Over the course of three-plus decades, the Birmingham industrial act Godflesh has cemented itself as one of the most influential bands in metal. Among the many acts who have adopted the band’s industrial presentation, frontman Justin Broadrick is quite intrigued by how Korn and Fear Factory turned Godflesh’s sound mainstream.
Broadrick recently took part in a new conversation with Metal Hammer and talked about Godflesh’s career and legacy. Among the talking points brought up, Metal Hammer notes the impact that the band’s debut LP Streetcleaner had, and how they started to garner a great deal of attention early in their career. According to Broadrick, he says “We were being told that we were going to be the new Nine Inch Nails, the new Nirvana […].”
From there, Godflesh would continue to grow in popularity, and eventually, their sound would begin to inspire other metal bands to explore the waters of industrial music.
Among those bands who were utilizing elements of Godflesh’s industrial sound back in the ’90s were Korn and Fear Factory; regarding these acts, Broadrick shares what he thinks of each’s sound and how they each respectively re-shaped Godflesh’s industrial presentation
The frontman first brings up Korn and what he thought of them upon hearing their song “Blind.” Per Broadrick:
“I remember [Justin’s bandmate in the Techno Animal side-project] Kevin Martin phoning me, saying, ‘Jus, do you want to hear an American band sounding just like you?’ And he played me Blind by Korn. I was like, ‘Are you kidding? It sounds like Godflesh meets Faith No More.’”
Broadrick goes on to share what it was like hearing Fear Factory back in the day and talks about how they adopted Godflesh’s sound:
“Fear Factory were structured entirely around us, but I thought it was so much more conservative. But also I saw the beauty and the fact that that’s how you take my formula, be tactical about it, and present it to a larger audience who go, ‘Oh my God, this is amazing!’ And then they hear where it came from, and they go… ‘Oh!’ Ha ha ha!”
Do you agree with Justin Broadrick’s points about Korn and Fear Factory? Who are some bands you think pull off Godflesh’s sound well? This past June, Godflesh released their ninth studio album, titled Purge.