Throbbing Gristle

The first real industrial group, the founders of Industrial Records (Cosey Fanni Tutti (real name Christine Carol Newby), Chris Carter, Genesis Breyer P-Orridge alias Genesis P Orridge, Peter Christopherson) sonand one of the most important electronic music innovators of all time. (A fifth member at the beginning and in the transition from Music from the Death Factory to Industrial Records in 1976 has been Albrecht D.) Growing out of the extreme performance art group COUM Transmissions, TG redefined music and laid a large part of the groundwork for all electronic music that followed. From their first performances in 1976 to their last gig in San Francisco in 1981 (recorded and released as "Mission Of Dead Souls"), they challenged and threatend so-called "normal", society - denounced from the floor of the House of Commons as "Wreckers of Civilisation" as the Coum Transmissions "Prostitution" art show in London's ICA (at which TG played their third show) came close to causing riots and set the stage for the punk revolution. Musically, they were extreme and uncompromising, using technology to make anti-music, which redefined music for all time. Their experimentation led them to pioneer sampling and looping techniques adopted by many of those who came after. Throbbing Gristle officially began at September 3, 1975 and they officially split on June 23, 1981. After they split, Genesis and Peter formed Psychic TV (and Peter later joining Coil) and Chris and Cosey becoming, well, Chris & Cosey.