Fashion Bomb

Fashion Bomb takes undead Chicago industrial to a Disturbed concert on Devils To Some, Angels To Others, a generous metallic biscuit for the wandering black sheep of long-fled Al Jourgensen. “Christ Puncher” waxes blasphemy on a Rob Zombie rehash while the digital “Low” hangs from radio-friendly hooks. Fogies in the know of Sins Of The Flesh-era Sister Machine Gun might wonder what’s the big whoop, but for youngsters dressing up for Halloween in the dead of winter, look no further.

(www.fashionbomb.net)

– Mike Meyer - Illinois Entertainer

Fashion Bomb aus Chicago sollten nicht zu sehr Wert auf die Optik legen, denn dafür ist die Musik ihres Debüt-Albums „Devils To Some, Angels To Others“ viel zu gut. Sicher haben sich gerade Acts die über ein starkes Image verfügen schon immer gut verkauft, dafür bürgen schon Künstler von Alice Cooper über Kiss bis hin zu Marilyn Manson. Und gerade von letzt genanntem, mit dem man auch schon die Bühne teilte, ist die Band nicht nur sicht-, sondern auch hörbar beeinflusst. Trotzdem ist ein Satz wie „If models were rock stars, you would have Fashion Bomb.” etwas über das Ziel hinausgeschossen. Neben Manson zählen bei der elementaren Industrial-Schlagseite auch Nine Inch Nails sowie Tool zu den Vorbildern des Fünfers. Leider hat die Band mir nur einen Promo-Sampler mit vier Songs des insgesamt 14 Tracks umfassenden Debüts zugesandt. Diese, namentlich „SS”, “Low”, “ChristPuncher” (extrem hartes Stück!!) und “Mold” reichen allerdings um das Potenzial der Combo erkennen zu können, denen nicht umsonst seitens Hollywood Records bereits ein Development Deal unterbreitet wurde und die neben Marilyn auch schon Iggy Pop, die Genitorturers oder Henzyl und Gretyl supportet haben. Zwar ist die Musik nicht ganz so exzellent wie die der Londoner Avoidance Of Doubt (vgl. an anderer Stelle der Import-Sektion), aber dafür um einiges härter. Zuschlagen könnt ihr bei CDbaby.com für 10 US-Dollar. Hörproben gibt es unter http://www.fashionbomb.net (under construction) oder ggf. http://www.myspace.com/xfashionxbombx

8/10 - SBr
- Obliveon.de

Todays bomb recipe: take two doses of metal of the more modern kind, one half dose industrial and spice it with some goth inspired image. Mix it all together and let it then settle for a while. Hopefully the result will be something like FASHION BOMB, a new American band that has now released their first full-length album “Devils To Some, Angels To Others”.

In the included promo sheet to this album there are parallels being drawn to bands like NINE INCH NAILS and MARILYN MANSON, similarities that really are quite striking. FASHION BOMB stands somewhere in between these two and picks heavily influences, both musically and image-wise from both acts (okay, image-wise it's really mostly from the latter of the two). The end result is something that could be seen as modern heavy metal with strong elements from nu metal and also some industrial metal additions to the at times quite heavy sound. It's always a bit tricky to say something about an entire album from just a couple of handpicked songs, this time just four songs are included on the promo copy I got. Yet these four songs shows a relatively strong song material with a quite large variety where the music goes from the more heavy and aggressive industrial influenced material like “SS” and “Christ Puncher” to the slower and somewhat more groove emphasized material in “Low” and especially “Mold”. The relatively heavy guitar riffs and the vocals with various degrees of unclean undertones succeeds very well in keeping up the aggressiveness and heaviness that runs like the main thread throughout each song and the drums capture nicely the somewhat stiff and sterile feel that you want in industrial inspired metal. When it comes to the quality of the song material there isn't really the same evenness in the strength as in the performance, but neither here are there any major flaws to be heard. Still, of the four songs that make up this promo copy it's “Christ Puncher” that undoubtedly stands as the strongest one, with “Low” coming up in a good second place.

With the reservation that the promo copy contains only four of the albums 14 songs, it seems that FASHION BOMB has succeeded very well with their debut “Devils To Some, Angels To Others”. More songs with the quality of “Christ Puncher” and this band will probably face a bright future. However, don't let yourselves be fooled by the bands image, their sound has as little to do with the music style goth as MARILYN MANSON has.

Written by: Janne - www.metal-only.com

Interviewed by Brian Rademacher
Date: May 29th, 2006

http://www.fashionbomb.net/
Val, how’s everything going today?
Good, hanging in there.

When you first started in music what was your first garage band, and what kind of music did you play?
Believe or not Fashion Bomb is my first project. I have been in some musical endeavors before, but my background was mostly in opera and theater stuff. There wasn’t a call for the long haired, pierced, tattooed look I had. I realized I had to branch out. This is really the first project I put my heart and soul into because it embodies me.

You list one of your heroes as Luciano Pavarotti. What makes him your hero?
That is true. The reason why I list him is that he has a singular voice but he doesn’t read music. He is an abnormal opera figure. Pavarotti is a pure vocal instrument and he actually has a private voice coach that will teach him his pieces so he doesn’t have to sight read music, so that’s kind of cool.

What was the first album you bought and first concert you attended?
I bought two at once. One was Billy Joel’s “Glass Houses”; the other was The Scorpions’ “Love at First Sting”.

So which one did you like better?
The Scorpions, Billy Joel was great, a good vocalist. I kind of dug that. But I couldn’t get over the “Big City Nights”. I think The Scorpionsalbum got played into the ground. I was a late starter with concerts: it was Nine Inch Nails with David Bowie and Prick opened up the show. That was great show, a good one to cut my teeth on.

Tell me what Val was like growing up?
I was kind of a bookish, nerdy type of guy. My parents weren’t into music, so I was exposed to public television, studying and branched off into theater later on. I was your typical brainiac kid. I was good in school- didn’t like it, but it was pretty easy for me so I guess that is why I didn’t. I was bored to tears. I tried my hand at sports but I just didn’t fit in. I was the outsider no matter where I went.

What are some of the jobs you had growing up?
I have had a job since I was fourteen. You do your typical restaurant jobs and things like that.

What is your take on religion?
This is a subject that I can answer in a long form. I think organized religion is a bunch of bunk. I am not a big fan. That doesn’t mean a person can’t take aspects of a certain religion or certain belief system and use it to their own advantage. I think I would be hypocritical if I said, “Well I don’t believe in religion and I expect you not to believe in religion too, look at my point of view.” I believe it’s my life and my freedom not to believe in religion and not to take any serious faith in it, no pun intended. That might not necessarily be that way for other people. I should be free not to believe, you should be free to believe. I might not understand it, I might not agree with it, but people should certainly have that freedom. Someone made a very interesting point in a test on thermodynamics I read. He answered a question tongue and cheek from his professor .The question was, was hell endothermic or exothermic. The answer was so good: he said that you have to assume every religion in the world believes that its belief system is the best, and that every belief system has some form of hell. He also says that they say if you don’t believe the way they believe, you will go to hell. It follows then that pretty much everyone will be going to hell if all religions had their own way. It also included a bunch of support for how the influx of souls will be ever growing, and how that would affect hell’s thermodynamics, but the point is valid (laughing.)

When did you start molding your image?
To be real honest, I did not have to do much molding. My image is me. You don’t see me walking around on the weekend with jeans and a t-shirt waiting for a package from a record company, and once it comes, you catch me throwing on eyeliner. The way you see me is pretty much the way you see me all the time. When DreG and I were looking for band members to fill the spot we wanted people to fit the image, but we wanted someone to believe in what they are on stage and not go home on the weekends being someone else. If you don’t believe, how is that going to translate in performance? We cross over into many genres and true fans of music are not dumb. Metal or goth fans get a bum rap for being Satan worshipers or having fucked up family lives, or whatever. That’s not the case; it’s just the type of music you like. The audience is smart enough to pick up on the posers.

What kind of music scene is there in Illinois?
We are based in Chicago. The music scene is fully alive here. It’s a little bit more jaded than other places because here in Chicago most everything is accessible; in L.A. you need a car and, a lot of venues you have to drive to. In New York it’s crowded; there are a lot of venues but I don’t think anywhere is like Chicago in it accessibility. We have the Metro, The Double D - www.rockeyez.com

Fast is the way we work

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Ever since I discovered Ministry and industrial metal many years ago, this style has been one of those I've had great appreciation for and it's always nice with new discoveries within this style. Even though the American band Fashion Bomb isn't pure industrial metal and leans more towards modern heavy metal, they still capture much of the same atmosphere in the music. This relatively new and very promising band did release their debut album “Angels To Some, Devils To Others” some time ago, and to my delight the bands vocalist Val and drummer GreG took the time to answer a few questions regarding the band and the new album.

Hi Val and DreG! Some time ago you released your first full-length album "Devils To Some, Angels To Others", so how has the reactions been so far on the album from the fans and the media? Are you personally happy with the album?
Val – We recently released the album, and the minute it started reaching people the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Our fans had waited for a while to get a full length album, and the industry people have loved it. I am personally very happy with the result, I think it translates very well what we were going for.

DreG – I agree, the reaction has been amazing from both fans and media. Personally, I am very happy with the record. I had a chance to co-produce and work closely with producer Jamie Duffy (Acumen Nation, DJ Accucrack). We spent hours and hours diving into every detail of this record. To this day I will listen and hear the tiny nuances in the songs...it is quite an amazing experience. At the end of the day I am proud to have played a part in this album!

I've understood that at least the song "The Line" has been around for some years now, so I guess that some of the other songs may also be a couple of years old. Was all the material for the album still recorded at the same time or did you use some older recordings in the process of putting "Devils To Some, Angels To Others" together?
DreG – All of the songs were recorded at the same time for this record and all was done in DreGLanD studios. With that said, a few of the songs have been around in some form for a few years. We spent about 6 months in pre-production. At this time we took some of our old songs that were keepers and worked to make them better. This included both drastic and subtle arrangement changes.

Val – To add to that, we didn't have a second guitar player until a year ago, so we were able to achieve a much richer, complete version of any song that we had been playing previously. But, as DreG said, all of it is new recording.

Both from the title of the album and from the general feel I get from the lyrics it seems to me that the album concentrates much around the issue of personal identity and inner struggle in various forms. Is this something you can agree with or am I completely on the wrong track? Who is the main lyric writer in the band and how important to you find the lyrics to be?
Val – No, you hit the nail on the head. I write the lyrics to the songs, and on this record did lean heavily toward that area. Lyrics paint the picture to the emotion stirred by the music, and allows a deeper rationalization of a song.

DreG – I agree with Val, but want to add that there is definitely a common mission statement amongst us. I view this mission statement as be yourself. We can't as a society judge people by their looks, but it happens all of the time. Get to know people, give them a chance..you will be surprised.

There is also an interesting connection with the cover art and the title of the album (as well as the idea that the general theme of the album would be around personal identity). The title "Devils To Some, Angels To Others" have a religious touch to it and so does the cover art, which I guess picture your own version of the Last Supper. Is religion an issue you feel strongly for and what are your thoughts about the current situation in the world where religion once again is more and more used for destructive actions?
DreG – I believe in spirituality, I believe in the self. What is religion? I believe that the inception of religion was to gain worshippers. Think of the battle of the churches hundreds of years ago. Whoever had the biggest most ornate church had the coolest religion. I don't get it. I do believe that all of us should be able to do as we wish as long as it does not harm anyone else. Obviously, this is not working in our world today!

Val – This could turn into a 4 hour epic speech.... You make a very good observation, and I would say that I find it interesting that every religion claims to be one of seeking truth and peace and tolerance, yet the most violent wars were fought in the name of religion, the most grievous intolerance is usually due to the next man believing something different. How much better would we be if it was globally and socially okay to believe whatever you wished, look the way - www.metal-only.com