'' LAour of the Weak'' is the ninth full-length studio album by

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 "initial ...

group

Front Line Assembly Front Line Assembly (FLA) is a Canadian electro-industrial band formed by Bill Leeb in 1986 after leaving Skinny Puppy. FLA has developed its own sound incorporating elements of electronic body music and electro-industrial. The band's membersh ...

, released in November 1997 by Off Beat.

Background

'' LAour of the Weak'' is the first album of the band to feature Chris Peterson. Peterson had already toured with Front Line Assembly for ''

Caustic Grip ''Caustic Grip'' is the fifth full-length studio album by Front Line Assembly, originally released on Third Mind Records in Europe and on WaxTrax! Records in the United States in 1990. Background The album was the first without co-founding membe ...

'' and ''

Tactical Neural Implant ''Tactical Neural Implant'' is the sixth full-length studio album by electro-industrial artists Front Line Assembly. Third Mind Records originally released it in 1992 on both compact-disc and LP formats. The album has also been issued by Roa ...

'' but had never been part of the creative process. He also had teamed up with

Rhys Fulber Nowell Rhys Fulber is a Canadian electronic musician and producer. He is a member of Front Line Assembly and Delerium, along with Bill Leeb. He also records under his own name and under the name Conjure One. Biography Rhys Fulber was born i ...

in the band Will before Fulber became official member of Front Line Assembly. After Fulber's departure, band leader

Bill Leeb Wilhelm Anton "Bill" Leeb (born 21 September 1966, in Vienna, Austria) is an Austrian-Canadian electronic musician and record producer. He is best known for being a founding member of the industrial music group Front Line Assembly. Additional ...

asked Peterson to join Front Line Assembly.

Musical style

The style is somewhat of a departure from previous releases in the FLA catalog, with the group's beat-heavy signature beginning to take heavy cues from styles such as IDM and breakbeat.

Samples

"Sado-Masochist" uses samples of

Eazy-E Eric Lynn Wright (September 7, 1964 – March 26, 1995), known professionally as Eazy-E, was an American rapper who propelled West Coast rap and gangsta rap by leading the group N.W.A and its label, Ruthless Records. He is often referred ...

from an interview with hip hop group

N.W.A N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip hop group whose members were among the earliest and most significant popularizers and controversial figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, and the group is widely considered ...

while both "Comatose" and "Predator" as well as the B-side "Oblivion" contain samples from 1996 American

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, ap ...

'' Hellraiser: Bloodline''. Non-album track "Electrocution" from the ''Colombian Necktie'' single makes use of samples from

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. Widely regarded as one of the most influential acts in dance music history, they achieved popularity in the late 1990s as p ...

's "

Rollin' & Scratchin' Rollin or Rollin' may refer to: Music Albums * ''Rollin (Bay City Rollers album), 1974 * ''Rollin (Freddie Hubbard album), 1982 * ''Rollin (Texas Hippie Coalition album) or the title song, 2010 * ''Rollin (B1A4 EP) or the title song, 2017 * ' ...

" and from

The Chemical Brothers The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons in Manchester in 1989. They were pioneers (along with the Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, the Crystal Method, and other acts) in bringing the big beat gen ...

' "

Block Rockin' Beats "Block Rockin' Beats" is a song by British big beat duo the Chemical Brothers. Released in March 1997 as the second single and opening track from their second studio album, ''Dig Your Own Hole'' (1997), it topped the UK Singles Chart and peaked ...

Release

In 2015, the album saw a limited re-release on vinyl through Canadian label

Artoffact 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. ...

Singles

'' LAour of the Weak'' spawned two singles. The "Colombian Necktie" single contains an edit as well as a remix by Tim Schuldt of the title track. It also features two non-album tracks, "Deadlock" and "Electrocution". The second single, "Comatose", contains the "Ketamin 45mg" and "Valium 15mg" mixes by the band themselves. A third version of the title track ("Prozac 75mg") was remixed by Eat Static, who would deliver another, drastically different, remix of "Comatose" on ''Re-Wind''. The single also contains an exclusive mix of "Oblivion". Most of the tracks from the singles were re-released in 1999 through Off Beat on the compilation album ''Explosion'' together with tracks from the "

Circuitry An electronic circuit is composed of individual electronic components, such as resistors, transistors, capacitors, inductors and diodes, connected by conductive wires or traces through which electric current can flow. It is a type of electrical ...

" and " Plasticity" singles. This coincided with the release of '' Implode'' and the timing of the compilation's release displeased Bill Leeb.

Track listing

Personnel

Front Line Assembly

– production, mixing, vocals * Chris Peterson – production, mixing

Technical personnel

* Adam Drake – editing *

Dave McKean David McKean (born 29 December 1963) is an English illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, graphic designer, filmmaker and musician. His work incorporates drawing, painting, photography, collage, found objects, digital art, and sculp ...

– design, illustration, photography * Jamie Griffiths – band photography * Tom Baker – mastering

Chart positions

Comatose

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:FLAvour of the Weak Front Line Assembly albums 1997 albums Albums with cover art by Dave McKean Metropolis Records albums Albums produced by Chris Peterson (producer)