Artist
Failure
US alternative rock band
Los Angeles, United States • Formed 1990
Failure is a music group from Los Angeles, United States, active since 1990. Their discography on Gatefold includes 9 records.
9
Albums tracked
69
In collections
1990
Since
Biography
There are multiple artists under this name: (1) Failure is an alternative rock band from Los Angeles, USA, which was active from 1990 to 1997, and reunited in 2014. They are distinguished by their meticulous attention to textural sonic detail, inventive use of guitar effects and signal processing, and the overall expansive sound design of their later albums. Members played in other bands after the initial breakup, including Year of the Rabbit
The Arc of Failure
The pivots — what forced Failure to reinvent.
The Albini Rejection
After the sterile clash with Steve Albini on their debut, the band pivoted to Slash Records and grabbed Paul Lani to help translate the growing complexity of their demos. This era saw the addition of Kellii Scott on drums, whose precise, heavy-hitting pocket replaced the more frantic energy of Robert Gauss. Magnified was the sound of the band figuring out how to use the studio as a fifth member, layering textures and dissonant chords that moved away from the Pixies-style quiet-loud dynamic and toward something more mechanical.
The Space-Rock Void
Fantastic Planet was tracked in a rented house in the Hollywood Hills once owned by L. Ron Hubbard, where Ken and Greg spent months agonizing over every frequency. They ditched outside producers entirely, becoming obsessed with the 'direct-in' guitar sounds and synth-heavy transitions that made the record feel like a seamless, hour-long broadcast. The inclusion of Troy Van Leeuwen on second guitar for the tour solidified the dense, wall-of-sound live show, but the internal pressure and rampant drug use caused the band to implode just as the record was finally finding its audience.
The Clean Room Resurrection
When they reunited in 2014, they didn't try to chase the heroin-drenched ghost of 1996. The Heart Is a Monster was recorded with the same obsession for fidelity but a much clearer head, utilizing Ken Andrews' expertise as a top-tier mixing engineer to create a high-definition version of their original sound. They kept the 'Segues' tradition alive to maintain the cinematic flow, proving that the Failure blueprint was less about a specific era and more about a rigorous approach to frequency management and odd-time groove.
Influences
- Pink Floyd — Ken Andrews has cited The Wall as the primary blueprint for the concept-heavy, segued structure of Fantastic Planet. You hear it in the way Failure treats silence and sound effects as transitional tools to glue disparate songs into a single narrative. It's the architecture of the arena era stripped down for the grunge generation.
- The Beatles — The band frequently points to the Revolver era for their approach to studio experimentation and 'pop' songcraft under the influence of weirdness. The dry, forward drum sound on tracks like 'Tomorrow Never Knows' is the direct ancestor of the clinical percussion on Magnified. They took the melodic sensibility of Lennon and McCartney and fed it through a meat grinder of distortion.
- Joy Division — Greg Edwards has noted Peter Hook’s high-register bass playing as a massive influence on his own style. You hear this in how the bass often carries the melody in Failure tracks, leaving the guitars to provide atmosphere and noise. It shifted the traditional rock hierarchy in their mix, making the low end the lead instrument.
- The Cars — The band’s obsession with Roy Thomas Baker’s surgical, tight production style on early Cars records informed their own rejection of the 'sloppy' grunge aesthetic. The palm-muted, synchronized guitar and synth lines in songs like 'Saturday Saviour' are a direct nod to Ric Ocasek’s precision. They wanted the grit of 90s rock but the discipline of New Wave.
- Pixies — Failure opened for the Pixies early on, and Ken Andrews admitted that 'Debaser' was the song that made him want to write aggressive music with pop hooks. The jagged, dissonant chord voicings on Comfort are an obvious homage to Joey Santiago’s guitar work. They eventually outgrew the comparison, but the foundation of 'weird-pop' started right there.
Discography
Their records — most-collected first.
Related artists
Around the web
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