Streetcleaner

This is the record that first gave the phrase industrial metal its weight. Godflesh were two people — Justin Broadrick and bassist G. C. Green — with a machine where the drummer would be. It was recorded across several sessions; the first five songs were cut at Soundcheck in Birmingham between May and August 1989. Earache Records issued the 12-inch, MOSH 15, on 13 November 1989. Over a programmed pulse that does not vary, the bass and guitar sit extremely low and extremely distorted. The structure does not push with speed but raises pressure by repeating the same shape, which is exactly how "Like Rats", "Christbait Rising" and the title track proceed. Broadrick has said the feel of the programming came from late-1980s hip hop, and that the beat on "Christbait Rising" was his attempt at copying the rhythm of Eric B. & Rakim's "Microphone Fiend". It sold heavily for Earache and has been named ever since as the starting point for the industrial side of heavy music. The running order here is the 1989 original's as printed.