Current Members:
Bryan Erickson (a.k.a. Hexfix93, Disease Factory) - lead vocals, composition, guitar, lyrics, mixing, production, various
Early projects, early changes, and first albums (1990–1995)
In the early 1990s, Erickson and Grigory, both residents of Colorado, brought together their shared interest in creating music to record a series of demos. With the addition of Gary Slaughter and Chris Workman, the group attempted several bands, including Disease Disco Factory, a parody of then-popular Dance group C+C Music Factory. Following a turbulent period for Erickson and Slaughter, Workman left the group. Slaughter and Erickson experimented with two new side-projects, Cyber Christ and Vortex. Cyber Christ explored a harsh and melancholy sound that was a sharp contrast to the group's other projects. When Erickson discovered that the term "Cyber Christ" had been used in the 1992 film The Lawnmower Man, he renamed the band Velvet Acid Christ in honor of a bad acid trip. The Vortex project was merged into Velvet Acid Christ to form one body of work.
In 1994, Workman returned to assist with the band's self-produced gothic-styled demo tape, Fate. Given encouraging response from friends, the band followed up with other self-produced albums, 1994's Pestilence, a dance-oriented album, and 1995's Neuralblastoma, a harder-sounding album.
Erickson, along with friends and minor contributors Steve Bird and Dan Olson, started the brief-lived record label Electro Death Trip (EDT) Records to better promote these recordings. In 1995, the three began distributing hand-made CD copies of Fate, Pestilence, and Neuralblastoma for resale in local music shops.
Label interest, touring, and a troubled rise (1996–2000)
Slaughter and Workman temporarily left the band during the first half of 1996 as Erickson continued the project alone, handing out copies of Velvet Acid Christ's recordings to industry representatives, including musician Bill Leeb of industrial pioneer Front Line Assembly. Leeb passed the music to Thorsten Stroht, a media promoter with European label Off-Beat Records. Off-Beat A&R negotiated a deal with the band.
For their first Off-Beat release, the group submitted 1996's Church of Acid, a compilation of selected tracks from Velvet Acid Christ's first three albums with an additional two new tracks, Disflux and Futile. Church of Acid was well received in Europe, and Futile became a regularly played track in many nightclubs across the continent. In 1997, United States label Pendragon Records released Church of Acid in America, though the two new tracks were removed due to a lack of trademark clearance for television samples used in the songs.
The band's next album, Calling Ov the Dead, was rejected by Off-Beat for not sounding edgy enough, prompting Slaughter's permanent departure. With the assistance of Bird and Olson, the band addressed the label's concerns and released Calling Ov the Dead in late 1997, with American distribution following through Pendragon in 1998. In the process, Erickson had accumulated a substantial financial debt.
With a line-up consisting of Erickson, Stroht and German musician Ingo Beitz, the band toured Europe in 1998 with Off-Beat label-mate Suicide Commando, which attracted the attention of Metropolis Records, the largest industrial label in United States. The parent label of Pendragon, Metropolis distributed the album Neuralblastoma, as a partnership that would endure.
Velvet Acid Christ spent the majority of 1999 in the studio, first collaborating with Germany's Funker Vogt on a remix EP entitled Velvet Acid Christ Vs Funker Vogt: The Remix Assault, then shifting to Velvet Acid Christ's next full-length recording, Fun With Knives. With Workman an occasional contributor, Erickson sought production assistance on Fun With Knives from the bands Luxt and 4th New Army. Fun with Knives, released by Metropolis and new Off-Beat sub-label dependent, became the band's best-selling album. Sales were propelled by the singles Decypher and Fun with Drugs, and by the track Slut, which featured vocals from Luxt's Anna Christine.
In spite of the success of the band, stress had led Erickson into depression and increased drug abuse, which channeled into the creation of the band's next album, Twisted Thought Generator. Simultaneously, the band toured Europe with industrial acts Project X and Stromkern and toured the United States and Canada with bands Din_Fiv and Haujobb. The line-up of the band during this period was unstable. Workman, citing a conversion to Christianity, resigned from the band with a request that his name be retracted from all previous albums. The first leg of the European tour consisted of Erickson, Bird and Stroht; the second leg, Erickson and Olson. The North American tour was performed by Erickson, Stroht and drummer Paul Lipman. With various contributors, Erickson completed Twisted Thought Generator. Due to lingering disputes, he withdrew the band from Dependent Records and submitted the album to Metropolis.
A change of pace, new early material, and beyond (2001– present)
Erickson placed Velvet Acid Christ on a short hiatus in 2001, as he abandoned his dependence on drugs in favour of exercise and a vegan raw foodist diet. Newly clean, Erickson created the 2003 album Hex Angel: Utopia/Dystopia. Though critical response was mixed, Hex Angel: Utopia/Dystopia ranked #1 on Germany's Deutsche Alternative Charts (DAC) for four weeks after its release, and the album's single Pretty Toy reached #18 on the Billboard Alternative Chart during the same year. The album also marked the band's short-lived return to Dependent Records.
Erickson spent 2004 releasing and reissuing some of Velvet Acid Christ's earliest material. With the four-volume compilation series Between the Eyes, the band published a collection of its singles and B-sides, then followed with subsequent re-releases of Fate (Vol. 2), Pestilence (Vol. 3), and Neuralblastoma (Vol. 4). The band also offered free MP3 downloads of Dimension 8 and Oblivion Interface on its website until early 2005. Dimension 8, which had been available as a hidden bonus on Twisted Thought Generator, and Oblivion Interface (informally known as Between the Eyes, Vol. 5) provided fans with previously unheard work from the Cyber Christ-Vortex era of 1991–1994.
In 2005, Erickson collaborated with guitarist Todd Loomis on a new album, Lust for Blood, which was released on September 26, 2006. With Lust for Blood, the crew labored intensively to create a new overall sound while maintaining the band's original characteristics. Following its release, Lust for Blood ranked at the top of Germany's DAC for four weeks; the album's single release, Wound, ranked on the DAC's singles chart for eight weeks and held the #1 position for four weeks.
In 2009, Erickson began to create the next LP with minimal input from Loomis this time when he was working on his project The Twilight Garden. The result was The Art of Breaking Apart, released October 27, 2009. This LP was a tribute to bands like Current 93 and Death in June and brought VAC many new fans while making the others angry at the new direction of the music.
In 2010–2011, Bryan Erickson teamed up with William Anderson of Louisiana. William did a ton of sampling, and Bryan made a bunch of VAC B-sides that turned into Toxic Coma tracks. The project had a revolving door of members, again Bryan being the main constant. They released a LP entitled Satan Rising under Toxic Coma on Metropolis Records. It fused the techno sound of Fun With Knives and the brutal black humor of Toxic Coma. Erickson then began to write more music for future VAC LPs.
In October 2012, Velvet Acid Christ released their tenth LP entitled Maldire. The release marked a return to the dark electronic sound. Erickson formed a live band and toured extensively (2012-2014) to support the album. The latest album entitled Subconscious Landscapes was released October 28, 2014. A remastered Greatest Hits compilation was released by Metropolis Records on May 6, 2016.
Discography:
Studio Albums
1994 - Fate
1994 - Pestilence
1995 - Neuralblastoma
1997 - Calling Ov the Dead
1999 - Fun With Knives
2000 - Twisted Thought Generator
2003 - Hex Angel (Utopia/Dystopia)
2006 - Lust for Blood
2009 - The Art of Breaking Apart
2012 - Maldire
2014 - Subconscious Landscapes
Compilations / Demos / EPs / Singles
1992 - Oblivion Interface (demo re-released in 2004)
1993 - Dimension 8 (demo re-released in 2000)
1996 - Church of Acid (1994-1995 compilation)
1998 - Neuralblastoma (1994-1995 compilation)
1999 - Fun With Razors (remix EP)
1999 - Decipher (maxi-single)
1999 - Fun With Drugs (maxi-single)
1999 - The Remix Wars: Strike 4: Funker Vogt vs. Velvet Acid Christ (remix EP)
2001 - Dial 8 (maxi-single)
2003 - Pretty Toy (maxi-single)
2004 - Between the Eyes Vol. 1 (singles compilation)
2004 - Between the Eyes Vol. 2 (re-release of Fate)
2004 - Between the Eyes Vol. 3 (re-release of Pestilence)
2004 - Between the Eyes Vol. 4 (re-release of Neuroblastoma)
2006 - Wound (maxi-single)
2009 - Caustic Disco (maxi-single)
2016 - Greatest Hits (remastered compilation)
Dead Flesh
Velvet Acid Christ Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've seen the world through your eyes
I don't watch tv twenty-four hours a day
And buy the products they sell
I don't eat meat and I don't wear leather
I don't give a fuck about torturing animals
I don't care about your twisted smile
I don't care about your social style
Live like your parents
You wear leather, you think you're cool
You think you know how to live
But you're such a fool
Making animals suffer
Eating dead flesh
I know what you feel
I know what you dream
I know where you go
When you want to be
Alone in the night
All by yourself
To feel sorry
For nothing but your own problems
Torture all these insects
And torture everything
For your cosmetic purposes
For your ugly style
Dress up, to look cool
To go to a club
So you can impress all their friends
To make yourself feel good
But don't think too much
I know politics hurts your mind
What a waste of my time
To come here with you
Watch you fucking dance
You make me sick, with all this shit
I don't know what to do
Maybe I should kill you
It's the only solution
To make this world better
To make anything fair at all
But you won't change, you will never change
You listen to the state, the government
The school systems, and your parents
So fuck you
I never want to be around you
And your sick disease, and your dead trees
And your weak minded dreams
Of false romantic states
The lyrics of Velvet Acid Christ's song Dead Flesh describe a strong opposition to mainstream society, particularly focusing on materialism, consumerism, and animal cruelty. The singer of the song clearly feels superior to those who engage in these behaviors and beliefs, stating that they are "unique" and "not like you." The song further suggests that the character understands the motives of those who engage in such behavior, expressing knowledge of their dreams, desires, and solitary moments. The song then takes a sinister twist, with the character suggesting that killing those who engage in this behavior may be the only solution to making the world a better place. Overall, the lyrics of Dead Flesh express a disdain for conformity and a desire for a more ethically and morally sound society.
Line by Line Meaning
No, I don't give a fuck about you and your friends
I have no interest in you or your companions.
I've seen the world through your eyes
I understand your perspective on the world.
I don't watch tv twenty-four hours a day
I don't indulge in television all day long.
And buy the products they sell
I don't purchase the goods advertised on TV.
I don't eat meat and I don't wear leather
I am against the use of animal products.
I don't give a fuck about torturing animals
The cruelty inflicted on animals disgusts me.
I don't care about your twisted smile
Your fake smile does not impress me.
I don't care about your social style
Your popular image does not interest me.
I'm unique, not like you
I am an individual unlike you.
Live like your parents
You follow the same living pattern as your parents.
You wear leather, you think you're cool
You think wearing leather is fashionable.
You think you know how to live
You believe you are well-versed in the art of living.
But you're such a fool
However, that is completely untrue.
Making animals suffer
You are the cause of animal torture.
Eating dead flesh
You consume meat, which is dead animal flesh.
I know what you feel
I understand your emotions.
I know what you dream
I am aware of your aspirations.
I know where you go
I am aware of the places you visit.
When you want to be
You visit alone at night,
Alone in the night
To be without the company of others.
All by yourself
To have no company.
To feel sorry
To pity oneself.
For nothing but your own problems
To feel self-pity for one's own issues.
Torture all these insects
You torment and harm small insects.
And torture everything
You inflict pain on anything you desire.
For your cosmetic purposes
You harm creatures for your own benefit.
For your ugly style
To maintain your unappealing fashion statement.
Dress up, to look cool
To put on specific clothing to appear fashionable.
To go to a club
To attend a night club.
So you can impress all their friends
To gain admiration from a group of people.
To make yourself feel good
To feel satisfied with oneself.
But don't think too much
Don't overthink your life choices.
I know politics hurts your mind
The world of politics causes you distress.
What a waste of my time
It is a waste of time to converse with you.
To come here with you
To meet and converse with you is a waste of my time.
Watch you fucking dance
I observe you while you let loose on the dance floor.
You make me sick, with all this shit
Your actions and behavior are nauseating to me.
I don't know what to do
I am at a loss of what to do with you.
Maybe I should kill you
I consider ending your life.
It's the only solution
Killing you seems to be the best solution.
To make this world better
In my opinion, your absence would make the world a better place.
To make anything fair at all
Your death would bring justice to the world.
But you won't change, you will never change
You live in a stagnant state and will never change.
You listen to the state, the government
You blindly follow authority figures.
The school systems, and your parents
You let the school system and your parents dictate your life.
So fuck you
I'd rather not associate with you.
I never want to be around you
I do not wish to be near you.
And your sick disease, and your dead trees
Your twisted ways and dead plans are infectious.
And your weak minded dreams
Your naive aspirations are foolish.
Of false romantic states
Your fabricated beliefs of the romantic state of humanity.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Julian Cennamo
on Pain
This is a song about coping with failed relationships and a broken home. The lyricist has been triggered by a life event- most likely a breakup. The event is particularly tragic because it brings back haunting memories of fear and abandonment experienced in childhood.