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)
Revolution 101
Velvet Acid Christ Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Of man and machine
A technological thriller
Based on a psycho killer
Into the dream on the pretty tv screen
You scream in fear, 'cause the end is near
Psychological warfare on the masses, hysteria
Anarchy is the true freedom
To overcome the flaws of this system
This system
Media lies to help hypnotize you
Digital tension
Right wing fascist
Backwards
Mentally deficient
Masses of people
Believe the rhetoric of the churches
And the state, and in the media
Where they believe
Peace is war, love is hate
Yes means no, and segregate
A life is a dime or a quota
For the ruling class
Johnny, take your gun
To the center, to the square
Raise hell bring it all down
Revolution 101
Emergency, no plight, no cause to be free
Forever and ever
A system of a stupid laboring class
That believes all the crap
That they read from the mainstream
And the right wing
For separation, oppression of anyone
The opening lines of Velvet Acid Christ's song "Revolution 101" describe a world in which the line between man and machine has become blurred, leading to a kind of "psycho driven insanity" that has taken hold of society. The song goes on to depict a technological thriller centered around a "psycho killer", who broadcasts his deeds to the masses through the "pretty tv screen". The result is a sense of fear and hysteria that grips the population, leading to "psychological warfare" against them.
But despite the chaos, the song argues that anarchy is the only path to true freedom. The system is flawed and needs to be overturned; revolution is the only way to achieve this. Yet the path to revolution is not an easy one - it requires "pavement" and planning, rather than simply tearing everything down. And even once the old system is gone, there are still dangers to be faced: the media, the state, and the church all have their own forms of propaganda that can mislead and divide people.
Overall, "Revolution 101" is a call to arms for those who see the flaws in the current system and are willing to fight back against it, even if it means risking everything.
Line by Line Meaning
Psycho driven insanity
The irrationality of being consumed by the norms of society
Of man and machine
A society controlled by both humans and technology
A technological thriller
A society that is exciting and suspenseful due to its reliance on technology
Based on a psycho killer
A society that is built on a foundation of irrationality
Into the dream on the pretty tv screen
Society's obsession with a false reality presented on the television
You scream in fear, 'cause the end is near
The realization that society is on the brink of collapse and the fear that comes with it
Psychological warfare on the masses, hysteria
The manipulation of the public through psychological tactics and the resulting panic
Anarchy is the true freedom
Belief that true freedom lies in the absence of organized government
But the path needs pavement
The notion that the path towards anarchy needs structure to be successful
To overcome the flaws of this system
To eliminate the imperfections of the current government system
This system
Referring to the existing system of government
Media lies to help hypnotize you
The deceit of the media to brainwash the general public
Digital tension
Tension caused by the widespread use of technology
Right wing fascist
Extreme right-wing political beliefs that trump individual freedoms
Backwards
Referring to a society that is not progressing, but rather regressing
Mentally deficient
A society that lacks the intellectual capacity to make wise decisions
Masses of people
The majority of people in society
Believe the rhetoric of the churches
The widespread belief in religious institutions and their teachings
And the state, and in the media
The trust the general public places in the government and the media
Where they believe
The general public's perception
Peace is war, love is hate
A society that perverts the true meanings of important values
Yes means no, and segregate
A society that confuses the meaning of basic language
A life is a dime or a quota
A society where life is devalued and commodified
For the ruling class
Society is structured to benefit the wealthy and powerful elites
Johnny, take your gun
Advocating for a revolution against the government
To the center, to the square
Referring to going to a central location to protest the government
Raise hell bring it all down
The desire to dismantle the current government system
Revolution 101
Education on the concepts of revolution
Emergency, no plight, no cause to be free
A society that is not in immediate danger, but desires to be freed from oppression
Forever and ever
The need for lasting change
A system of a stupid laboring class
A system that relies on an unintelligent and overworked working class
That believes all the crap
The mindset of the working class - believing in propaganda and lies fed to them by the government
That they read from the mainstream
The information and ideas presented by the dominant social and political group
And the right wing
The influence of right-wing political ideology
For separation, oppression of anyone
The use of propaganda and lies to separate and oppress certain groups of people
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Quixotic Dragon
Sometimes a song is just a song 😂
Jeneffer
<3
Quixotic Dragon
A technological thriller all based on a psycho killer.
SuperTrancend
come with me if you want to live