Justin Karl Michael Broadrick (born 15 August 1969) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer and a founding member of the band
Godflesh
Godflesh are an English industrial metal band from Birmingham. The group formed in 1982 under the title Fall of Because but did not release any complete music until 1988 when Justin Broadrick (guitar, vocals and programming) and G. C. Gre ...
, one of the first bands to combine elements of
extreme metal
Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tran ...
and
industrial music
Industrial music is a genre of music that draws on harsh, mechanical, transgressive or provocative sounds and themes. AllMusic defines industrial music as the "most abrasive and aggressive fusion of rock and electronic music" that was "initiall ...
.
Following Godflesh's initial breakup in 2002, Broadrick formed the band
Jesu.
He was briefly in the English
grindcore band
Napalm Death when he was a teenager in the mid-1980s, writing and recording guitar for their debut album, ''
Scum''. Broadrick has also maintained a parallel career as a producer, producing records and remixes for groups such as
Pantera
Pantera () is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas formed in 1981, and currently comprised of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-kn ...
,
Isis
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...
,
Mogwai
Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mogw ...
and
Hydra Head
Hydra Head Records was an independent record label that specializes in extreme metal music, founded in New Mexico by Aaron Turner (the frontman of Isis) in 1993. It had another imprint, Hydra Head Noise Industries, which specialized in experiment ...
labelmates
Pelican
Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...
. Since the 1990s he has worked with Kevin Martin as
Techno Animal
Techno Animal is an electronic duo formed in 1990 in London, England by British musicians Justin Broadrick (of the band Godflesh) and Kevin Martin (aka the Bug, of the band God). The duo released six LPs beginning with their 1991 debut '' Ghost ...
making various genres of electronic music and hip hop. Since 2012, he has been releasing hard
techno
Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...
music under the solo moniker
JK Flesh
JK Flesh is a moniker of English musician Justin Broadrick employed for his solo work within electronic music. Broadrick's usage of the title spans back to his work in the 1990s with Kevin Martin in Techno Animal, but he first released a solo s ...
. Broadrick has set up record labels such as HeadDirt,
Avalanche Recordings
Avalanche Recordings is an independent record label, founded by English musician Justin Broadrick in 1999. It is named after Broadrick's own recording studio, Avalanche Studios, and mainly releases Justin Broadrick's side projects.
The first r ...
, Post Mortem Productions (briefly renamed Uprising Productions), Lo Fibre and Heartache.
Biography
Childhood and first recordings (1969–1983)
Broadrick was born on 15 August 1969, in a
council estate
Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council estates, council housing, or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011 when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in so ...
of inner
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
.
For the first four years of his life, Broadrick was raised by his mother Gabrielle Fern (a.k.a. Lucy Nation) and stepfather Robert Fern (a.k.a. Bob Allcock) in a hippie commune in
Shard End
Shard End is an area of Birmingham, England. It is also a ward within the formal district of Hodge Hill. Shard End borders Castle Bromwich to the north and Kingshurst to the east which are situated in the northern part of the neighbouring Metr ...
. In the late '70s, Broadrick's mother and stepfather were members of
Anti-Social, a band infamous for live shows involving blood and faecal matter, as well as for soliciting people to commit suicide via guillotine live on stage. Anti-Social were dubbed "the world's most violent rock group" and released one single, ''Traffic Lights/Teacher Teacher'' which is now one of the rarest UK punk record releases.
During a period of heroin addiction, Broadrick's biological father was mostly absent from the family home. According to Broadrick, his maternal grandmother from Germany was a "witch" who was into the occult and black magic.
By the age of ten, Broadrick was surrounded by the punk-rock that his parents listened to. "There was
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
and
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
, but it was always the stuff that wasn't so standard that grabbed me. I was always playing things like
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. ...
's ''
Metal Machine Music
''Metal Machine Music'' (subtitled ''*The Amine β Ring'') is the fifth studio album by American rock musician Lou Reed. It was recorded on a three-speed Uher machine and was mastered/engineered by Bob Ludwig. It was released as a double album ...
'' when I was about eight! Stuff like
Can, the weirdest parts of
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
,
Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
", says Broadrick. "The first thing I probably heard out of the house, when I was about 11 years old, was
Crass
Crass were an English art collective and punk rock band formed in Epping, Essex in 1977, who promoted anarchism as a political ideology, a lifestylism, way of life, and a resistance movement. Crass popularised the anarcho-punk movement of the ...
", says Broadrick. Shortly after seeing them as his first concert, he recorded his first demo tape at the age of 11. "By the age of 12 I fell into early industrial music, stuff like
Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle were an English music and visual arts group formed in 1975 in Kingston upon Hull by Genesis P-Orridge, Cosey Fanni Tutti, Peter Christopherson, and Chris Carter (British musician), Chris Carter. They are widely regarded as pi ...
,
Whitehouse Whitehouse may refer to:
People
* Charles S. Whitehouse (1921-2001), American diplomat
* Cornelius Whitehouse (1796–1883), English engineer and inventor
* E. Sheldon Whitehouse (1883-1965), American diplomat
* Elliott Whitehouse (born 1993), ...
". Broadrick began to play with his stepfather's guitar, who was then into
Roxy Music
Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry—who became the band's lead vocalist and principal songwriter—and bassist Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson. The other longtime members are Phil Manzanera ...
and
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...
.
In 1982, he started publishing tapes with his friend Andy Swan, who had a synthesizer. The first name they went under was Atrocity Exhibition, named after a
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris.
Sumner and Hook formed the band after attend ...
track (which, itself, takes its name from
a book by
J. G. Ballard
James Graham Ballard (15 November 193019 April 2009) was an English novelist, short story writer, satirist, and essayist known for provocative works of fiction which explored the relations between human psychology, technology, sex, and mass med ...
). Their first recording was titled ''Live in the Studio'' and was the first catalogued release on their cassette label Post Mortem Rekordings. Shortly after, the project was named Smear Campaign, after a
Nocturnal Emissions
Nocturnal Emissions is Nigel Ayers's sound art project that has released numerous records and CDs in music styles ranging from electro-acoustic, musique concrète, hybridised beats, sound collage, post- industrial music, ambient and noise ...
track. This was the name they went under at their first live performance on 7 July 1984 in The Mermaid in Birmingham. Promptly after the show they settled on the name
Final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
. Final was then inspired lyrically and musically by acts such as Throbbing Gristle and Maurizio Bianchi. "We were pretty heavily into the whole industrial tape culture and fanzines of the very early '80s", Broadrick says. The project developed to embrace the
power electronics
Power electronics is the application of electronics to the control and conversion of electric power.
The first high-power electronic devices were made using mercury-arc valves. In modern systems, the conversion is performed with semiconducto ...
subgenre of
industrial music
Industrial music is a genre of music that draws on harsh, mechanical, transgressive or provocative sounds and themes. AllMusic defines industrial music as the "most abrasive and aggressive fusion of rock and electronic music" that was "initiall ...
in 1983, releasing material by them and other industrial projects on Post Mortem Rekordings (which was renamed Uprising Productions in 1985) such as Family Patrol Group, Mental Health Act, Ashenden, The Grey Wolves, Con-Dom, Death Magazine 52, Fern and Un-Kommuniti. Final went under numerous lineup changes during its lifetime, including musicians like Philip Timms, Daniel Johnson, Paul Neville, Nicholas Bullen, Graham Robertson and Guy Pearce. "I had about 50 Final releases over about a year and a half", he says. Other project names Broadrick recorded under included Last Exit, Crusade and Dead Pulp. Broadrick also had a short-lived progressive punk band called The Blakk Korridor with
Diarmuid Dalton
Diarmuid Dalton is an Irish musician and songwriter. He is best known as the bass guitarist of post-metal bands, Jesu and Iroha. Dalton frequently collaborates with Justin Broadrick, who is the founder of Godflesh and Jesu.
Biography
Irish b ...
and Dan.
Fall of Because and Napalm Death (1984–1986)
In 1984, Broadrick joined the group
Fall of Because G._Christian_Green_and_Paul_Neville_(musician).html" ;"title="G._C._Green.html" ;"title="ounded by G. C. Green">G. Christian Green and Paul Neville (musician)">Paul Neville in 1982 initially named O.P.D. (Officially Pronounced Dead)] as a drummer and additional vocalist. The group recorded the ''Extirpate'' demo cassette in 1986, which contained a number of songs which were later re-worked as songs for Godflesh (including "Life Is Easy", "Mighty Trust Krusher" and "Merciless"). The group disbanded in 1988. The ''
Life Is Easy'' compilation album of demo and live recordings was released in 1999.
Broadrick met
Nicholas Bullen
Nicholas Bullen (sometimes called Nik Napalm; born 1968) is an English musician and a founding member of the grindcore band Napalm Death.
Biography
Bullen is one of the founding members – with Miles Ratledge (Rat) – of Napalm Death, ...
in 1985 at the flea market where he met Andy. Broadrick gave Final tapes to Bullen and they recorded some material together. "Then I played him some of the stuff I did with guitar, which he then played to another guy in Napalm Death. Basically, they were impressed with what I was doing with guitar, and so I joined Napalm Death", Broadrick says. Soon
Mick Harris
Michael John Harris (born 4 October 1967) is an English musician from Birmingham. He was the drummer for Napalm Death between 1985 and 1991, and is credited for coining the term "grindcore". After Napalm Death, Harris joined Painkiller with Jo ...
(then member of a
psychobilly
Psychobilly is a rock music fusion genre that fuses elements of rockabilly and punk rock. It's been defined as "loud frantic rockabilly music", it has also been said that it "takes the traditional countrified rock style known as rockabilly, ram ...
band) joined the lineup and they shifted from
anarcho-punk
Anarcho-punk (also known as anarchist punk or peace punk) is ideological subgenre of punk rock that promotes anarchism. Some use the term broadly to refer to any punk music with anarchist lyrical content, which may figure in crust punk, hardcor ...
to
grindcore. "Nick and I left Napalm Death after we recorded the first side of ''
Scum''. I'd had enough of Napalm Death very, very quickly", he says.
Lee Dorrian
Lee Dorrian (born 5 June 1968) is an English singer, best known as a former member of grindcore band Napalm Death and later frontman of doom metal band Cathedral.
Career
During his early teenage years, Dorrian was the editor of a local punk f ...
and Jim Whitely joined to replace Bullen and Broadrick. Broadrick gave the first side to
Earache Records
Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by rel ...
founder
Digby Pearson
Digby Pearson (born 1962), also known as "Dig", is an English musician, producer and businessman. He is the founder of independent record label Earache Records.
Biography
Born and raised in Nottingham, he was introduced to extreme music whils ...
, who then contacted the new Napalm Death that had recorded the second side.
Head of David and the forming of Godflesh (1987–1990)
![GodfleshNYC1996](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/GodfleshNYC1996.jpg)
The industrial metal band
Head of David
Head of David was a British heavy metal band that features vocalist Stephen R. Burroughs and ex-Napalm Death member Justin Broadrick (later of Godflesh and Jesu). The band's sound paved way to various music genres, including industrial metal ...
had played live with Napalm Death before their drummer left and Broadrick was invited to take his place. "I was in Head of David literally six weeks, and we did a
John Peel Session
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
for
Radio One. That was the first highlight of my life", Broadrick says. He had been writing more brutal songs for the band, but due to artistic differences, he was kicked out in 1988. "When I first got exposed in '89 to the early
acid house
Acid house (also simply known as just "acid") is a subgenre of house music developed around the mid-1980s by DJs from Chicago. The style is defined primarily by the squelching sounds and basslines of the Roland TB-303 electronic bass synthesiz ...
movement, I was an instant convert. The first time I heard early
Aphex Twin
Richard David James (born 18 August 1971), best known as Aphex Twin, is an Irish-born British musician, composer and DJ. He is known for his idiosyncratic work in electronic music, electronic styles such as techno, ambient music, ambient, and jun ...
, when ''
Digeridoo
The didgeridoo (; also spelt didjeridu, among other variants) is a wind instrument, played with vibrating lips to produce a continuous drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. The didgeridoo was developed by ...
'' first came out, I knew that this was where I wanted to go", Broadrick says.
He formed
Godflesh
Godflesh are an English industrial metal band from Birmingham. The group formed in 1982 under the title Fall of Because but did not release any complete music until 1988 when Justin Broadrick (guitar, vocals and programming) and G. C. Gre ...
with his friend G. C. Green. They started with working on existing Fall of Because songs and Broadrick was influenced by the
hip-hop sound at the time – artists like
Public Enemy
"Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe ...
,
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys were an American rap rock group from New York City, formed in 1978. The group was composed of Mike D, Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (voca ...
,
Run-DMC.
Godflesh released their debut
self-titled EP on Swordfish Records and in 1989
Earache Records
Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by rel ...
put out their first album ''
Streetcleaner''.
Broadrick met
Kevin Martin of the band GOD. Martin had a club in
Brixton
Brixton is a district in south London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th ce ...
and he promoted the first Godflesh show in London. Godflesh was met with derision on their first tour.
However, Godflesh was well received in the United States. "To this day, I still sell the majority of my records in America. Of any music I make, it mostly goes to America", Broadrick says.
Broadrick also played guitar for Sweet Tooth with Scott Kiehl (of GOD) and
Dave Cochrane (of
Head of David
Head of David was a British heavy metal band that features vocalist Stephen R. Burroughs and ex-Napalm Death member Justin Broadrick (later of Godflesh and Jesu). The band's sound paved way to various music genres, including industrial metal ...
), who released the album ''Soft White Underbelly'' on Earache Records in 1990. He is credited as co-writer for all songs. The band also contributed "Fat City" to the compilation ''Grindcrusher – The Ultimate Earache'', which was also on Earache Records.
Side projects (1991–1993)
In 1991, Broadrick and Martin recorded their debut album ''
Ghosts'' as
Techno Animal
Techno Animal is an electronic duo formed in 1990 in London, England by British musicians Justin Broadrick (of the band Godflesh) and Kevin Martin (aka the Bug, of the band God). The duo released six LPs beginning with their 1991 debut '' Ghost ...
and it was released on Martin's label Pathological Records. In the end of 1991 Godflesh recorded the experimental ''
Slavestate
''Slavestate'' is an EP by industrial metal band Godflesh. It was released in July 1991 through Earache Records. The EP saw the band experimenting with more samples and electronic sounds than their predominantly industrial metal prior releases. ...
'' EP. In 1992, Godflesh released their second studio album ''
Pure
Pure may refer to:
Computing
* A pure function
* A pure virtual function
* PureSystems, a family of computer systems introduced by IBM in 2012
* Pure Software, a company founded in 1991 by Reed Hastings to support the Purify tool
* Pure-FTPd, F ...
''. Broadrick and Martin created a new project called
Ice
Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaq ...
in 1993, where they experimented with industrial and dub music as well as hip-hop beat patterns. Broadrick also revived his
Final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
project along with his ambient guitar experiments in 1993. During this period, Broadrick produced records for
Pram,
Terminal Power Company
Terminal Power Company was a British alternative music band.
History
Formed in 1989 in Birmingham, England, by Paul Aspel and John Roome, designed specifically to be a "cyberpunk band", the band cited many diverse visual influences on their m ...
,
Lull and
Cable Regime.
Kevin Martin collaborations and electronic music (1994–1999)
![JK Flesh at Roadburn festival](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/JK_Flesh_at_Roadburn_festival.png)
In 1994, Godflesh released their album ''
Selfless'' on
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
and sold approximately 180,000 copies. Broadrick joined Kevin Martin's band
GOD
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
as a guitarist for their second and final album ''
The Anatomy of Addiction
''The Anatomy of Addiction'' is the second and final studio album by the experimental rock band God, released on 5 May 1994 by Big Cat Records.
Reception
Allmusic staff writer Ned Raggett gave the record three stars, calling it a "fantastic lis ...
''. The duo recorded the second Techno Animal album, ''
Re-Entry
Atmospheric entry is the movement of an object from outer space into and through the gases of an atmosphere of a planet, dwarf planet, or natural satellite. There are two main types of atmospheric entry: ''uncontrolled entry'', such as the entr ...
'', which was released as a two-disc CD through
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...
in 1995. Broadrick was more influenced by hip-hop and
dub music
Dub is an electronic musical style that grew out of reggae in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It is commonly considered a subgenre of reggae, though it has developed to extend beyond that style.Dub: soundscapes and shattered songs in Jamaican re ...
when Godflesh recorded the fourth album, ''
Songs of Love and Hate
''Songs of Love and Hate'' is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. Produced by Bob Johnston, the album was released on March 19, 1971, through Columbia Records.
Recording and composition
Cohen reunited with produ ...
'', with live drummer
Bryan Mantia
Bryan Kei Mantia (born February 4, 1963), known professionally as Brain, is an American rock drummer. He has played with bands such as Primus, Guns N' Roses, Praxis, and Godflesh, and with other performers such as Tom Waits, Serj Tankian, Bill L ...
. Broadrick also recorded the second Final full-length that was released on
Rawkus Records
Rawkus Records was an American hip hop record label known for starting the careers of many rappers. Rawkus started in 1995 with releases in hip-hop, drum and bass and fun-dustrial (Dystopia One).
Label heads Brian Brater and Jarret Myer then s ...
. In 1997, Godflesh released the electronic remix record ''
Love and Hate in Dub
''Love and Hate in Dub'' is remix album by industrial metal band Godflesh released on 24 June 1997 through Earache Records. The remixed songs are sourced from their 1996 album ''Songs of Love and Hate'', and they adopt a more ambient, dub an ...
''. "What Kevin and I were doing with Techno Animal then began to rub off on Godflesh, and vice versa", Broadrick says. From 1997 to 1999, Martin and Broadrick released two Techno Animal compilations, ''Versus Reality'' and ''Radio Hades'', a split album with Porter Ricks. They also start a new project titled
Curse of the Golden Vampire
Curse of the Golden Vampire was a collaborative music project of Alec Empire and Techno Animal ( Kevin Martin and Justin Broadrick). The group released a studio album, titled ''The Curse of the Golden Vampire'', on Digital Hardcore Recordings in ...
with
Alec Empire
Alec or Aleck is a Scottish form of the given name Alex. It may be a diminutive of the name Alexander or a given name in its own right. Notable people with the name include:
People
* Alec Aalto (1942–2018), Finnish diplomat
*Alec Acton (1938 ...
. Broadrick also had recorded tracks as JK Flesh during this time but they were released in 2009 in the compilation album ''From Hell''.
He turned down offers to join both
Faith No More
Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1979. Before settling on the current name in July 1983, the band performed under the names Sharp Young Men and later Faith No Man. Bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist/r ...
and
Danzig. Broadrick released
drum and bass music under numerous pseudonyms such as Cylon, Tech Level 2 and Youpho. He also recorded such music with Kevin Martin under the names White Viper and Eraser. At that time, they were influenced by acts like
Ed Rush
Ed Rush is the stage name used by the drum and bass producer and DJ, Ben Settle (born 1973). Rush has been releasing records since 1992 and primarily with his musical partner Optical (Matt Quinn), since 1997. Along with Optical he is also the c ...
and
Dillinja
Karl Francis, also known as Dillinja, is a British jungle/drum and bass DJ and record producer.
Biography
Dillinja is a prolific producer and artist within the jungle and drum and bass scene. Since 1991, Dillinja has produced a number of track ...
, and labels like No U-Turn and Renegade Hardware.
End of Godflesh and Techno Animal (2000–2003)
In 2000, Broadrick, Green and drummer
Ted Parsons
Ted Parsons is an American drummer most notable for his membership in bands such as Swans, Prong, Godflesh, Killing Joke, and Jesu.
Biography
Parsons' early career began in 1985 with Swans, when he contributed to their ''Holy Money'' album. He ...
began work on the Godflesh album, ''
Hymns
A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...
''. "I was already aware of Godflesh's mortality. Though I enjoyed a good amount of the album, I still felt a bit restricted. I started doing a lot of stuff during the recording of that album where I was really trying to get past the limitations of Godflesh, which were self-created". After the album was released, G. C. Green left due to not wanting to tour any longer. Godflesh was booked for a European tour to open for
Fear Factory
Fear Factory is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1989. Throughout the band's career, they have released ten full-length albums and have evolved through a succession of sounds, all in their main style of industrial metal. ...
, so Broadrick invited
Paul Raven to replace Ben. A week into the tour Broadrick told "Raven is a fantastic bass player, but it just wasn't Benny, who I had been playing with for 13 years and was a whole part of what Godflesh was". A North American tour was also planned without Broadrick's input. Soon after, Broadrick and his girlfriend of thirteen years broke up. Broadrick slipped into a mental breakdown, fled back to Birmingham and hid at a friend's house just as he was supposed to board a plane to begin the North American tour. Bands, equipment companies and promoters moved to recoup the lost money and Broadrick lost his house and other valuable assets in his name. Kevin Martin moved on to record alone as
The Bug
"The Bug" is a song written by Mark Knopfler and originally performed by Dire Straits on the final studio album by the band, '' On Every Street'' (1991). It was covered by Mary Chapin Carpenter in 1992, and also recorded on the albums ''Blues B ...
and Techno Animal was ended.
Jesu and Final (2004–2009)
In August 2004, Broadrick's new project,
Jesu, released the ''
Heart Ache'' EP. In December, the
self-titled
An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''.
Usage of the word
The term ''epon ...
debut LP was released. This release featured Ted Parsons on drums, Diarmuid Dalton on bass and a guest appearance from Paul Neville. The album was more melodic than his previous work. "I was still making low-tuned, heavy,
guttural
Guttural speech sounds are those with a primary place of articulation near the back of the oral cavity, especially where it's difficult to distinguish a sound's place of articulation and its phonation. In popular usage it is an imprecise term fo ...
music, at the heart of this there was something quite pretty and beautiful, just being construed in an almost ugly fashion", said Broadrick. In November 2005 Broadrick played live as Final for the first time in 20 years and supported
Jarboe
Jarboe Devereaux, known mononymously as Jarboe (), is an American singer and musician who came to prominence as a member of the New York City experimental rock band Swans in 1985. Jarboe and Michael Gira, the founder of Swans, were the two consta ...
. Final's two-disc release ''3'' had been in making for nearly five years and was put out in 2006. Broadrick toured Europe as Final in March 2006. In April 2006 the ''
Silver
Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
'' EP was released through
Hydra Head Records
Hydra Head Records was an independent record label that specializes in extreme metal music, founded in New Mexico by Aaron Turner (the frontman of Isis) in 1993. It had another imprint, Hydra Head Noise Industries, which specialized in experiment ...
. The second full-length album, ''
Conqueror'', was released in February 2007. Jesu toured with
Sunn O))) and
Isis
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...
and Broadrick played as a guest with both bands. On 30 April 2007 Jesu released a 12" called ''
Sun Down/Sun Rise''. Broadrick began to release limited runs of material on his
Avalanche Recordings
Avalanche Recordings is an independent record label, founded by English musician Justin Broadrick in 1999. It is named after Broadrick's own recording studio, Avalanche Studios, and mainly releases Justin Broadrick's side projects.
The first r ...
label, including new material by Final and a Jesu full-length compilation of electronic tracks titled ''
Pale Sketches''. In 2008, Broadrick collaborated with former
Swans
Swans are birds of the family Anatidae within the genus ''Cygnus''. The swans' closest relatives include the geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Someti ...
vocalist
Jarboe
Jarboe Devereaux, known mononymously as Jarboe (), is an American singer and musician who came to prominence as a member of the New York City experimental rock band Swans in 1985. Jarboe and Michael Gira, the founder of Swans, were the two consta ...
for an album titled ''
J²''. In May 2008, Broadrick released the first download-only final full-length, ''Fade Away'', and the second, ''Afar'', in October. In 2009, Broadrick released the album ''
Disconnected'' with his new band,
Greymachine.
In January 2009, he released two new digital releases via his label
Avalanche Recordings
Avalanche Recordings is an independent record label, founded by English musician Justin Broadrick in 1999. It is named after Broadrick's own recording studio, Avalanche Studios, and mainly releases Justin Broadrick's side projects.
The first r ...
: the Krackhead album and ''Kitsland''. ''Kitsland'' was a recording as ''Council Estate Recordings'' with Diarmuid Dalton. The project was influenced by Broadrick's old 1980s cassette material.
In November 2009, Broadrick announced that Godflesh were reforming for a few shows in the summer 2010.
Pale Sketcher and solo album (2010–2013)
In March 2010, Broadrick announced that he felt Jesu had strayed further away from the guitar driven music that he intended it to be and more into electronica. As a resolution, although Jesu would still contain electronic elements, it would return to a guitar driven sound and a new project, titled Pale Sketcher, would allow Broadrick to explore the electronica oriented sound further without interfering with Jesu. "It's more 4/4-based – shoegazy dream-pop that's almost techno, somewhat in the area of
Gas
Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma).
A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g. oxygen), or ...
and some of the early
Kompakt
Kompakt (Labelcode: LC 12012) is a Cologne-based electronic music independent record label and vinyl/CD distributor, owned by Wolfgang Voigt, Michael Mayer (musician), Michael Mayer and Jürgen Paape. They specialize in microhouse and minimal t ...
stuff like
Dettinger
Dettinger is a German record producer signed to Germany's Cologne based Kompakt label.
His releases include 1998's Blond 12", 1999's album Intershop (the first single-artist LP on Kompakt), Puma 12" and Totentanz 12", and 2000's album Oasis.
Det ...
". On 24 August 2010, he released ''Jesu: Pale Sketches Demixed'' on
Ghostly International
Ghostly International is an American independent record label founded in 1999 by Samuel Valenti IV and currently headquartered in Brooklyn, New York City. Chief artists include Matthew Dear, Dabrye (a.k.a. Tadd Mullinix), Com Truise, Tycho, Gol ...
. Broadrick contributed guitar soundscapes to
Alan Moore
Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including '' Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', '' The Ballad of Halo Jones'', ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman:'' ''The Killing Joke'', and '' From He ...
's audiobook
Unearthing
''Unearthing'' is an essay written by Alan Moore and originally published in Iain Sinclair's ''London: City of Disappearances'' in 2006. It has subsequently been developed into a photographic book in collaboration with Mitch Jenkins and a spoke ...
.
Broadrick released the album ''
Posthuman
Posthuman or post-human is a concept originating in the fields of science fiction, futurology, contemporary art, and philosophy that means a person or entity that exists in a state beyond being human. The concept aims at addressing a variety of ...
'' under the JK Flesh project name on 30 April 2012. Although many of Broadrick's projects feature him performing all instrumentation anyway, the album is considered to be Broadrick's first solo album.
In April 2012,
Valley of Fear, a new project of Broadrick,
Matthew Bower
Matthew Bower is a British musician, active since the early 1980s, who has done both collaborative and solo work.
Skullflower
Skullflower was formed when Bower joined up with Stefan Jaworzyn, Gary Mundy and Stuart Dennison in 1987 having prev ...
and Samantha Davies, released an album of
noise rock
Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...
and
black metal
Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with t ...
experiments on Legion Blotan Records. On 11 December, a split release between JK Flesh and
Prurient
Ian Dominick Fernow is an American experimental musician, poet and multimedia artist. He is best known for extreme music released under the stage name Prurient, as well as numerous other aliases including Vatican Shadow and Rainforest Spiritual ...
called ''
Worship Is the Cleansing of the Imagination'' was released on
Hydra Head Records
Hydra Head Records was an independent record label that specializes in extreme metal music, founded in New Mexico by Aaron Turner (the frontman of Isis) in 1993. It had another imprint, Hydra Head Noise Industries, which specialized in experiment ...
. On 17 June 2013, he released the free digital single ''Warm Sunday / Mogadon'' as Pale Sketcher on his new record label Heartache Records.
In August 2022, Broadrick announced the release of never before heard Pale Sketcher material. ''Golden Skin'', written and recorded primarily between 2009-2013 was originally slated for release on Richard D. James’ (
Aphex Twin
Richard David James (born 18 August 1971), best known as Aphex Twin, is an Irish-born British musician, composer and DJ. He is known for his idiosyncratic work in electronic music, electronic styles such as techno, ambient music, ambient, and jun ...
)
Rephlex Records
Rephlex Records was a record label launched in 1991 in Cornwall by electronic musician Richard D. James (aka Aphex Twin) and Grant Wilson-Claridge. The label coined the term ''braindance'' to describe the output of Aphex Twin and fellow artists ...
prior to it shuttering. The album was unearthed and completed by Broadrick specifically for its unveiling on Give/Take on September 23rd, 2022.
Signature guitar and Jesu/Sun Kil Moon collaboration (2014–present)
![Godflesh (13988324565)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Godflesh_%2813988324565%29.jpg)
In 2002, since the inception of Jesu, Broadrick used a
Schecter C-7 Diamond Series guitar tuned to drop A.
In 2014, Blakhart Guitars released a Broadrick signature edition 8-string guitar. The guitar features a six-bolt Mono-blok neck to body mount, dual expanding truss rods and a string through body fixed bridge and has been played by Broadrick live and on studio albums since.
In January 2016, Broadrick's Jesu project collaborated with
Mark Kozelek
Mark Edward Kozelek (born January 24, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and occasional actor. He is known as the vocalist and primary recording artist of the indie folk act Sun Kil Moon and founding member of ...
's folk rock project,
Sun Kil Moon
Sun Kil Moon is an American folk rock act from San Francisco, California, founded in 2002. Initially a continuation of the defunct indie rock band Red House Painters, Sun Kil Moon is now the primary recording moniker of vocalist and guitarist M ...
to record an album titled ''
Jesu/Sun Kil Moon'' and the collaborative act toured in support of the album. Jesu and Sun Kil Moon collaborated once again to record a cover of "Condor Ave" for an
Elliott Smith tribute album titled ''Say Yes!'', released in October 2016. A second album by Jesu and Sun Kil Moon, titled ''30 Seconds to the Decline of Planet Earth'', was released in May 2017.
In June 2022, Brodrick was a featured guitarist on
Hercules and Love Affair
Hercules and Love Affair is a dance music project created by American DJ, singer, composer, musician and producer Andy Butler in 2004. Consisting of a rotating cast of performers and musicians, the band work within the genres of house music, dis ...
's album ''
In Amber
''In Amber'' is the fifth studio album by Hercules and Love Affair, released digitally and physically on 17 June 2022 by Skint Records/ BMG. The band's founder, singer and musician, Andy Butler worked again with singer Anohni (previously of Anto ...
'', on the single "Poisonous Storytelling" which also featured singer
Anohni.
Personal life
Broadrick was in a 13-year relationship that ended around the time Godflesh broke up in 2002.
Broadrick resides in
Abergele
Abergele (; ; ) is a market town and community, situated on the north coast of Wales between the holiday resorts of Colwyn Bay and Rhyl, in Conwy County Borough and in the historic county of Denbighshire. Its northern suburb of Pensarn lies ...
, Wales with his partner and his son.
In 2022, Broadrick revealed that he was recently diagnosed with
autism
The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...
and
post-traumatic stress disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on ...
.
Discography
References
External links
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SoundCloud
SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...
pages
JK FleshGodfleshJesuPale Sketcher
{{DEFAULTSORT:Broadrick, Justin
1969 births
Living people
Death metal musicians
English heavy metal guitarists
English heavy metal drummers
English heavy metal singers
Seven-string guitarists
Eight-string guitarists
English male singers
God (British band) members
Grindcore musicians
Ice (band) members
Napalm Death members
Musicians from Birmingham, West Midlands
English industrial musicians
Shoegaze musicians
Ambient musicians
English experimental musicians
British noise musicians
English electronic musicians
Godflesh members
English people of German descent
English male guitarists
Industrial metal musicians
Pigface members