Treponem Pal

Treponem Pal
Treponem Pal (2013)
Background information
Origin	Paris, Île-de-France, France
Genres	Industrial metal
Years active	1986–2001 2006–present
Labels	Roadrunner, PolyGram, Listenable, Juste Une Trace
Website	http://treponempal.com
Members	Marco Neves Polak Didier Breard Mathys Dubois Syn-Anton
Past members	Michel Bassin Laurent B Alain Fornasari Ferguson Stéphane Cressend Amadou Sall David Lebrun Didier Serbourdin Goran Juresic Paul Raven Ted Parsons

Treponem Pal (named after Treponema pallidum, the bacterium that causes syphilis) is a French industrial metal band formed in 1986. Early tracks such as "Embodiment of Frustration" mix the relentless hypnotic heaviness popularized by Swans and bursts of thrash metal and hardcore. Lyrics included the summer hit "Too Many Humans" which was roared out by vocalist and frontman Marco Neves: "there's too many humans - we need a nuclear war!"

Treponem Pal formed in France in 1986. Their first (Treponem Pal) and third (Excess and Overdrive) albums were produced by Franz Treichler (The Young Gods). Their second, Aggravation was produced by Roli Mosimann (Swans, Wiseblood). This album represents a highly focused achievement, combining Neves' bleak worldview and gift for striking lyrics with the band's controlled aggression, comparable to US bands Chrome and Prong. It was their third album, however, which was to prove most popular with fans. Live performances were extraordinary affairs. Their policy of employing two bass players gave them a massive sound, Michel Bassin was a gifted guitarist (he played with Ministry on one of their US tours) and Marco Neves is a physically imposing performer.

They maintained this style up until fourth album Higher, by which time the focus had shifted towards sampling and electronics, giving that album a more techno feel. Higher was produced by Sascha Konietzko from KMFDM.

The band then broke up, though vocalist Marco Neves and several other members formed a new band called Elephant System, which released one album produced by On-U Sound's Adrian Sherwood. This reflected Neves' longstanding interest in Jamaican and European dub as well as his work as a DJ and MC with the Dub Action Sound System and his involvement with the Hammerbass record label. Bass player Goran Juresic went in a more industrial dub direction with the band Lab° while drummer Didier Serbourdin formed the ultra-aggressive band Fast Forward which combined hardcore techno beats with high-octane metal guitars.