On Saturday, October 11, at the cultural venue “Hanzas perons” in Riga, the pioneering industrial metal duo Godflesh – Justin Broadrick and B. C. Green – will perform live in Latvia for the first time.
“Few people have dedicated as much time and mental effort to rewriting heavy music as Justin Broadrick,” writes critic Olly Thomas in Kerrang!. “He’s flipped clubs upside down with his ‘techno mutant’ project JK Flesh, explored art-noise-dub fusions with Kevin Martin (aka The Bug/King Midas Sound) in the duo Zonal, and embraced melancholia and shoegaze introspection through Jesu. And, of course, there’s Godflesh – a union of industrial metal innovators who’ve never shied away from incorporating acid house elements and hip-hop beats.”
Dense in terminology and references, Thomas’s writing might exhaust a newcomer. But once you catch your breath, the essentials remain indisputable: since the early 1980s, guitarist Justin Broadrick and bassist B. C. Green have opened doors in heavy guitar music – doors that have welcomed not only devoted followers on and off stage but also fresh air, which, over the years, has nourished the birth of entire genres and subgenres.
Much like the title of their 2017 release Post Self, the synergy between Broadrick and Green can at times feel prophetic. In a world where backflipping robots are old news and wars may be sparked by artificial intelligence, it’s hard to imagine a more fitting soundtrack for marching toward the inevitable than the music of Godflesh – which, tellingly, was with us long before any of this.
“What the hell is that?!” – a thought many have shared upon first encountering Godflesh, especially when Streetcleaner was released in 1989 and quickly became a cornerstone of metal music history. According to Aaron Turner of the band ISIS, it’s one of those records that impacts you deeply even if you don’t necessarily like it. The music catches you off guard and that’s it – you can’t stop thinking about it. You’re hooked for good.
But Broadrick and Green never aimed to amass armies of worshippers. Quite the opposite. In his humility and quiet disregard for industry norms, Broadrick has turned down offers to join bands like Faith No More and Danzig and doesn’t expect so much as a thank-you from Trent Reznor for the undeniable influence that helped shape Nine Inch Nails.
No, Godflesh was never about conquering stadiums. All they’ve ever wanted is to create good music and records. And they’ve done so – for nearly four decades.
