History Trivia / FearFactory

*** The situation, however, only made tensions between the band and their producer worse. Accounts are somewhat conflicted on what really went down during recording: while most of the band agrees that their producer just did not get their vision for ''Demanufacture'', Richardson explains on the album's liner notes[[note]]The 2005 remastered version only.[[/note]] that Dino Cazares had major [[ControlFreak]] tendencies and was putting a lot of pressure on him and the engineers, and even said that he wasn't speaking to Cazares at all during the last week of recording because of his allegedly rude behavior. Dino himself admits on those same liner notes that he was often micro-managing Richardson during the recording sessions. Eventually, Richardson got fed up with Cazares and banned him from the mixing sessions in England.

*** The situation, however, only made tensions between the band and their producer worse. Accounts are somewhat conflicted on what really went down during recording: while most of the band agrees that their producer just did not get their vision for ''Demanufacture'', Richardson explains on the album's liner notes[[note]]The 2005 remastered version only.[[/note]] that Dino Cazares had major [[Control Freak]] tendencies and was putting a lot of pressure on him and the engineers, and even said that he wasn't speaking to Cazares at all during the last week of recording because of his allegedly rude behavior. Dino himself admits on those same liner notes that he was often micro-managing Richardson during the recording sessions. Eventually, Richardson got fed up with Cazares and banned him from the mixing sessions in England.

*** The band initially booked Chicago Trax to record the album, partly because two of the band's biggest influences, Music/{{Ministry}} and Music/SkinnyPuppy, recorded albums there. The first sessions were booked in the Spring of 1994. However, many problems arose at the studio. At first, the studio was located in a somewhat unsafe neighborhood rife with drug dealing, sometimes right at the studio's front door. But the major problem with the studio was the uncooperative equipment: the computer would crash a lot, the control room had several defective or unresponsive channels, and the few takes that the band could record had many click noises that would have made the album sound terrible. After a few weeks of recording, Fear Factory chose to abandon Chicago Trax and look for another studio. According to Dino Cazares, ''$60,000'' were wasted in this studio.

*** Eventually, Fear Factory was able to join Bearsville Studios in September of 1994. Drums tracking went smoothly, but when it was time to record the guitars, Dino Cazares and producer Colin Richardson fought ''constantly'' over the album's guitar tone. Richardson tried to force Cazares to change it, as he demanded guitarists who recorded with him to use a Peavey 5150 with a Tube Screamer overdrive pedal. Cazares refused, preferring to use his live amplifier head at the time[[note]]A modded Marshall JCM800[[/note]]. It came to the point that two weeks later, no guitars were recorded at all. In the end, it took an unexpected meeting with Music/BadBrains guitarist Dr. Know to sort the matter: Cazares stuck to his guns and was able to record his guitars with his amp. He was even offered a new Mesa/Boogie cab which was used on the record, but the situation severely strained the band's relationship with Colin Richardson.
*** Then came the mix, which was another point where the band and their producer couldn't get along on. The band wanted the album to put high emphasis on the electronics, to which Richardson objected yet again. Eventually, Richardson got fed up with Dino Cazares and personally banned him from the mixing sessions so he could mix the album without any interruptions. In the end, Richardson's mix for the album proved to be unfitting to the band's wishes. To add insult to injury, they also discovered that the drum tracks had been deleted, forcing them to re-record the drums quickly with only a basic kit. Greg Reely was brought in to remix the album with the band.
*** From that point, the rest of the album's production went without any incidents. After a year and a half of production, ''Demanufacture'' was released in June 1995 to critical acclaim and unexpected commercial success; "Zero Signal" was even included on the soundtrack for ''Film/MortalKombatTheMovie'', and is considered Fear Factory's best album by fans, critics and the band themselves alike. However, the band also told in many interviews that the Demanufacture recording sessions were probably the hardest times of their respective lives because of what happened during this period, combined with the personal problems they were going into at the time.

*** Unfortunately, there was almost no other studio available at the time of recording aside from Bearsville Studios in Woodstock, NY. And even then, the band would have to wait 6 months before being able to settle there. At that point, the band was broke, had no concerts planned, and almost all members of the band were homeless due to losing their apartments during the Northridge earthquake. As such, they had to resort to sleeping in ''hotel receptions'' at best until Bearsville was available.

** Subverted with Dino Cazares, as he is listed by some sources as being born in Mexico, but he was actually born in El Centro, California, which is only 20 miles from the city of Mexicali, so the confusion is fairly understandable.

** Their first recorded LP, ''Concrete'', was left unreleased for 11 years for that particular reason. Both the band and producer Ross Robinson were broke at the time and couldn't afford to pay for enough studio time, so the band had to partially record the album guerilla-style, sneaking into the studio during nights to record some of the instruments. In order to avoid legal trouble, Robinson tried to have the band sign a recording contract through his label. Unfortunately, the band was advised not to sign it due to some terms that were deemed questionable, which led the band to be taken to court. Fear Factory, who was unsigned at the time, eventually lost the rights to the recordings, and the album's released was cancelled... That is until Roadrunner Records released it in 2002. Additionnally, half of the album was re-recorded for the next album, ''Soul of a New Machine''.

** ''The Industrialist'' reportedly had one too, because the band had been given a much smaller budget than their previous record. This resulted in Burt and Dino ditching drummer Gene Hoglan[[note]]He would later reveal that he found out about this album's completion online[[/note]] in favor of a drum machine, booking fewer studio time than usual, and basically having to record by themselves. However, the album was released unfinished, with one song, Enhanced Reality, missing from the original album. Needless to say, the album was met with a mixed response, with many people citing it had an 'incomplete' feel to it. The album was remixed and partially re-recorded with live drums in 2022, and re-released the following year under the name ''Re-Industrialized'', with Enhanced Reality added as the second-to-last track[[note]]It was previously available on digipak editions of their Genexus album[[/note]].

** Their first recorded LP, ''Concrete'', was left unreleased for 11 years for that particular reason. Both the band and producer Ross Robinson were broke at the time and couldn't afford to pay for actual studio time, so the band resorted to record the album guerilla-style, completely for free and during nights. In order to avoid legal trouble, Robinson tried to have the band sign a recording contract through his label. Unfortunately, the band was advised not to sign it due to some terms that were deemed questionable, which led the band to be taken to court. Fear Factory, who was unsigned at the time, eventually lost the rights to the recordings, and the album's released was cancelled... That is until Roadrunner Records released it in 2002. Additionnally, half of the album was re-recorded for the next album, ''Soul of a New Machine''.

** ''The Industrialist'' reportedly had one too, because the band had been given a much smaller budget than their previous record. This resulted in Burt and Dino ditching drummer Gene Hoglan[[note]]He would later reveal that he found out about this album's completion online[[/note]] in favor of a drum machine, booking fewer studio time than usual, and basically having to record by themselves. However, the album was not finished in time, with one song, Enhanced Reality, missing from the original album because of that. Needless to say, the album was met with a mixed response, with many people citing it had an 'incomplete' feel to it. The album was remixed and partially re-recorded with live drums in 2022, and re-released the following year under the name ''Re-Industrialized'', with Enhanced Reality added as the second-to-last track[[note]]It was previously available on digipak editions of their Genexus album[[/note]].

* TroubledProduction:
** As surprising as it sounds, ''Demanufacture'' went through one.
*** Initially, the band booked Chicago Trax to record the album, partly because two of the band's biggest influences, Music/{{Ministry}} and Music/SkinnyPuppy, recorded albums there. However, due to uncooperative equipment and perceived lack of safety relative to drug dealing in the studio's area, Fear Factory chose to leave the studio and relocate at Bearsville Studios in upstate Albany, NY.
*** Drums tracking went smoothly, but when it was time to record the guitars, Dino Cazares and producer Colin Richardson fought ''constantly'' over the album's guitar tone. Richardson tried to force Cazares to change it, to which he refused, to the point that two weeks into recording, no guitars were recorded. Eventually, a compromise was found with the help of Music/BadBrains guitarist Dr Know.
*** Then came the mix, which was another point where the band and their producer couldn't get along on. On one side, the band wanted the album to put high emphasis on the electronics. On the other side, producer Colin Richardson wanted the album to sound "conventional". Eventually, Richardson got fed up with Dino Cazares and personally banned him from the mixing sessions so he could mix the album without any interruptions.
*** In the end, the band hated Richardson's mix for the album. To add insult to injury, they also discovered that the drum tracks had been deleted, forcing them to re-record the drums quickly with only a basic kit. Greg Reely was brought in to remix the album with the band.
*** In the end, all the efforts paid off: ''Demanufacture'' was released in June 1995 to critical acclaim and unexpected commercial success, and is nowadays seen as a landmark record in heavy metal history. "Zero Signal" was even included on the soundtrack for ''Film/MortalKombatTheMovie''. On a more positive note about Richardson's original mix, two songs from the album as mixed by him are available on B-sides album ''Hatefiles''.
** ''Transgression'' also had a very tense recording process, as their label at the time pressured them to finish the album as quickly as possible so it could be released and promoted during the Gigantour festivals, in which Fear Factory participated. Unlike ''Demanufacture'', the results were not as stellar...
** ''Aggression Continuum''. It was delayed for several years due to the band's legal troubles, and Dino ended up re-working elements of it later.

* AscendedFanboy: Milo Silvestro. The band found him due to him being a fan who uploaded vocal covers of Fear Factory's songs on the internet.

* OldShame:
** None of the band seems to have high regard for how ''Transgression'' turned out. Christian hated how the final mix sounded (calling it "the worst piece of shit I'd heard in my life") and Raymond and Burton admit that they were too burnt out to do another record that quickly. It's the only studio album they haven't played live again from since the initial release tours.
** Burton has said in recent years that he feels this way about reuniting with Dino in 2009. He has fully admitted that he was mainly motivated to do it by the money involved, and he found being in this version of Fear Factory creatively limiting.

* BigNameFan: According to the band, [[{{Wrestling/ChrisJericho}} Chris Jericho]].

* OldShame: None of the band seems to have high regard for how ''Transgression'' turned out. Christian hated how the final mix sounded (calling it "the worst piece of shit I'd heard in my life") and Raymond and Burton admit that they were too burnt out to do another record that quickly. It's the only studio album they haven't played live again from since the initial release tours.

** The much delayed follow up to ''Genexus'' went through this due to ongoing legal disputes about who owns the band name, with the latest plot twist being that Burton actually quit the band because he found out that Dino had somehow claimed the sole rights to the name.