Wilhelm Anton "Bill" Leeb (born 21 September 1966,[2] in Vienna, Austria) is an Austrian-Canadian[3] electronic musician and record producer. He is best known for being a founding member of the industrial music group Front Line Assembly and Delerium.[4] Additionally, Leeb is known for his work with groups Noise Unit, Intermix, Skinny Puppy, Synæsthesia, Cyberaktif, Equinox, Fauxliage and Pro>Tech.[5]
Bill Leeb | |
|---|---|
 Bill Leeb performing in 2016 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Wilhelm Anton Leeb |
| Also known as | Bill Leeb, Wilhelm Schroeder[1] |
| Born | 21 September 1966[2] Vienna, Austria |
| Origin | Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Genres | Industrial, electronica |
| Occupations | Musician, songwriter, composer, record producer |
| Instruments | Vocals, synthesizer, sampler, percussion |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Labels | KK, Dossier, Third Mind, Wax Trax!, Roadrunner, Cleopatra, Off Beat, Metropolis, Dependent, Zoth Ommog |
| Website | http://www.mindphaser.com |
Career
editLeeb began his musical career with industrial band Skinny Puppy in 1984 under the pseudonym Wilhelm Schroeder,[1] contributing bass synth and occasional backing vocals to a few of their recordings and concerts. He left in 1986 and formed his own industrial project Front Line Assembly with Michael Balch, and later Rhys Fulber[6] and Chris Peterson. Though Front Line Assembly has had consistent underground success, Leeb's most widely known efforts are through his side project Delerium, which had a major hit in the late 1990s with "Silence".[5] Leeb composed the soundtrack to the 1999 video game, Quake III Arena, of which the expansion pack, Team Arena, was composed by his band, Front Line Assembly.
In 2017, Leeb appeared as guest singer on the single A Shiver of Want, a release of John Fryer's project Black Needle Noise.[7]
In 2022, Leeb contributed vocals for Black Asteroid's single Methane Rain.[8]
In June 2024, American label Metropolis announced Leeb's first solo album Model Kollapse, to be released on September 13, 2024.[9] The first single Terror Forms was released on July 9 along with a video.[10] Metropolis released the second single Demons on August 9, 2024, that was also accompanied by a video.[11] Leeb explained that the idea of a solo album was suggested by Metropolis founder Dave Heckman, who passed away before the album's release.[12]
Dispute with Trent Reznor
editIn an interview with music magazine Spin in 1992, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails made derogatory remarks about Front Line Assembly, calling them "a textbook case of a band" for industrial music and their music "monotonous, boring, uninspired bullshit".[13] Before the release of the issue, Reznor sent Leeb an apology letter. In one of their following issues, Spin printed part of the apology, in which Reznor expressed that he "should have thought before opening [his] mouth", along with a response from Leeb in which he implores Reznor to "think before making such ludicrous statements" and that he hopes "that others will use a little more thought before they go out of their way to put others down".[14]
Acting
editIn 1990, Leeb appeared in the trailer for the horror movie Chunk Blower together with Dwayne Goettel from Skinny Puppy,[15] playing one of the victims of a killer. Due to the lack of funding, the movie was never made.[16] Director Jim Van Bebber and Leeb would later use footage from the trailer in the video for the single "Virus".
Personal life
editLeeb has both Austrian and Canadian citizenship and speaks English as well as German. He received education at a convent school in Austria where he learned to play the violin. He moved to Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada with his family when he was 14, where he learned English and developed a keen interest in music.[17][18] He was a high school student at Mount Elizabeth Secondary School.[19] Leeb went to Camsoun College in Victoria, British Columbia to study journalism for two years.[19] He lives in Vancouver.
Leeb was married to the Canadian artist Carylann Loeppky.[20] Loeppky was part of the tour personnel on Front Line Assembly tours "designing and selling merchandise and put together a visual presentation for the live performance."[20] She continued to create artwork for albums of Delerium.[21]
Solo discography
edit- 2024 - Model Kollapse
References
edit- ^ a b Leeb, Bill (8 May 2013). "Bill Leeb (musician)". RAD1Radio (Radio).
- ^ a b Bauer, Henrik (24 March 2004). "Mindphaser > People > Bill Leeb > Biography". Mindphaser.com. Archived from the original on 2 January 2005. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
- ^ Raven, Daniel (2 June 2011). "Front Line Assembly Leads Cyborg Armies Through Post-Apocalyptic Soundscapes". Phoenix New Times. Voice Media Group. Archived from the original on 21 October 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Ankeny, Jason. "Front Line Assembly Biography". Allmusic. allmusic.com. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
- ^ a b Huey, Steve. Bill Leeb: Artist Biography by Steve Huey at AllMusic. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
- ^ Humberstone, Nigel (January 1995). "Bill Leeb: Front Line Assembly". Sound on Sound. Cambridge, United Kingdom: SOS Publications Group. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
- ^ Palfrey, Sean (3 May 2017). "Review: Black Needle Noise w/ Bill Leeb – 'A Shiver Of Want'". Intravenous Magazine. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
- ^ Teeple, Alice (17 May 2022). "Black Asteroid Debuts New Single "Methane Rain" Featuring Front Line Assembly". post-punk.com. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
- ^ Yücel, Ilker (28 June 2024). "Metropolis Records announces solo album debut from Bill Leeb". regenmag.com. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
- ^ Van Isacker, Bernard (9 July 2024). "Bill Leeb launches first single from upcoming solo debut: 'Terror Forms' – Out now". side-line.com. Retrieved 15 July 2024.
- ^ Yücel, Ilker (9 August 2024). "Bill Leeb addresses technology's effects on creativity with second single and music video from upcoming solo debut". regenmag.com. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
- ^ "Bill Leeb discusses his debut solo album, "Model Kollapse"". 12 September 2024.
- ^ Greer, Jim (March 1992). "Nine Inches of Love". Spin. Vol. 7, no. 12. New York City: Camouflage Associates. p. 41. ISSN 0886-3032. OCLC 970690651. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
- ^ "Point Blank: Letters: Pretty Hate Mail". Spin. Vol. 8, no. 3. New York City: Camouflage Associates. June 1992. p. 12. ISSN 0886-3032. OCLC 970690651. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
- ^ Hall, Oliver (14 January 2016). "'Chunk Blower', the unfinished horror movie starring members of Skinny Puppy". Dangerous Minds. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- ^ Alexander, Chris (January 2014). "The Politic Spasmolytic". Fangoria. No. 329. Atlanta: The Brooklyn Company. p. 54. ISSN 0164-2111. OCLC 46637019. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- ^ Leeb, Bill (23 November 2016). "Bill Leeb talks about Front Line Assembly, Delerium and more". Altvenger Magazine (Interview). Interviewed by Marija Buljeta. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
- ^ Leeb, Bill (21 August 2013). "Front Line Assembly (Bill Leeb) Interview". dsoaudio.com (Interview). Interviewed by Rob Dyer. dsomedia. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
- ^ a b Leeb, Bill (1999). "Q&A with Bill Leeb". Outburn (Interview). Interviewed by Rev. Moose. Thousand Oaks, California.
- ^ a b Loeppky, Carylann (12 November 2006). "Morpheus Music Interview - Carylann Loeppky". Morpheus Music (Interview). Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
- ^ Carylann Loeppky at AllMusic. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
Further reading
edit- Reed, S. Alexander (2013). Assimilate: A Critical History of Industrial Music. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-983260-6. LCCN 2012042281. OCLC 1147729910 – via the Internet Archive.