Psyche are a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
dark
Darkness, the direct opposite of lightness, is defined as a lack of illumination, an absence of visible light, or a surface that absorbs light, such as black or brown.
Human vision is unable to distinguish colors in conditions of very low lu ...
synthpop
Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...
band, now based in Germany. They are centered on singer
Darrin Huss
Psyche are a Canadians, Canadian Dark wave, dark synthpop band, now based in Germany. They are centered on singer Darrin Huss, who has been the only constant member, with various line-ups including his brother Stephen Huss (musician), Stephen Hu ...
, who has been the only constant member, with various line-ups including his brother
Stephen Huss, later followed by
David Kristian
David Kristian (born November 5, 1967) is a Canadian musician and film score composer and sound designer.
David Kristian has been involved in audio for media since the early 1980s, when he first started work as an animation and experimental fi ...
, Per-Anders Kurenbach, and Remi Szyszka, all recording albums with Darrin under the name Psyche.
History
Formation
Psyche was formed by brothers
Darrin and
Stephen Huss in
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...
,
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
, named after the B-Side of
Killing Joke
Killing Joke are an English rock music, rock band from Notting Hill, London, England, formed in 1979 by Jaz Coleman (vocals, keyboards), Paul Ferguson (drums), Geordie Walker (guitar) and Youth (musician), Youth (bass).
Their first album, ''Ki ...
's ''Wardance'' single as well as being chosen for the meaning of the word. The band's debut performance was on December 13, 1982, with
Dwayne Goettel
Dwayne Rudolph Goettel (February 1, 1964August 23, 1995) was a Canadian electronic musician, best known for his work in the industrial music group Skinny Puppy. Starting his career playing for a variety of acts around Edmonton, he joined Skinny P ...
on additional keyboards.
During this period, Psyche performed bizarre live shows wherein Darrin performed nude (except for being covered in shaving cream) while talk-singing and shouting over the music. The performance idea was prompted by pictures seen of
Fad Gadget
Francis John Tovey (8 September 1956 – 3 April 2002), known also by his stage name Fad Gadget, was a British avant-garde electronic musician and vocalist. He was a proponent of both new wave and early industrial music, fusing pop-structured ...
in British Music magazines.
While demos were recorded during the collaboration with Dwayne Goettel, no albums were released until 1985's ''Insomnia Theatre'', after Goettel's departure.
Early years
After ''Insomnia Theatre'' achieved moderate success in Europe, Psyche signed with New Rose Records in Paris.
["Psyche reunites with long-lost electronic friends and fans in 9910 concert"]
''Edmonton Journal'', Tom Murray, July 18, 2018 They released two singles followed by a studio album, ''Unveiling the Secret'', in 1986.
[ To promote the record, Psyche performed as the opening act for ]Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
, at Élysée Montmartre
Élysée Montmartre (french: L'Élysée Montmartre) is a music venue located at 72 Boulevard de Rochechouart, Paris, France. It opened in 1807, burned down in 2011, reopened in 2016, and has a capacity of 1,380 patrons. The nearest métro statio ...
in Paris, then as headliners on their own European tour.
After the release of their third studio album, ''Mystery Hotel'', Stephen Huss was diagnosed with schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social withdra ...
and took a hiatus from the group. During this period Darrin began collaborating with David Kristian
David Kristian (born November 5, 1967) is a Canadian musician and film score composer and sound designer.
David Kristian has been involved in audio for media since the early 1980s, when he first started work as an animation and experimental fi ...
, leading to a new album, ''The Influence'', in 1989. This album introduced new elements to Psyche's sound, with samples created by Kristian, and being performed entirely on the Casio FZ1. The songs "Misery", and "Haunted" began Psyche's shift to the dark wave
Dark wave (also typeset as darkwave) is a music genre that emerged from the new wave and post-punk movement of the late 1970s. Dark wave compositions are largely based on minor key tonality and introspective lyrics and have been perceived as be ...
music scene.
A visit home to Waterloo in 1991 reunited the Huss brothers and, the subsequent recording sessions produced 1991's ''Daydream Avenue''. Though Psyche returned to tour Europe with German keyboardist Johannes Haeusler in support of English poetic artist Anne Clark, Stephen Huss stayed behind in Canada because of his illness.
In 1994, the album ''Intimacy'', produced in collaboration with Joseph Watt (of Razormaid) was released, along with a companion EP of dance numbers, ''Private Desires'', which featured a cover of Soft Cell
Soft Cell are an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. The duo consists of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The band are primarily known for their 1981 hit version of "Tainted Love" and their plat ...
's classic ''Sex Dwarf
Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones (ova, o ...
''. The group embarked on a small German tour, but Stephen Huss remained in Canada, leaving Darrin to find new collaborators in Germany.
Crossover success
After another hiatus while Darrin took part in side projects, Psyche resumed activities in 1996 with Per-Anders Kurenbach joining as a new member. The first single release was "You Ran Away" with a cover version of Goodbye Horses
"Goodbye Horses" is a song recorded by American singer Q Lazzarus. It was written by Q Lazzarus's bandmate, William Garvey, and released in 1988, with an extended version being released three years later. It is a synth-pop, dark wave, new wa ...
by Q Lazzarus
Diane Luckey (December 12, 1960 – July 19, 2022), known professionally as Q Lazzarus, was an American singer. She is best known for her 1988 song " Goodbye Horses", which became a cult classic after being prominently featured in a scene from ...
as the B-Side. This cover version became a permanent staple in Psyche's live repertoire, as well as being included on the album ''Strange Romance'', which took a musical shift toward an accessible, upbeat pop sound.
After playing for the first time in Oslo, Norway
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of i ...
and a return to Sweden, Psyche released a live video featuring highlights from their ''Strange Romance'' Tour. In 1998 the group signed with the StrangeWays label out of Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
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, Germany, and released their eighth album, ''Love Among the Ruined'', which included some experimental pop music.
At the beginning of 2000, Psyche signed to Artoffact Records
Artoffact Records is a Canadian/ Icelandic record label that concentrates on industrial, postpunk, heavy metal, and electronic music. The label was founded in 1999.
History
In 1997, Jacek Kozlowski laid the groundwork for Artoffact Records.
I ...
of Toronto, Canada. The release of ''Misguided Angels'' contained material from 1983 through 2000 as a re-introduction of Psyche back on their original continent. It contained the last material from Per-Anders Kurenbach, and Darrin as well as some lesser-known mixes. By this point the partnership was dissolved, and Darrin began the next decade of music with Remi Szyszka as his collaborator in Psyche.
The new line-up made its debut on Accession Records with the single, ''Sanctuary'', released in April 2001. After a series of concerts in both Europe and North America, a ninth studio album ''The Hiding Place'' was released and well-received, charting at fourth place in the year-end Top 100 of the German Alternative Charts. To capitalize on this success, a remix album entitled ''Endangered Species'' was released mid-2002. A series of live performances followed in 2003, along with the release of ''Babylon Deluxe'', which appeared in the German Alternative Top Ten.
''The 11th Hour'', Psyche's 11th album, featured the return of previous collaborator Per-Anders Kurenbach, but including a farewell track with Remi Szyszka, and a guest appearance by Christian Wirsig. ''The 11th Hour'' was released through Accession Records in Europe, Metropolis Records in North America, and Irond Records in Russia making it the widest release in the band's history. The album topped the German Alternative Charts (DAC), ranking #1 for 7 weeks on the DAC Top 10 Albums of March, 2005. and Nr. 11 on the overall chart of that year.
In 2006, as the band neared its 25-year mark, a DVD collection documenting Psyche's appearances in every incarnation from 1983 to 2005 was released. Titled ''Imaginary Life'', its 23 tracks included at least one song from each of the previous albums released. It contains music videos and performances beginning with "The Crawler" on an Edmonton TV station in 1983 through to 2005, an audio commentary track, and a backstage interview with the Huss brothers in Sweden after their debut concert in Gothenburg in 1988.
Following ''The 11th Hour'', Psyche shifted their focus to touring rather than recording, playing shows and festivals across Europe, North and South America, and South Africa. While no new studio albums were recorded, the band released remix albums (''Unveiling the Secret 2.0'', ''Until The Shadows'', ''Halloween EP''), compilations of old and unreleased materials (''Re-Membering Dwayne'', ''Unknown Treasures'', ''As The Brain Collapses'', ''Rare Mixes & B-Sides''), several live albums, and some re-releases of early albums.
In 2011, Psyche releases a cover album, "Unknown Treasures", that includes re interpretations of songs by The Cure, The Doors, Depeche Mode or Visage. In 2012, they released the "All Things Pass Into The Night" EP which included a re-recorded extended version of "Goodbye Horses" on the Optimo
Optimo Espacio ('Optimum Space') was a weekly Sunday-night club based in Glasgow, Scotland at the Sub Club on Jamaica Street, as well as a collective moniker for the night's resident DJ duo. Having run every week since it was founded in 1997, on ...
Label. Also in 2012 Psyche released an updated version of "The Influence" album on Italian label Final Muzik, with new interpretations of the songs "Misery", "The Sundial", and "Salvation Stranger" as well as once again "Goodbye Horses" as "Immortality Mix".
2014 saw a collaboration with Rational Youth
Rational Youth was a Canadian new wave Synth-pop band that was originally active between 1981 and 1986, and at various points up until the end of 2021.
History
Rational Youth was formed in 1981 in Montreal, Quebec, by synthesizer players Tra ...
resulting in an electronic interpretation of AC/DC
AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...
's hit " Thunderstruck" being released in three different coloured vinyl 7" singles on Artoffact Records
Artoffact Records is a Canadian/ Icelandic record label that concentrates on industrial, postpunk, heavy metal, and electronic music. The label was founded in 1999.
History
In 1997, Jacek Kozlowski laid the groundwork for Artoffact Records.
I ...
The bands toured together that same year across Scandinavia and Germany.
Psyche collaborated with Belgian artist LUMINANCE on two songs written by LUMINANCE and sung by Darrin Huss as PSYCHE on a limited coloured vinyl 7" release on Artoffact Records
Artoffact Records is a Canadian/ Icelandic record label that concentrates on industrial, postpunk, heavy metal, and electronic music. The label was founded in 1999.
History
In 1997, Jacek Kozlowski laid the groundwork for Artoffact Records.
I ...
in 2015.
Also in the same year, continuing with Artoffact Records, Psyche began re-releasing their 80s material starting with the 30th anniversary edition of their first 12" single "Thundershowers (In Ivory Towers) which was originally from 1985.
Recent work
In July 2016, the first three albums ''Insomnia Theatre'' (1985), ''Unveiling the Secret'' (1986/1987), and ''Mystery Hotel'' (1988) were digitally remastered and re-released as double albums including archival bonus tracks, plus related singles, and mixes.
Psyche released their a new original song "Youth of Tomorrow" as a video and digital release on Halloween, 2017. A 12" single followed early 2018 making it their first official release of new material in 13 years. After some European dates that year, Psyche returned to Canada for their first official tour of their home country since the early 1980s.
In 2018 and 2019 VUZ Records released a pair of compilations named ''Under the Radar'' containing rare and unreleased Psyche tracks as limited edition CDs. Prior to embarking on a tour with Rational Youth in 2019, the band released two remixes of their 1987 single, "Uncivilized," for which Jens Plöger provided the "Dark Italo Mix" under his studio name Run:.
Discography
Studio albums
* ''Insomnia Theatre'' (1985)
* ''Unveiling the Secret'' (1986)
* ''Mystery Hotel'' (1988)
* ''The Influence'' (1989)
* ''Daydream Avenue'' (1991)
* ''Intimacy'' (1994)
* ''Strange Romance'' (1996)
* ''Love Among the Ruined'' (1998)
* ''The Hiding Place'' (2001)
* ''Babylon Deluxe'' (2003)
* ''The 11th Hour'' (2005)
Live albums
* ''Live'' (1988)
* ''Live 2K'' (2000)
* ''Live at Belvedere Hall 1983'' (2003)
* ''Noche Oscura (Live in Mexico)'' (2009)
Compilations and remix albums
* ''Tales from the Darkside'' (1990)
* ''69 Minutes of History'' (1993)
* ''Misguided Angels'' (2000)
* ''Endangered Species'' (2002)
* ''Legacy'' (2004)
* ''Unveiling the Secret 2.0'' (2006)
* ''Club Salvation'' (2007)
* ''Vintage'' (2007)
* ''Until the Shadows'' (2009)
* ''Re-Membering Dwayne'' (2010)
* ''Unknown Treasures'' (2011)
* ''As the Brain Collapses'' (2012)
* ''Under the Radar'' (2017)
* ''Under the Radar 2'' (2019)
Singles and EPs
* "Thundershowers" (1985)
* "Contorting the Image" (1985)
* "Prisoner to Desire/Black Panther" (1987)
* "Uncivilized" (1987)
* "Eternal/Insatiable" (1988)
* "Suspicion" (1989)
* "Angel Lies Sleeping" (1991)
* "If You Believe" (1991)
* "The Saint Became a Lush" (1993)
* ''Private Desires EP'' (1994)
* "You Ran Away/ Good-Bye Horses" (1996)
* "Sanctuary" (2001)
* "The Quickening" (2003)
* "X-Rated" (2004)
* "Unveiling the Secret (Remixes)" (2006)
* "Disorder" (2008)
* "All Things Pass into the Night" (2012)
* ''Halloween EP'' (2013)
* "The Saint Became a Lush (Radical G Rework)" (2014)
* "Youth of Tomorrow" (2018)
* "Heaven In Pain" (2020)
* "Spirits Of Lockdown EP" Bandcamp only (2020)
* "Cry Little Sister" Halloween Single (2022)
* "Valentine Heart" (2022)
DVDs
* ''Imaginary Life'' (2006)
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Psyche
1982 establishments in Alberta
Canadian dark wave musical groups
Canadian synthpop groups
Metropolis Records artists
Musical groups established in 1982
Musical groups from Edmonton