Pigface

Martin Atkins, leader of the industrial music collective Pigface, has had a storied career going all the way back to his first big break playing in Public Image Ltd. As a drummer, he lent his talents to Killing Joke, Nine Inch Nails, and Ministry, before coming up with the idea for Pigface with Ministry bandmate Bill Reiflin. The plan was to assemble a new lineup of collaborators for each album, and indeed, the list of people who’ve contributed is long and well-lauded — Steve Albini, Jello Biafra, Trent Reznor, Flea, John Lydon, Lydia Lunch, and Skinny Puppy’s cEvin Key, to name just a few. The result has been varied in quality and tone (as you might expect from such ad hoc groups), industrial noise competing with gothic punk/dark wave and sonic experimentalism. It’s a dark, post-industrial sound that traces its roots to revolutionary ’70s German acts Can and Neu, one that Atkins continues to push not only with Pigface and his other side projects (Murder Inc., The Damage Manual), but with his Chicago label Invisible.