In 1997 Andy LaPlegua established the project, "Icon of Coil", which was pr… Read Full Bio ↴In 1997 Andy LaPlegua established the project, "Icon of Coil", which was primarily a concept built around a logo, graphic design and music. Soon after the inception, the music turned out to be the most important part of the concept and LaPlegua invited Sebastian R. Komor, who he had worked with before on the project "Sector 9", (now called "Moonitor") in 1996, to work with him on the project as a live member. After just a couple of gigs and the release of IoC’s first single, "Shallow Nation", Seb became a full-time member.

"Shallow Nation", released early in 2000, sold out the first thousand copies after only two weeks in the stores, which resulted in a deal with the Norwegian record label Tatra Records. Around that time Tatra Records released the compilation "Sex, Goth & Electronics", to which IoC contributed an exclusive version of their song "Repeat It".

Before they started work on their second release IoC did programming for the "Apoptygma Berzerk" track "Starsign". Soon afterwards, they travelled to Germany, with live member Jon Holm, to support Apoptygma on their "Welcome to Earth tour 2000" at gigs in Frankfurt, Cottbus and Leipzig before going back to Norway to play together at Rockefeller in Oslo.

Audiences seemed to enjoy Icon of Coil's energetic and melodious sound fused with Andy's hypnotic voice and the band's success grew. "One Nation Under Beat" debuted in the top 20 on the DAC-chart (Deutsch Alternative Chart), stayed on the chart for eight weeks and peaked at number three.

In late spring of 2000 at a gig in Uddevalla, Sweden, Christian Lund joined the band as a live-member and went on stage with Andy and Seb for the first time. Along with being the vocalist for his "En Route" project, Christian had a background from a melodious EBM Fredrikstad-band called "Elected By Fear" where he played together with Fredrik Hansen from "Echo Image" (who also played at that gig) and Marius Johnsen from "Centravibe".

After the release of IoC's first full-length "Serenity Is The Devil" in November 2000, which reached number three on the DAC-chart, the band went to Germany together with "Beborn Beton". With nine gigs, positive feedback from the audience and very good reviews on the debut album, IoC gained a substantial following in the synth/industrial scene.

Shortly afterward, the album crossed the Atlantic and was released in North America by Metropolis Records. On March 29th, 2001, the band itself followed and boarded a plane to Chicago. They were on their own in a foreign country and on a tight budget. The band flew from city to city, slept in hotels and sometimes even in the homes of their promoters. The song "Situations Like These" from the (then) forthcoming "Seren EP" was played live for the first time to an incredibly enthusiastic and energetic American audience, which made the tour a big success. Then after playing at "Slimelight" and "Astoria II" (Electrofest) in London, the guys had a short break before they faced a festival-filled summer in Europe.

The summer kicked off with a successful show in Leipzig, Germany, at "Wave-Gothic Treffen". The following festivals included "CSD", "Zillo Festival", "Xtreaktor Festival", "Eurorock", "Infest" and ended at "M'era Luna" where the trio did a hard-hitting performance in the Hangar.

"Situations Like These" became a big club hit and the band was ready for a second tour (this time in a Nightliner touring bus) of North America with "VNV Nation". The leg began in Chicago on the 16th of November at a packed Vic Theatre, which set the standard for the rest of the 19 shows. Icon of Coil, VNV Nation and the rest of the crew continued up to Canada, down the east coast to Florida, through Texas to the West coast and Hollywood, where they did their 15th show in front of about 900 people at the Palace. The four-week tour ended in Edmonton, Canada with a great show and a huge after-party.

During their tours, the band found the time to write material for their April 2002 sophomore album, "The Soul Is In The Software", which stayed at number one on the DAC for a several weeks. IoC then performed at two more festivals: "The Dark Jubilee Festival" in London; and later as the Sunday-headliner for "Synthpop Goes The World" in Toronto, Canada, which turned out to be a very good but warm weekend and concert.

Icon of Coil came a long way in a short amount of time. For 2004 their third album, "Machines Are Us", continued the trend with pummeling beats, sympathetic vocals, anthem-like melodies, and sweeping synths. Careful not to be outdone or forgotten, Icon of Coil released "Uploaded And Remixed", which featured brand new mixes of songs from their first two records and two exclusive tracks, at the tail end of 2004.

Since then the band has been on indefinite hiatus, only performing a handful of live shows around the world, as Andy has been concentrating on his new band "Combichrist".

On a short reunion tour of Australia in November, 2011 the 3 members rekindled old friendships and the creative chemistry from the past came raging back. The single "PerfectSex" was released in August 2012, together with the announcement that the band is working on a new album.

Official MySpace page: www.myspace.com/officialiconofcoil
Official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/IconOfCoilOfficial

The Soul Is in the B-Side
Icon of Coil Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Feel your night burn
Hunt me down
It will defend you
Turn to years
Meet the pain
Breathing concrete
At the sky
Neglecting the sun

Remember feelings
The things you did
Beneath the answers
Deep within
You'll hear my screams
The final silence
We pull the strings
Now download the end

Download the end
Download the end
Endload the down
Download end
The soul is in
The software in
In the beat
The soul is in the software

Remember feelings
Breathing concrete
Meet the pain
Feel your night burn
It will defend you
Hunt me down
Turn to years
Deep within
At the sky
The things you did
Neglecting the sun
Beneath the answers
The final silence
We pull the strings
Now download the end
You'll hear my screams

Download the end
Download the end
Endload the down
Download end
The soul is in
The software in
In the beat
The soul is in the software

Download the end
Download the end
Download the end
Download the end
Download the end
Download the end

Download the end
Down the download end

Overall Meaning

Icon of Coil's song "The Soul Is in the B-Side" is an intriguing exploration of technology and emotion. The opening stanza is a call to action, urging the listener to "feel your night burn" and to "hunt me down." The singer suggests that this will somehow "defend you." It's unclear who or what is being hunted, but the implication is that this pursuit will somehow lead to protection or safety.

The next lines become more abstract, with references to pain and concrete, and a suggestion that the singer is neglecting the sun. All of these images seem to relate to the ways in which technology and urbanization can distance us from our emotions and our natural world. The singer then exhorts the listener to "remember feelings" and to look deep within themselves to find "the things you did / beneath the answers." These lines seem to suggest that true understanding and growth come from looking within, rather than relying on external sources of knowledge or comfort.

The chorus of the song is repetitive and catchy, with the phrase "download the end" repeated several times. This seems to suggest that the singer is urging the listener to embrace the idea of technological progress and innovation, perhaps even to the point of "downloading" the end of their current state of being. The closing lines of the song include references to "pull[ing] the strings" and to hearing the singer's screams, adding a touch of menace to the overall tone.

Line by Line Meaning

Feel your night burn
Experience the intense, passionate sensation of your night being set ablaze

Hunt me down
Pursue and capture me

It will defend you
By capturing me, you will protect yourself

Turn to years
Time passes and changes us all

Meet the pain
Confront the suffering and anguish that exists within you

Breathing concrete
Feeling suffocated and trapped by your surroundings and circumstances

At the sky
Looking upward and contemplating existence and the universe beyond

Neglecting the sun
Ignoring the warmth and light that could bring happiness and hope

Remember feelings
Recall and embrace the emotions and sensations that make us human

The things you did
The actions and choices you have made in life

Beneath the answers
Guided by unknown factors and hidden knowledge