Clan of Xymox, also known as simply Xymox, are a Dutch rock band from

Nijmegen Nijmegen (;; Spanish and it, Nimega. Nijmeegs: ''Nimwèège'' ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and tenth largest of the Netherlands as a whole, located on the Waal river close to the German border. It is about 6 ...

formed in 1981 best known as pioneers of

darkwave 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. Clan of Xymox featured a trio of singers and songwriters –

Ronny Moorings Ronny Moorings (born 20 May 1961) is a Dutch musician best known for his work with darkwave band Clan of Xymox. Moorings has been the band's principal singer/songwriter since the early 1990s. Music career With Clan of Xymox on 4AD While a socio ...

Anka Wolbert Anka Wolbert (also Anke Wolbert, born 10 June 1963) is a Dutch musician, singer, songwriter and web developer, best known for her work with Clan of Xymox. Music career Xymox, Clan of Xymox Anka Wolbert co-founded the band Xymox with Ronny Moori ...

, and

Pieter Nooten Pieter Nooten (born 22 January 1961 in Oss) is a Dutch musician and composer best known for his work with Clan of Xymox. Music career Nooten's musical career began in the late 1970s. Starting out as the drummer in a local symphonic rock band, h ...

– and gained success in the 1980s, releasing their first two albums on 4AD, before releasing their third and fourth albums on

Wing Records Wing Records was a record label subsidiary of Mercury Records founded in 1955, that found its greatest success during the late 1950s. In 1986, the label was revived by Mercury's parent company, PolyGram and the label had brief success with R&B ...

and scoring a hit single in the United States. Their 1980s releases included

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 ...

/ electronic dance music. The band is still active, continuing to tour and release records with Moorings as the sole remaining original songwriter and singer.

History

4AD and the Peel Sessions (1983–1988)

Clan of Xymox were formed in

, Netherlands, in 1983 by

(vocals, guitar) and

(bass, vocals). A year later, Moorings and Wolbert moved to Amsterdam, releasing the

mini-album A mini-LP or mini-album is a short vinyl record album or LP, usually retailing at a lower price than an album that would be considered full-length. It is distinct from an EP due to containing more tracks and a slightly longer running length. A ...

''Subsequent Pleasures'' as ''Xymox''. The album was limited to 500 copies.

"Ronny and I met as students in Nijmegen and we connected over our taste in music. We started making music together and picked up some equipment to experiment with, like the
Korg MS-10 , founded as Keio Electronic Laboratories, is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instruments, audio processors and guitar pedals, recording equipment, and electronic tuners. Under the Vox brand name, the ...
and a rhythm machine...We started to perform live, just the two of us, changing instruments in between songs. While I had a bass guitar strapped around my neck and simultaneously hit the monophonic keyboard, Ronny played guitar and sang. We combined our sound with tape loops, a Casio, plus a few weird instruments."

Named from ''zymotic'' (of or causing fermentation), the band formed as a project of

and

, Netherlands in 1983, before moving to

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

and joining

(Moorings' Nijmegen flat-mate) and Frank Weyzig, who added their own contributions, Assuming the name "Xymox", the group released a five-track EP entitled, '' Subsequent Pleasures'', in 1983. They were invited by

Brendan Perry Brendan Michael Perry (born 30 June 1959) is a British singer and multi-instrumentalist best known for his work as half of the duo Dead Can Dance with Lisa Gerrard. Early life Perry was born in Whitechapel, London, England, UK, in 1959 to a mot ...

to support

Dead Can Dance Dead Can Dance are an Australian music duo first established in Melbourne. Currently composed of Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry, the group formed in 1981. They relocated to London the following year. Australian music historian Ian McFarlane des ...

on a UK tour and were signed to the indie label 4AD, which released their eponymous debut album in 1985. The track ''7th Time'', with Anka Wolbert on lead vocals, was picked up by

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

, leading to the band recording two of the Peel Sessions at the BBC, in June and November 1985. Peel referred to the band's dark and melancholic sound as "darkwave". In 1986, they released their second and last album on 4AD, ''

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...

'', before signing with

PolyGram PolyGram N.V. was a multinational entertainment company and major music record label formerly based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1962 as the Grammophon-Philips Group by Dutch corporation Philips and German corporation Siemens, to be a ...

. Simultaneously, Pieter Nooten recorded and released his album ''

Sleeps with the Fishes ''Sleeps with the Fishes'' is the lone collaborative album from Clan of Xymox founding member Pieter Nooten and Canadian guitarist/ producer Michael Brook, released by 4AD on 12 October 1987. Intended as Nooten's debut solo album after a brief sp ...

'' (4AD, 1987), in collaboration with Canadian session musician

Michael Brook Michael Brook (born 1951) is a Canadian guitarist, inventor, music producer, and film music composer. He plays in many genres, including rock, electronica, world music, minimalism and film scores. His collaborations with musicians around the worl ...

. In a 2010 interview with AlterNation Magazine, Moorings expressed disappointment at the divided interests of the band members at this stage, exclaiming Medusa's follow-up album was "made entirely independently, without the rest of the musicians, who were then on vacation."

PolyGram and international success (1988–1991)

Now abbreviated as Xymox, the band's third album, ''

Twist of Shadows ''Twist of Shadows'' is Xymox's third full-length album, released in 1989 on Wing Records (PolyGram) and produced by Peter Walsh (acclaimed producer of Simple Minds's New Gold Dream album). The album captured Billboard's "Hot Shot Debut" hono ...

'', was released in 1989. This album, and its successor ''

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

'', were released by

, a subsidiary of

Polydor Records Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

. In the United States, these two albums created a cult following for the band. The first two singles taken from the ''Twist of Shadows'' album, "Blind Hearts" and "Obsession", proved college and club hits in the United States, with ''Obsession'' charting on ''Billboard''s

Alternative Songs Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...

chart and both tracks hitting the Billboard Club Play Chart. It was the album's third single, "Imagination" (with Anka Wolbert on lead vocals), that brought the band the most mainstream attention, charting at No. 85 on ''Billboard'' Hot 100, generating Top 40 radio airplay and MTV rotation of the "Imagination (Edit)" single video. ''

'' proved their most commercially successful album, selling more than 300,000 copies worldwide. By this time the band had moved to England and released their fourth album, ''

'', on PolyGram in 1991; after this album, Anka Wolbert and Pieter Nooten left the band due to disagreements about the band's musical direction.

Independent labels and move to Germany (1991–Present)

Xymox, without Nooten and Wolbert, left PolyGram to release the UK

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 ...

inspired LPs ''Metamorphosis'' (1992) and ''Headclouds'' (1993) independently. These albums marked a break from the dark wave sound of the 1980s and met with poor record sales in the United States, which had moved towards a markedly different

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of p ...

sound at the time. Ronny Moorings toured under the banner of Xymox until 1994 with an evolving cast of live musicians, including girlfriend and future band member Mojca Zugna. Frank Weyzig (the last of the original line-up) parted ways with Moorings after the 1994 tour, after which Moorings moved back to the Netherlands and took a three-year hiatus from music-writing. Capitalizing on a resurgence in the popularity of

gothic rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie a ...

and the success of bands such as

Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...

and

Rammstein Rammstein (, "ramming stone") is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riedel, ...

, 1997 saw Moorings reverting the name to Clan of Xymox and moving to Germany – then the center of the burgeoning

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 ...

scene – to resume songwriting. Moorings recruited new live members and signed with the independent US label Tess Records in 1997 then with Metropolis in 1998. The LPs ''Hidden Faces'' (1997), ''Creatures'' (1999) and ''Notes from the Underground'' (2001) reflect an increasingly electro sound while maintaining the distinctive dance rhythms associated with the Clan of Xymox catalog. In 1998, 4AD re-released ''Clan of Xymox'' and ''Medusa'' in the US, and Xymox toured the United States the following year. 2003's ''FareWell'' featured several charting tracks internationally. Most recently, the LP ''Matters of Mind, Body and Soul'' was released on Trisol, Metropolis and Gravitator record labels for European, American and Russian distribution, respectively, in February 2014. In addition to intermittent original releases, Clan of Xymox has contributed to a number of compilations and side projects since conception. In 1987, the track "Moscoviet Mosquito" was re-recorded and released on the 4AD compilation album ''

Lonely Is an Eyesore ''Lonely Is an Eyesore'' is a compilation album, compilation on the 4AD label. Released in June 1987, it features artists who were signed to the label at that time. All tracks were recorded during the period immediately preceding the release (198 ...

''. In October 2000 the band released ''Live'', a double CD with nineteen tracks and two videos featuring live performances of Xymox songs from the 4AD, Polygram, and independent eras. In September 2004, a ''Best of Clan of Xymox'' album was released with re-recorded versions of early hits as well as later offerings. In 2011, the track "In Your Arms Again" from the LP ''Darkest Hour'' was included on the soundtrack to

David Fincher David Andrew Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American film director. His films, mostly psychological thrillers and biographical dramas, have received 40 nominations at the Academy Awards, including three for him as Best Director. Fin ...

's ''

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'' (original title in sv, Män som hatar kvinnor , lit=''Men Who Hate Women'') is a psychological thriller novel by Swedish author and journalist Stieg Larsson (1954–2004). It was published posthumously in 2 ...

''. In 2012 the band released a cover album, ''Kindred Spirits'', featuring covers of several influential post-punk and new wave groups in Mooring's own musical styling. The songs "A Day", "Masquerade", and "Cry in the Wind" were featured on the official soundtrack to the 2014 film The Guest. In a touring capacity, Clan of Xymox is best known as a headlining act for several annual international alternative music festivals, including

M'era Luna Festival The M'era Luna is a rock festival that encompasses a number of different styles such as metal, future pop, aggrotech, synthpop, gothic rock, dark wave, and ebm. It is held annually on the second weekend of every August, in Hildesheim, Ge ...

in Hildesheim, Germany, Triton Festival in New York City, Summer Darkness in Utrecht, Netherlands,

Whitby Gothic Weekend Whitby Goth Weekend, abbreviated to WGW or nicknamed Whitby, is a twice-yearly music festival for the gothic subculture, in Whitby, North Yorkshire, England, organised by Jo Hampshire. Summary Whitby Goth Weekend is an alternative music fest ...

in Whitby, England, and the largest –

Wave-Gotik-Treffen The Wave-Gotik-Treffen (WGT; ) is an annual world festival for "dark" music and "dark culture" in Leipzig, Germany. 150+ bands and artists from various backgrounds (gothic rock, gothic metal, EBM, industrial, noise, darkwave, neo-folk, neo-cl ...

, in Moorings' current home of Leipzig, Germany.

Discography

Studio albums

*''

Clan of Xymox Clan of Xymox, also known as simply Xymox, are a Dutch rock band from Nijmegen formed in 1981 best known as pioneers of darkwave music. Clan of Xymox featured a trio of singers and songwriters – Ronny Moorings, Anka Wolbert, and Pieter Noot ...

'' (LP, CD, 4AD, 1985) *''

'' (LP, CD, 4AD, 1986) *''

'' (LP, CD, CS, Wing, 1989) - under Xymox *''

'' (LP, CD, CS, Wing Records/

Polydor Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

, 1991) - under Xymox (last with original line-up) *''Metamorphosis'' (CD, CS, Mogull Entertainment/X-ULT, 1992) - under Xymox *''Headclouds'' (LP, CD, CS, Zok/Off-Beat, 1993) - under Xymox *''Hidden Faces'' (CD, Tess, 1997) *''Creatures'' (CD,

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

/Pandaimonium, 1999; re-released, Gravitator, 2006) *''Notes from the Underground'', (CD, Metropolis/Pandaimonium, 2001; re-released, Gravitator, 2007) *''Farewell'' (CD, Metropolis/Pandaimonium, 2003; re-released, Gravitator, 2007) *''Breaking Point'' (CD, Gravitator/Metropolis/Pandaimonium/Vision Music, 2006) *''In Love We Trust'', (CD, Trisol/Metropolis/Gravitator, 2009 - LP, Trisol 2015) *''Darkest Hour'', (CD, Trisol/Metropolis Records 2011 - LP, Trisol 2018) *''Matters of Mind, Body & Soul'', (CD, Trisol/Metropolis 2014 - LP, Trisol 2018) *''Days of Black'', (CD, Trisol/Metropolis 2017 - LP, Trisol 2017) *''Spider on the Wall'', (CD, Trisol/Metropolis 2020) * ''Limbo'', (CD, Digital, Metropolis, 2021)

Cover album

*''Kindred Spirits'', (CD, Trisol/Metropolis 2012 - LP, Trisol 2018)

Singles/EPs

*'' Subsequent Pleasures'' (vinyl 12", self-released, 1983) - under Xymox *"A Day" (12", 4AD, 1986; re-released, Old Gold, 1998) *"A Day/Stranger" (12", Contempo, 1985) *"Louise" (7", Megadisc, 1986) *"Muscoviet Musquito" (promotional 7", Virgin France 1986) *"Blind Hearts" (12", 4AD/Rough Trade, 1987) *"Blind Hearts" (12", Wing, 1989; different songs than from the 4AD release) *"Obsession" (12", Wing/

, 1989) *"Imagination" (12" and CD-single, Wing, 1989) *"Phoenix" (CS and LP, Polydor, 1991) *"Phoenix of My Heart" (Maxi CD and 12", Wing/Polydor, 1991) *"At the End of the Day" (Maxi CD and 12", Wing, 1991) *"Out of the Rain" (Maxi CD, Tess, 1997) *"This World" (Maxi CD, Tess, 1998) *"Consolation" (Maxi CD, Metropolis, 1999) *"Liberty" (Maxi CD, Metropolis/Pandaimonium, 2000) *''The John Peel Sessions'' (CD EP, ''Strange Fruit'', 2001; re-released, ''Celebration', 2003) *"There's No Tomorrow" (Maxi CD, Pandaimonium, 2002) *"Weak in My Knees" (Maxi CD, Pandaimonium, 2006)' *"Heroes" (Pandaimonium, 2007) *"Emily" (Maxi CD, Trisol, 2009) *"She" (Metropolis, 2020) *"Lovers" (Metropolis, 2020) *"All I Ever Know" (Metropolis, 2020)

Remixes

*"Dream On/XDD" (12", X-ULT, 1992) *"Reaching Out" (Maxi CD and 12", Zok, 1993) *"Spiritual High (Club Mix)" (promotional 12", Zok, 1993) *"Remix" – (CD, Zok, 1994)

Live albums

*''Live'' (CD, Metropolis/Pandaimonium, 2000) *''Live at Castle Party'' (CD, Big Blue Records, 2011)

Compilations

*''Remixes from the Underground'' (double CD, Metropolis/Pandaimonium, 2002) *''The Best of Clan of Xymox'' (CD, Metropolis/Pandaimonium/Vision Music/Irond, 2004) *''Visible'' (double DVD, Pandaimonium/Gravitator/Vision Music, 2008)

Remixes of other artists

* I:Scintilla, "Scin", on ''

Optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultraviole ...

'' (2007)

References

External links

clanofxymox.com
Official site
clanofxymox.org
New official interactive site (not working as of 11/14/2021)
clanofxymox.nl
fan site * http://www.unruhr.de/musik/revue/3019-clan-of-xymox-subsequent-pleasures-1982-1985-biographie-teil-1 * http://www.unruhr.de/musik/revue/3020-clan-of-xymox-medusa-1986-1987-biographie-teil-2 * http://www.unruhr.de/musik/revue/3021-clan-of-xymox-imagination-1988-1991-biographie-teil-3 * http://www.unruhr.de/musik/revue/3022-clan-of-xymox-metamorphosis-biographie-teil-4 * http://www.unruhr.de/musik/revue/3023-post-clan-of-xymox-anka-pieter-frank-biographie-teil-5 * https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/clan-of-xymox {{DEFAULTSORT:Clan of Xymox 4AD artists Dutch dark wave musical groups Dutch gothic rock groups Dutch new wave musical groups Dutch electronic rock musical groups Metropolis Records artists Musical groups established in 1981