Sybreed

Sybreed (a portmanteau of "synthetic" and "breed") were an industrial metal band from Geneva, Switzerland. The band was founded in 2003 by vocalist Benjamin Nominet and guitarist Thomas "Drop" Betrisey. Sybreed disbanded in 2013 when Nominet departed from the group.

History[]

The band was founded by Thomas "Drop" Betrisey (guitar) and Benjamin Nominet (vocals) after their previous band Rain broke-up. The two wanted a band that unified their common predilection for metal and electronic music. The two recruited Luis "Burn" Da Silva Cruz on bass and Alex Anxonnia on drums to record their debut album, Slave Design, produced by Drop and Claude Lander.^[1] Slave Design was released on 7 September 2004 through Reality Entertainment/Caroline Distribution. In early 2006, the band uploaded a song entitled "Emma-Zero" to its MySpace page; this song would appear on Antares under the name "Emma-O". Drummer Alex Anxonnia departed Sybreed in February 2006, citing musical and personal differences; Anxonnia would form the industrial death metal band Etna in 2007, which became Breach the Void in 2009. Dirk Verbeuren was hired as a session musician that April to record the drums for the band's then upcoming album, which would be Antares.^[2] Antares was recorded and mixed throughout 2006 and was released on 1 October 2007 through Listenable Records.

Kevin Choiral joined the band in 2009 as its permanent drummer. Around the same time, bassist Luis "Burn" Da Silva Cruz left the band was replaced by Stéphane Grand. Sybreed's first release with this new line-up was the EP A.E.O.N. and was released on 21 July 2009 through Listenable.^[3] The EP featured the songs "A.E.O.N." and "Human Black Box", which would appear on the band's third studio album The Pulse of Awakening, along with three remixes of the song "Emma-O", which originally appeared on Antares. The band's third studio album, The Pulse of Awakening, was released later that year on 16 November and was mixed by Rhys Fulber, known mainly for his work with Fear Factory and Front Line Assembly.^[4] The song "Doomsday Party" was released for free download for the video game Rock Band on 7 April 2010.

In 2011, Sybreed recorded and released the EP Challenger in promotion for its upcoming fourth album. Later that year in June, Grand left the band and was replaced on bass by Ales Campanelli. The band's fourth and final studio album, God Is an Automaton, was released on 24 September 2012. The next day, on 25 September, a music video, the band's first, was released for the song "Hightech Versus Lowlife" showing the band performing the song in studio. Sybreed gained some minor mainstream exposure in December 2012 when Rachel Aspe performed the song "Emma-O" on the French talent show La France a un incroyable talent.^[5] A music video for the song "No Wisdom Brings Solace" was released on 20 December and shows the band performing the song live at Euroblast Festival 2012.^[6] On 20 February 2013, a music video was released for the song "The Line of Least Resistance." Unlike the performance-centered nature of the previous two videos, the music video for "The Line of Least Resistance" is more narrative focused, following a woman who discovers she is secretly an android in disguise along with shots of the band performing the song.

In October 2013, the band announced that singer Benjamin Nominet had left the band. All tour dates were cancelled and the band decided to break up.^[7]

Members[]

Final lineup[]

• Benjamin Nominet – vocals (2003-2013)
• Thomas "Drop" Betrisey – guitars, programming (2003-2013)
• Ales Campanelli - bass (2011-2013)
• Kevin Choiral – drums (2009-2013)

Former[]

• Luis "Burn" Da Silva Cruz – bass (2003-2009)
• Stéphane Grand – bass (2009-2011)
• Alex Anxionaz – drums (2003–2006)
• Dirk Verbeuren – session drums on Antares (2007)

Timeline[]

Discography[]

Studio albums[]

EPs[]

References[]