SUPERMACHINER

Supermachiner biography
Formed in 1994, Supermachiner was the ambient post-rock band of North American musician and graphic designer Jacob Bannon (vocals/guitar/electronics). The project was initially a nameless outlet for Bannon's experimental four-track recordings prior to moving to Boston, Massachusetts for college. In the winter of 1998, while Bannon was testing demos for material deemed unsuitable for his primary group Converge (then on hiatus while searching for a new drummer), he recruited his close friend and then-roommate Ryan Parker (vocals/bass/electronics) to resurrect the dormant project. In contrast to Converge's progressive metallic hardcore, Supermachiner played a moody, atmospheric and minimalist post-rock which frequently took noisy, droning detours, inspired by the likes of Swans and Bauhaus. The duo eventually settled on the moniker Supermachiner, a nod to large-scale plastic robot toys launched in 1970s Japan.

Parker and Bannon joined Converge's Kurt Ballou at his GodCity Studios in winter 1999, where the three edited their vast archives into a full-length album. Ballou acted as both producer and auxiliary musician, contributing guitar, saxophone and electronics, while Jacob's brother Seth also joined on percussion and electronics along with violinist Akina Kawauchi. The songs "Phoenix in Flight" and the title track of Converge's seminal 2001 album Jane Doe were originally written for Supermachiner, whose debut LP, Rise of the Great Machine, was released via Undecided Records in 2000. The LP's concept addressed "the rise of technology and the death of the individual." While the album was planned to be the first in a conceptual trilogy, tentative demo sessions came to naught and the project dissolved the same year.

In 2009, Bannon's own Deathwish Inc. label released the compilation Rust, featuring a remastered version of their sole album along with demos and outtakes.


- Gordy