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)
Haunted
Velvet Acid Christ Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Open eyes blinded to the obvious
Right wing twitch spreading the disease
Of idiocies conquering with ease
Tonight tonight I slowly bleed
Haunted by the will of unease
Shattered by the sound of your screams
Gasping for air, holding your throat, choking, feeling starts to distort
Propaganda for future wars
Nothing ever settles the score
No relief for ignorant stress
Mindless fiends under duress
Vomit from your crooked mouth
Scratch and claw, you can't get out
The mocking voices never end
Pointless views are such a trend
Wish I was a holy savior
I'd turn my back on all of you
Wish you were a different person
One that wasn't so confused
Vomit from your crooked mouth
Scratch and claw, you can't get out
The mocking voices never end
Pointless views are such a trend
Wish I was a cruel infection
Killing off most all of you
Wish I were a rotting corpse
Haunting all of those like you
Tonight, tonight, tonight, I watch you bleed
Tonight, tonight, tonight, I hear you scream
Tonight, tonight, tonight, I watch you plea
Tonight, tonight, tonight, I watch you bleed
Tonight, tonight, tonight, I hear you scream
The lyrics of Velvet Acid Christ's song, "Haunted," express disillusionment and frustration with society, particularly with the ignorance and intolerance of the political right. The singer denounces treachery and abstinence, warning that they have consequences that are often overlooked. He bemoans the spread of "idiocies" that conquer with ease, blinding people to the obvious reality.
The chorus of the song describes the singer's despair and his feeling of being haunted: "Tonight, tonight I slowly bleed / Haunted by the will of unease / Shattered by the sound of your screams / Tonight, tonight I watch you plea." He witnesses the suffering of others, and the imagery is graphic, with gasping for air, choking, and feeling that starts to distort. The propaganda for future wars is criticized as settling no scores and only adding to the "ignorant stress" that plagues the people.
In the last two stanzas of the song, the singer expresses a wish for himself and for those he despises. He wishes he were a "holy savior," but then he admits he would turn his back on all of them. He expresses his loathing by wishing he were a "cruel infection" killing off most of them, or a "rotting corpse" haunting those like them. The repetition of the lines in the chorus creates a haunting effect, as if the singer is stuck in a nightmare from which he can't wake up.
Line by Line Meaning
Treachery abstinence in consequence
Choosing to withhold oneself from doing wrong, but ultimately facing the negative effects of past wrongdoing
Open eyes blinded to the obvious
Realizing the truth, but being unable to see or accept it
Right wing twitch spreading the disease
Conservative beliefs causing harm and influencing others to do the same
Of idiocies conquering with ease
Stupid ideas and actions prevailing and overpowering common sense and intelligence
Tonight tonight I slowly bleed
Suffering emotionally and feeling drained
Haunted by the will of unease
Being tormented by feelings of discomfort and apprehension
Shattered by the sound of your screams
Destroyed by the pain and anguish expressed by others
Tonight, tonight I watch you plea
Witnessing someone beg for mercy or forgiveness
Gasping for air, holding your throat, choking, feeling starts to distort
Experiencing difficulty breathing and physical distortion due to fear or danger
Propaganda for future wars
Biased and misleading information used to influence people towards violent conflicts
Nothing ever settles the score
No event or circumstance leads to a resolution or end to the conflict
No relief for ignorant stress
Being unable to alleviate stress or anxiety caused by lack of knowledge or understanding
Mindless fiends under duress
People acting without reason or thought, while feeling extreme pressure or distress
Vomit from your crooked mouth
Disgusting and dishonest words being spewed from one's mouth
Scratch and claw, you can't get out
Attempting to escape or fight, but being unable to do so
The mocking voices never end
Being ridiculed and insulted constantly without relief
Pointless views are such a trend
Holding beliefs that have no real value or significance, and being popularized as a result
Wish I was a holy savior
Wishing to have the power to help and save others with good intentions
I'd turn my back on all of you
Choosing not to help or involve oneself with others, due to the belief that they are beyond saving
Wish you were a different person
Hoping that others could be better versions of themselves, with less ignorance and malice
One that wasn't so confused
Wishing that others had a clearer understanding of themselves and the world around them
Wish I was a cruel infection
Desiring to have the power to harm and destroy others without regard for their well-being
Killing off most all of you
Wishing to cause great harm and suffering to many people
Wish I were a rotting corpse
Wishing to be removed from the world and existing as a decaying and worthless entity
Haunting all of those like you
Terrorizing and tormenting others similar to oneself
Tonight, tonight, tonight, I watch you bleed
In the present moment, observing others suffering and in pain
Tonight, tonight, tonight, I hear you scream
In the present moment, hearing others in pain and distress
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC, O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: KERRY JAMES FURLONG, MICHAEL ROBERT HALL
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.