to be released commercially.
-This Papa Papa Mula CWM track sounds familiar...so does the name...
The 'Papa Papa Mula CWM' track on Microscopic is one of a few similarly
named tracks on various Mark Spybey projects. The "Papa Papa" name
refers to tracks in which he uses a particular rhythm pattern. 'Papa
Papa Bata Kolm' appears on Dead Voices On Air's Hafted Maul and 'Papa Papa
Repe Wax' appears on DVOA's Shap.
=aDuck=
-What is aDuck?
aDuck was Dwayne's solo project. aDuck released a now out of print 12"
called 'Power' (with a B-side by Philth) which is reprinted on Paradigm Shift
(see above). Another aDuck track, 'Burnout', appears on this compilation as
well. An aDuck track called 'Phenethylamine Backwash' was also included on
a compilation produced by FLA's Bill Leeb and Michael Balch.
=Doubting Thomas=
-What is Doubting Thomas?
Doubting Thomas is a side project of cEvin and Dwayne. The music was
best described as "soundtracks for movies that never existed". There was
an album, 'The Infidel', and companion single, 'Father Don't Cry', released
on WaxTrax!. Two other Doubting Thomas tracks appear on the compilation Paradigm
Shift. Also of note is that there is some other band called Doubting Thomas with
absolutely no relation to this project.
- What happened to the Father Don't Cry single? Where can I get it?
With WaxTrax!'s absorption by TVT, the single became out of print. It was
re-released by Metropolis including the two new tracks 'THC' and 'Majickal
Horse' as well as the track 'Come In Piece' which was a bonus track on the
CD version of 'The Infidel' only. The re-release also features completely new
artwork.
=The Tear Garden/The Legendary Pink Dots/Twilight Circus=
-What is Skinny Puppy's relation to The Tear Garden and The Legendary
Pink Dots? What are The Tear Garden doing now?
The Tear Garden is a Side Project of Skinny Puppy and The Legendary Pink
Dots. It began when cEvin, a huge fan of the Dots, sent them a photo
collage of all the LPD releases he was able to find. They began
corresponding, even before SP was born, and eventually, Edward Ka-Spel
(singer of LPD) toured with Skinny Puppy, opening for the band with his
solo performance. cEvin was his sound engineer for this tour, and this
resulted in the first Tear Garden sessions. These sessions (which involved
just cEvin and Edward, produced by Rave) gave birth to their self-titled
debut EP/cassette. One of the songs was a new version of the Skinny Puppy
track Centre Bullet, this time with Edward on vocals. The band reconvened
in '87, this time with Dwayne, Rave, Lee Salford, and even Ogre joining in
as guests, and recorded the album Tired Eyes Slowly Burning. After a long
hiatus the Tear Garden reformed, with the lineup of cEvin, Dwayne, Rave,
Ryan Moore, and the entire Pink Dots band, and recorded the album Last
Man To Fly and the EP Sheila Liked the Rodeo. Ryan, who had been
working with cEvin in Hilt, got along so well with the Pink Dots crew that
he has been a member of LPD ever since. Much of the Sheila Liked The
Rodeo EP was improvised in the studio when the band members were not
even aware that they were being recorded. A video for the Sheila Liked The
Rodeo track was made, directed by Bill Morrison, who also directed Killing
Game for Puppy. The band once again got together in late '95 and recorded
To Be An Angel Blind, The Crippled Soul Divide. Unfortunately this album
was recorded after Dwayne's death. It featured cEvin, Anthony Valcic, all
the Pink Dots including new member Niels Van Hornblower, and a variety
of guests. Mark Spybey appears on the track Malice Through The Looking
Glass. Two other tracks from these sessions appear on the Paradigm Shift
compilation. cEvin, Edward, and the rest of the dots are working on some
new material currently, and hope to tour soon.
In addition to The Tear Garden, cEvin appears on the LPD releases 9 Lives
To Wonder (which features a thank you to "undernourished small dogs")
and Chemical Playschool vol. 8/9 and 10. cEvin did the lighting for a recent
LPD show and joined them on drums for one track.
- What about Twilight Circus?
In addition to his participation in The Tear Garden, Ryan Moore also
accompanied Download on their '96 tour as a guest member. He played live
drums as well as some bass and synths. Ryan's solo project, Twilight Circus,
opened for Download on this tour, with Mark Spybey sometimes joining in
on Ryan's set. Both cEvin and Mark Spybey have taken part in some of
Ryan's more recent Twilight Circus shows.
=Hilt/The Flu/Lee Chubby King=
-What is Hilt?
Hilt is a punkish popish oddish band involving cEvin, Dwayne, Al Nelson,
Lee Salford, Don Harrison, Rave, Ryan Moore, and others. cEvin and Al "Chubby" Nelson were in a band together years ago called Illegal Youth (the name was originally No Exit, but when another band popped up with that name, they changed it). Al, brother of
a one of cEvin's fellow IIV members, later became Puppy's live film man. It is rumored that Hilt was born out of a dare by Nettwerk to record an album for on an insanely low budget. Hilt released two albums, two singles, and an EP. A video was made for t
he track 'Stoneman'. cEvin has said there's lots more Hilt material that may one day be released. A new Hilt release called The Worst Of Hilt was announced, but has since been put on hiatus.
-What is The Flu?
The Flu was an earlier band which grew into Hilt, featuring at least cEvin
and Al, and which only released a cassette album in Sweden. Copies of this
album are floating around as a bootleg. Some other cassette material has
recently popped up as a bootleg claiming to be a Flu album called Patsy : A
Collection of Absolute Insanity.
- What is Lee Chubby King?
Lee Chubby King was a little rap parody with cEvin, Dwayne, Al,
and Lee Salford. The name was a play on the band members names. "Lee"
Salford, Al "Chubby" Nelson, and cEvin a.k.a. "Kenny King". Lee
Chubby King only released a 12" single of the tracks Yo Pusface and
Yo Pusdub.
=PlatEAU=
-What is PlatEAU?
PlatEAU is a project featuring Philth, cEvin, and Anthony Valcic. The
concept for this band was apparently born out of the '96 Download tour,
which included stopovers in the hash bars of lovely Amsterdam. During the
North American leg of the tour, at a planned Orlando show, cEvin was busted for
Marijuana possession. This incident lead to the concept of a band for the
legalization of pot. An album called Music For Grassbars was recently released
and a double A-side single for the songs Dutch Flowers and White Widow is also
out now on both vinyl and CD. PlatEAU's debut track, Grasshopper, appears on the
Subconscious Compilation Paradigm Shift. Some PlatEAU material was debuted live
by Download at the '96/'97 New Years Eve show. The release of a new album called
Space Cake is imminent.
=Involution=
-Who or what is Involution?
Involution is a collaboration between Paris of Christian Death and cEvin Key.
The full extent of Key's involvement is currently an issue of debate. Some
sources say that he performed and composed much of the material, while other
evidence supports the belief that his involvement was merely in an editing and
production capacity. Either way, the self-titled album was recorded at
Subconscious Studios and co-produced by cEvin, Paris, and Bree.
=cEvin Key solo=
-I heard cEvin is releasing solo material. Is this true?
Yep. cEvin released an album called Music For Cats on Metropolis, which
featured a variety of guests familiar to the Subcon universe. cEvin also released a solo track called 'No More Ghosts' from '92 on a compilation called Resonance. Two more solo albums for Metropolis are forthcoming, the next rumoured to include vocals by
kArin of Collide.
=Cyberaktif /Front Line Assembly=
-What is Skinny Puppy's relation to Cyberaktif and Front Line Assembly?
Bill Leeb of FLA was a member of Skinny Puppy (under the name Wilhelm
Schroder), playing bass synth predominantly, during the Bites/Mind:TPI
eras and called it quits right before they went on tour for Mind:TPI.
Dwayne then replaced him. Bill, cEvin and Dwayne joined forces a few
years later and put out some records under the name Cyberaktif, including
an album (Tenebrae Vision) and two singles (Nothing Stays and Temper),
all released on WaxTrax! Blixa Bargel of Einstuerzende Neubauten also
participated in Cyberaktif. According to both Leeb and cEvin, this project
will never record another release.
=A Chud Convention=
-What is A Chud Convention?
A Chud Convention was a one-off project that involved SP (without Dwayne) and a;GRUMH. It basically involved the two bands screwing around in the studio while "coming down off a weird high". A 12" of these sessions was released, called Sorrow, containing
two tracks, 'Patient Sorrow' and 'Silent Sorrow'. Puppy, and possibly a;GRUMH as well, didn't want to release this due to its oddball nature and questionable sound quality, so the release was done by either a;GRUMH or a third party.
=Hell O' Death Day=
-What is Hell O' Death Day?
Hell O' Death Day was another one off project that Ogre and cEvin created
in order to open for Chris and Cosey during the early days of Skinny Puppy.
Some of the material for this project was released on the Remission and
Bites albums, including tracks like 'Film', 'Love', 'Falling', 'Social
Deception', and 'Centre Bullet'. cEvin says that there is a bunch of material
from these sessions which remains unreleased. Because this style was popular in
Europe at the time, many of these tracks were used on the European
versions of Bites, resulting in many different versions of the album with
many different tracks. All the tracks from all the different versions of Bites,
with the one exception of 'Cage', are compiled on the '93 CD release of
Bites.
=The Lung Goblins=
-What is The Lung Goblins?
The Lung Goblins is an as-of-yet unreleased project featuring cEvin,
Dwayne, and Philth. It was a jazzy style project which actually had Philth
on guitar and vocals. It may or may not ever see the light of day...
=Mark Spybey/Dead Voices On Air=
-What is Skinny Puppy's relation to Mark Spybey and Dead Voices On Air?
Mark Spybey's solo project, Dead Voices On Air, featured cEvin as a guest
from time to time. Mark Spybey was also a member of Download, but left
the band recently and is not involved with their new album. cEvin
participated in some of DVOA's live shows during which they played some
Download material. Download also played some DVOA material on their
'96 tour. Most recently, Mark and cEvin performed together with Ryan
Moore's Twilight Circus. DVOA covered Love In Vein for the Hymns of
the Warlock tribute album and will appear on the next Subcon compilation.
=Ministry/Revolting Cocks/PTP=
-What is Skinny Puppy's relation to Ministry, Revolting Cocks, and PTP?
Al Jourgensen of Ministry co-produced and performed on the Rabies album,
and Ogre did backing vocals and some writing on the Ministry album The
Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste. He also toured with Ministry a number
of times and appears in the live video and album In Case You Didn't Feel
Like Showing Up (he's the one in the "Fuck Art Let's Kill" T-shirt in some
shots, and a puffy hat in others). When Ogre was on tour with them,
Ministry often performed the Skinny Puppy track 'Smothered Hope'. One
version of this appears as the B-side to Ministry's Burning Inside 12".
According to cEvin, Jourgensen wanted Ogre to be a permanent vocalist for
his Revolting Cocks project at one point. Due to Ogre and Al's "falling out"
Ogre sang only on a few tracks. Ogre did tour with RevCo, however. The
first incarnation of Ogre's project W.E.L.T. involved Al and Ogre working
together as a duo. This lineup fell apart, but one track from this era, called
Noreen, is floating around in bootleg form. This track was later used by Al
as the basis for the Ministry song The Fall. Interestingly enough Ogre and
Al traded tattoos, Ogre getting a RevCo symbol and Al a W.E.L.T. symbol.
Al's project called PTP is also rumored to have recorded a track with Ogre
on vocals. It was called Show Me Your Spine and is used in the movie
Robocop but was never released (on a soundtrack or otherwise). The only
PTP music that was released, the single Rubber Glove Seduction, does not
feature Ogre. Ogre doesn't remember taking any part in this project at all,
but admits that the period was a drug haze so, who knows?
=Mutual Mortuary=
-What is Mutual Mortuary?
Mutual Mortuary was a collaboration between Ogre and Bill Leeb, back
when he was still a member of Puppy. Its not known exactly who did what,
Leeb claiming he did it all except the vocals, provided by Ogre, and Ogre
claiming that he did just about everything for Leeb. The project was
unfinished, with only two tracks having vocals, when Leeb sent it off to a
European record label. The project was rejected, but the label used the two
songs with vocals on their compilation Insane Music For Insane People.
According to Ogre, Leeb kept all the money from the project, resulting in
Ogre plastering posters all over Vancouver with the slogan W.E.L.T. :
Wilhelm Eats Lunch Today. The two published tracks are findable as
bootlegs. While it may be a typographical error, the project was listed as
Mutuel Mortuary on the original cassettes.
=W.E.L.T.=
-What is W.E.L.T.?
W.E.L.T is a long running name Ogre has used for a variety of projects,
none of which have ever been released. The name originated as Ogre's
reaction to Mutual Mortuary (see above). Later Ogre and Al Jourgensen
adopted it as their project together, this time referring to it as When
Everyone Learns the Truth. When Ogre and Al had a falling out, this project
disintegrated. One track from these sessions called Noreen appeared as a
bootleg, though. Al later revamped this track and used it as Ministry's 'The
Fall'. Ogre later revived W.E.L.T. as a project with Raven, from Killing
Joke. This lineup also fell apart when Raven went and got a publishing deal
based upon what was then just a verbal agreement. Raven apparently
wanted Ogre to do some vocals on already finished music, which Ogre
decided against. Most recently, W.E.L.T. became Ogre's post-Skinny Puppy
project with Mark Walk. An album was supposedly completed but never
appeared, reportedly due to legal troubles. (see above question on Ogre)
Ogre is now trying to revive this material and plans on redoing some of it
before releasing it. A different name for the project will probably be used as
a result of another band's use of the name Welt.
-I heard Ogre did the soundtrack to the Descent 2 computer game, is this
true?
Yes, at least partially. There is quite a bit of conflicting info on this
soundtrack. The most probable situation is that Ogre and Mark Walk only
did 2 tracks, tracks 4 and 7 respectively called Glut and Ratzez. Btw, since
track 1 is the game data, Ogre and Walk's two tracks, while they may be
tracks 4 and 7 on the CD, are songs 3 and 6 (take note, people with dubs...).
The rest of the tracks were apparently done by other artists. It should also
be noted that this soundtrack only appears on the CD-ROM version of
Descent 2. The floppy disk and downloadable demo versions feature a MIDI
sequence soundtrack not involving Ogre. Also, a new version of the game
was released called the 'Vertigo' version which featured a different
soundtrack with slightly different edits of both of Ogre's tracks. A collected version of the Descent CD-ROMs has been released as a 3 disc set. These do include the redbook audio data, however the audio portion of the third disc, which contains the sound
track for the 'Vertigo' version, has been shortened and one of the Ogre/Walk re-edits has been removed. The other three tracks are intact. The soundtrack to the Playstation version is supposedly different. Any definitive info on these other releases would
be greatly appreciated.
-I saw some band named Welt's album called Better Days. Is this Ogre's
project?
No. This is a completely unrelated band. As a result of this band, any future
W.E.L.T. material will have to bear a different name.
=Pigface=
-What are Skinny Puppy's relations to Pigface?
Pigface is a sort of super-group with a rotating lineup involving just about
everyone and their brother. Ogre has been a consistent contributor to Pigface,
doing vocals and touring with them. Pigface's "main guy" is Martin
Atkins who, being a friend of Ogre, was brought in to produce The Process
after Roli Mossiman was kicked out. cEvin and Dwayne did not get
along with Martin and eventually he was axed as well. It was through
Atkins that Ogre met Mark Walk, with whom he is/was working on
W.E.L.T. Although cEvin and Dwayne have been mentioned as onetime contributors to Pigface this does not appear to be true. Ogre does not appear on the latest Pigface release, A New High In Low, as he was concentrating on Rx at the time.
=Rx/Ritalin=
-What is Rx/Ritalin?
Rx is a new project of Ogre and Martin Atkins, originally titled Ritalin but
changed for legal reasons, which has released an album, Bedside Toxicology.
Future Rx material, including the possibility of singles from the album and
a tour, is planned.
=Raw Dog=
-What is Raw Dog?
Raw Dog is a project consisting of Ogre, Rave, and Rosie Ogilvie. So far only
one track has ever been released. Appearing on the Rivet Head Culture
compilation, it is entitled, aptly enough, 'Raw Dog'. It is highly possible
however that the track 'Ode To Groovy' from the In Defense Of Animals
compilation also originated as a Raw Dog track, despite the fact that it is
credited to Skinny Puppy. It is also quite possible that the Raw Dog track
results from work the trio did for an animal rights benefit, at which point the
project was known as Aftermath. Two additional titles, 'Stuffed Trigger' and
'False Gods', are registered to the trio with BMI, though the former appears to be an alternate title for 'Raw Dog'.
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"Looped a flaw rotates forever...unresolved"
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Written and maintained by Corey M. Goldberg and SKUMM