Chrome (band)

Chrome
Chrome in 1980; Damon Edge (left) and Helios Creed (right)
Background information
Origin	San Francisco, California, United States
Genres	Post-punk industrial rock
Years active	1975–present
Labels	Siren Records, Beggars Banquet, Don't Fall Off the Mountain, Subterranean Records, Mosquito, Dossier, Expanded Music, Atonal Records, Touch & Go Records, Cleopatra Records, Gearhead Records, Man's Ruin Records, King of Spades Records
Members	Helios Creed, Aleph Omega, Tommy Grenas, Lou Minatti
Past members	Damon Edge, Gary Spain, John Lambdin, Mike Low, John Stench, Hilary Stench, Fabienne Shine, Renaud Thorez, Patrick Imbert, Remy Devilla, Olivier Caudron, Bab, Plume, Cliff Martin, Pierre Roussel, Philippe Sautour, Paul Della Pelle, Nova Cain, Z. Silver, Tommy L. Cyborg, Rodney Dangerous

Chrome is an American rock band founded in San Francisco, California in 1975.

The sound of the group is often coarse and features heavy elements of feedback and distortion. Their experiments in mixing synthesized noise with rock instrumentation, marking them as part of the post-punk movement, have been cited as a forerunner of industrial rock music. During the 1970s, Chrome's music did not fit into any particular music scene in America, and people found it hard to know how to book the band or promoting and distribute their music.

Chrome was formed in 1975 by Damon Edge (real name Thomas Wisse: drums, vocals, synths, production) and Gary Spain (bass guitar, violin) in San Francisco. While studying at the California Institute of the Arts, Edge had became influenced in making unusual sounds; this progressed after a trip to Morocco where he heard a lot of Arabic music. In his head he began putting a beat behind the music and started coming up with ideas for songs. Chrome's music contained a lot of atmosphere in the sound production, featuring three- and eight-note melodies, usually layered with an atonal drone backed by a rhythm section. This sort of atmosphere was influenced by the music he had heard in Morocco. About six months after that trip, Edge began forming a band and recording his new music.

Chrome took part of their inspiration for their rough and sometimes chaotic music from punk pioneers like the Stooges. They recorded and released their first album, The Visitation, along with John Lambdin (guitar) and Mike Low (guitar, vocals). After recording The Visitation, Edge sent the album to Warner Brothers to see if they wanted to release the album. A Warner Brothers A&R representative told Edge that the album sounded like a "messed up Doors album"; to Damon Edge, this was a compliment. The label did not release the album, so Edge set up his own label, Siren Records. After the recording of the first album, singer Mike Low left the band, to be replaced by new guitarist Helios Creed.