Philip Neil Best (born 15 June 1968) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

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 ...

ian,

visual art The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts ...

ist, and author. A pioneer of power electronics, he formed the band Consumer Electronics in 1982 at age 14. Best joined the group

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), ...

, in 1983. After a nine-year hiatus starting in 1984, Best rejoined and remained with the group until departing again in 2008.

Career

Music

In the early 1980s, Best also ran his own DIY label Iphar, releasing compilations of power electronics. Through the circulation of these controversial

cassettes Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in the ...

he succeeded in promoting the burgeoning extreme noise genre. Among these cassette releases were ''On to 83'', with Gary Mundy. ''Torture Music'' by Iphar Clinic, a solo project, and ''White Power'', a fake

neo-nazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazism, Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and Supremacism#Racial, racial supremacy (ofte ...

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

with artists such as

Maurizio Bianchi Maurizio Bianchi (born 4 December 1955 in Pomponesco in the Province of Mantua) is an Italian pioneer of industrial music, originating from Milan. Biography 1979–1983 Bianchi was inspired by the music of Tangerine Dream, Conrad Schnitzler an ...

Sutcliffe Jügend Sutcliffe or Sutcliff is a surname, originating in three locations in Yorkshire, sometimes spelled Sutliffe or, unusually, Sutliff. The name means ''south of the cliff/hill''. People bearing the name include: * Alistair Sutcliffe (born 1951), Br ...

, and Best's other project with Mundy, Consumer Electronics. Best has been a frequent collaborator with Gary Mundy on projects such as

Ramleh Ramla or Ramle ( he, רַמְלָה, ''Ramlā''; ar, الرملة, ''ar-Ramleh'') is a city in the Central District of Israel. Today, Ramle is one of Israel's mixed cities, with both a significant Jewish and Arab populations. The city was f ...

and

Skullflower Skullflower is a British noise rock band, formed in 1987 in London, England. Led by guitarist Matthew Bower, the band attained a cult following with a sound based on "sludgy, Black Sabbath-style riffs overlaid with feedback, fuzzed-out guitar ...

. In 1995, under the Consumer Electronics moniker, Best joined forces with Japanese noise musician

Masami Akita is a Japanese noise project started in 1979 by , best known for a style of harsh, confrontational noise. Since 1980, Akita has released over 400 recordings and has collaborated with various artists. The name Merzbow comes from the German dada ...

– along with several Ramleh cohorts – to release ''Horn of the Goat''. Best continues to tour and release music as Consumer Electronics. The current line up includes Best, Russell Haswell and Best's wife Sarah Froelich. Their most recent LP, ''Dollhouse Songs'' was released by Harbinger Sound in 2015, and the piece "At Any Rate, It's Already Too Late" was released on the Harbinger Sound Sampler compilation in 2017.

Writing

In 1998, Best published his doctoral thesis at

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

entitled ''Apocalypticism in the Fiction of William S. Burroughs, J. G. Ballard and Thomas Pynchon'', and later received a doctorate in English literature. In 2016, a 60-page

chapbook A chapbook is a small publication of up to about 40 pages, sometimes bound with a saddle stitch. In early modern Europe a chapbook was a type of printed street literature. Produced cheaply, chapbooks were commonly small, paper-covered bookle ...

of writings by Best was published by Amphetamine Sulphate.

Art

In 2010, a collection of Best's artwork entitled ''American Campgrounds'' was published by Creation Books, with a foreword written by

Peter Sotos Peter Sotos (born April 17, 1960) is an American writer and musician. In his books, Sotos examines sadistic sexual criminals and sexually violent pornography, particularly involving children. His writings are interpreted by some as commenting o ...

. In December 2016, Infinity Land Press published ''Alien Existence'', a book of over 200 colour reproductions of original artwork by Best, as well as 40 pages of his creative writings, and an extensive interview conducted by Martin Bladh.

References

External links

* * *
Consumer Electronics website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Best, Philip Living people 1968 births English experimental musicians English industrial musicians English artists English male non-fiction writers Whitehouse (band) members Alumni of Durham University British noise musicians Musicians_from_Bristol