A Brief History of Puppy

Skinny Puppy were formed in late 1982, when Kevin Crompton [aka cEvin Key] met Kevin Ogilvie [aka Nivek Ogre] at a party. Ogre was into poetry, and cEvin had an interest in the newly-emerging industrial scene. They decided to form a band. They recruited Bill Leeb [aka W. Schroeder] on keyboards, and started making caustic, electronic music. Despite the unlistenable nature of much of their material, Skinny Puppy had moments where their songs were not only tuneful, but beautiful, affecting and utterly brilliant One or two masterpieces ["Smothered Hope"; "Addiction"] and they were away. "Assimilate" was not only unfathomably catchy but a huge club smash.

They toured extensively, on the way replacing Leeb with a young Dwayne R. Goettel. Leeb went on to form Front Line Assembly. Goettel was sweet, shy and sensitive. Crompton was reserved, imposing and had the same intense charisma as the pretty, outspoken Ogre. Nobody appears to have forseen the consequences as they forged a heated, agitated partnership that often took its toll on those around them, not least Dwayne Goettel.

Through the years, the rock and roll lifestyle of drugs and groupies began to take its toll, with all three members fighting addictions to heroin and cocaine. The lowest point was in the early Nineties, when Ogre joined the Pigface tour, and was seen crawling around the stage, unable to stand, let alone sing. Back in Vancouver, the band started work on the follow-up to 1992's "Last Rights".

Throughout the recording of "The Process" no less than three producers were used: Roli Mosimann was rejected quite early in the making. Martin Atkins [another charismatic and forbidding character] ignited a rift, literally splitting the band between cEvin/Dwayne and Ogre/Martin - a process he found as distressing as the band-members themselves. In a last-ditch attempt to heal the ever-widening wound in the inter-band relationship, they moved into a house-studio in Malibu called Shangri-La. Instead of bringing them closer, it pulled them further apart. Screaming matches, bitter rows and physical violence escalated until Ogre quit the band. Dwayne [by now heavily addicted and deeply depressed] moved back to Vancouver.

Just weeks later, Dwayne Goettel was found dead from a heroin overdose.

Devastated by the loss, cEvin and Ogre found themselves unable to communicate except through lawyers. Blame and bitter recriminations flew until eventually they found they were able to hold conversations, if still unable ever to work together again. "Remix Dystemper" is the first time they have recorded on the same release since the split in 1995.

"The Process" was finally finished by unofficial fourth member Rave, and released in January 1996. The final album by Skinny Puppy is widely regarded as their greatest work.

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