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The story of Front 242 begins in 1981 when Daniel B. exposes his ideas on a first single : ” Body to Body “. Patrick Codenys (keyboards) and Jean-Luc De Meyer (vocals) joined the band for the first album “Geography” in (1982), followed by Richard 23 (singer/performer) in 1983.
While developing their own independent recording and graphic design units, as well as a unique stage presence, the band gradually gained a wider audience in Europe, touring and releasing records of their brand new genre which they soon named “Electronic Body Music (aka EBM)”. EBM is a collage and synthesis of music and sounds, recycled from media or television, often reflected or enriched by other artistic disciplines. In 1984, Front 242 signed to the Wax Trax label in Chicago. The EP “Take One” (1984) was their first release in the United States, and their success there was massive.
By gaining experience in major European festivals and American shows from 1985 onwards, the band established itself as a very powerful live band, and EBM spread to Europe. The albums “No Comment” (1985), “Official Version” (1987) and “Front By Front” (1988, including HeadHunter and Welcome to Paradise) sealed Front 242’s international breakthrough and its status as an innovative and pioneering band.
Front 242’s vision continued to evolve into a more complete maturity after the acclaimed album “Tyranny For You” (1991). The next two albums, “06:21:03:11 Up Evil” and “05:22:09:12 Off” (1993) broke with the classic Front formula to introduce new singers, live guitars and drums, and a new producer, Andy Wallace (Nirvana, Sonic Youth). This was the beginning of a redistribution of roles and rules within the band, while retaining the scope of invention and radical attitude that accompanied Front 242’s music.
During a four-year hiatus (1993-1997), the band released the albums “Live Code”, recorded during their last world tour, and “Mut@ge – Mix@ge”, a compilation album featuring innovative mixes of Front 242 songs by The Prodigy, The Orb, Underworld, Rico Conning and others.
The four original members of the band reunited in 1997 and, with German drummer Tim Kroker, began performing live again. Several live albums followed, capturing the energy and reflecting the many changes made by the live versions.
After a long absence from the studio, the EP “Still & Raw” and the album “Pulse” were released in 2003. These records, based on the aesthetics of the 70s and 80s. Here, Front 242 recreates the original sound that was at the center of his art, enriched by 20 years of experience: analog technologies and vintage machines pulsing in deconstructed tracks where emotion and research are still conveyed by a purely electronic attitude.
Having re-released their catalog in newer and enriched versions, and having broken with the idea that every live campaign must necessarily be preceded by a new album, Front 242 continues today to play around the world with the same intensity, with the same success as ever, followed and cheered by crowds of loyal fans celebrating the band’s uniqueness and recognized integrity(.source : reflektor)
