The Cassandra Complex was formed over fifteen ago by Rodney Orpheus. Born in Northern Ireland in 1960, he now lives somewhere between Hamburg, Germany and Los Angeles California. The line-up of the band currently consists of: Rodney Orpheus (voice and anything that has lots of flashing lights or comes out of a computer) and Volker Zacharias (guitar, bass, keyboards). They are one of the most important electro-industrial bands of the past decade. Here's a short history:
1984 : The Cassandra Complex (Rodney Orpheus, Paul Dillon, Andrew Booth) release their first self-financed and self-produced 12" single March.
1985 : CX release Moscow Idaho maxi-single
on Rouska Records (number one in German Independent charts, number one in various
USA college radio charts) and do their first tour in Europe; during which time
Paul leaves to be replaced by John Marchini, and Jez Willis and Keith Langley
(formerly MDMA, now of Utah
Saints ). This line-up records the Grenade
album. Rodney produces Third Circle's single Last Night single
for Rouska Records.
1986 : Feel the Width live double album, Something Came Over Me maxi single - club hit in Spain. Live concert on MTV Europe. Tour incessantly throughout Europe (just about everywhere).
1987 : We play the Lorelei festival Germany. Headline the Pukkelpop festival in Belgium. The band begin to relocate to the continent, shuttling between bases in Leeds, England and Aachen, Germany.
1988 : Theomania album. Number Nine Album of the Year - Spex music magazine Germany.
1989 : line-up changes again. Rodney, Juergen Jansen, John Galvin, and Patrick Gordon record the Satan, Bugs Bunny and Me album and the Penny Century single & video on a budget so small you wouldn't believe it if we told you. It's Single of the Week Radio ffn Hanover, most popular video clip of the year on Offbeat Tele 5 Germany. We follow it up with the Ten Weeks of Death gruelling European tour.
1990 : Cyberpunx album. Album of the Month - Stern magazine Germany. European tour. Headline act Lords of Independence festival Bonn Bisquithalle Germany. Video clip Let's Go To Europe featured on Super Channel/MTV. Rodney produces Girls Under Glass Positive album.
1991: Yet another line-up change and another relocation (this time to Hamburg, Germany). Now the group is Rodney, Juergen, plus Volker Zacharias of Girls Under Glass. Andy Booth rejoins to much celebration, and the revamped Cassandra Complex build their own studio and record The War Against Sleep album. European tour. Headline act at several European rock festivals. One hour live show for MTV YU.
1992 : We take a break. Rodney tours with Sisters of Mercy . Juergen tours with German electronic band Project Pitchfork . Volker works on Trauma debut album for Machinery records.
1993 : Sex & Death. Album of the Month - New Life music magazine Europe. sex, death and videotape European tour with huge multimedia performance system. Rodney plays on the Sisters of Mercy single Under The Gun on Top of the Pops BBC TV. Produces Catastrophe Ballet Transition - voted Newcomer of the Year by Zillo music magazine Germany.
1994 : Give Me What I Need maxi single - theme music for Brisant news magazine program on Channel 1 ARD TV Germany. sex death and videotape video album is released. Rodney and Andrew Eldritch work together remixing legendary German electronic group Die Krupps . Volker releases new Trauma album. Cassandra Complex add new Vancouver-based guitarist Mike Tottrup (also of successful Canadian band Econoline Crush ) and Axel Ermes of Girls Under Glass to tour the US and Canada during November and December, climaxing in a two night appearance at Christmas in the Canadian Space Center in Edmonton.
1995: Juergen releases an album of ambient music together with Project Pitchfork singer Peter Spilles. Rodney, Marcus Giltjes, and ex-Project Pitchfork and Aurora singer Patricia Nigiani release the debut album of their new band Sun God, to wide acclaim. Cassandra Complex and Sun God play several European festivals, just about stealing the show at each one. The CX lineup for these dates is augmented by several extra guitarists, including Axel Ermes (Girls Under Glass), Troy (Goethes Erben and Catastrophe Ballet), and Dirk Sheubi (Project Pitchfork). Rodney produces legendary English Gothic rock band Asylum; new Canadian band I.N.R.I.; and German electro team Fortification. Rodney's first book ABRAHADABRA - a Beginner's Guide to Thelemic Magick is published by Looking Glass Press and becomes very successful, selling out two printings.
1996 : Juergen produces album for Still Silent, featuring Mindy from Goethes Erben and Rodney on guest vocals on two songs. Rodney produces Aurora's new album Passing Over Into Nuit. Cassandra Complex put up some Web pages... Rodney goes to work for German music software firm Steinberg. Volker & Axel build Barner Beach Studio in Hamburg. Sun God play a show in Hamburg. We do the corporate thing for a while.
1997: Rodney and the rest of Sun God appear in cult German horror movie "Kiss My Blood". Rodney starts to build a new studio too (we like studios). Juergen joins Project Pitchfork full-time (when he's not doing sound for Sisters of Mercy). Rodney tours the world training producers how to use recording software.
1998 : After listening to an entire night of crap music in a club, Volker and Rodney decide that the world desperately needs another Cassandra Complex album. We begin work on Wetware. Bill Breeze of Coil and Psychic TV drops in to play some cool viola on it. Rodney sets up www.rodneyorpheus.com to prove once and for all that he is a total egoist.
1999: We continue work on Wetware, slowed down by the fact that Rodney is now spending half the year in Los Angeles. At the end of the year we add a new musician: Bowen Sanders, who takes over on keyboards.
2000: Rodney and Bowen set up the cubase.network, the world's first Internet recording studio system. We finally get around to finishing Wetware! We sign to SPV Records in Europe, and Metropolis Records in the USA. The "Gothumentary" movie Sex, Death & Eyeliner opens on Hollywood Boulevard, featuring 3 songs from Cassandra Complex on the soundtrack. We agree to play the Woodstage Festival and the Mera Luna Festival in Germany in the summer. We release the Twice As Good single, with remixes by APB and Genytal (Daniel & Patrick from Front 242). In Fall we tour the USA with Front 242 - lineup is Rodney, Chris Haskett (ex-Rollins Band, David Bowie), and Mera Roberts (ex-Faith & the Muse and Oblivia). We then headline the CX2K tour in Germany in Winter - lineup is Rodney, Volker, Chris, Mera, and Mindy Kumbalek from Goethes Erben).
2001: After all that we take a break to do some other stuff. Volker works on the new Girls Under Glass album. Rodney ends up doing technical assistance for Janet Jackson and Buffy as well as travelling round the world a few more times. He than decides to move back to Hamburg.
2002: We play the Wave Gothic Treffen in Leipzig, which is a monster success.