Front Line AssemblyThe Initial Command

Genre:

Electronic

Style:

Industrial

Year:

Tracklist

The State
Insanity Lurks Nearby
Casualties
Ausgang Zum Himmel
Nine Times
Black March
No Control
Slaughter House

Credits (8)

Versions

Filter by
    19 versions
    Image , In Your Collection, Wantlist, or Inventory
    Version Details Data Quality
    Cover of The Initial Command, 1987-12-00, CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album
    KK Records – KK 006 Belgium 1987 Belgium1987
    Cover of The Initial Command, 1987-12-00, Vinyl The Initial Command
    LP, Album, Stereo
    KK Records – KK 001 Belgium 1987 Belgium1987
    Cover of The Initial Command, 1987, CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album
    KK Records – KK 006 Belgium 1987 Belgium1987
    New Submission
    Cover of The Initial Command, 1990, Cassette The Initial Command
    Cassette, Album, Reissue, Chrome, Dolby System
    ROIR – A-187 US 1990 US1990
    Recently Edited
    Cover of The Initial Command, 1992, CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album, Reissue
    Third Mind Records – TMD 9175 US 1992 US1992
    Cover of The Initial Command, 1996, CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album, Reissue
    Third Mind Records – TMD 9175 US 1996 US1996
    Cover of The Initial Command, 1997, CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album, Reissue
    Cleopatra – CLP 0062-2 US 1997 US1997
    Cover of The Initial Command, 1997, CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album, Reissue, Digipak
    Zoth Ommog – CD ZOT 189 1997 1997
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2009-02-01, File The Initial Command
    10×File, FLAC, Album, Reissue, 16-Bit 44.1 kHz
    Cleopatra – none US 2009 US2009
    New Submission
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2021-09-00, Vinyl The Initial Command
    LP, Album, Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered, Blue
    Cleopatra – CLO 2420 US 2021 US2021
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2021-09-03, CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered
    Cleopatra – CLO 2420 US 2021 US2021
    New Submission
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2021-09-03, File The Initial Command
    10×File, AIFF, Album, Reissue, Remastered
    Cleopatra – none US 2021 US2021
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2021, Vinyl The Initial Command
    LP, Album, Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered, Red
    Cleopatra – CLO 2420 US 2021 US2021
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2022-03-10, File The Initial Command
    10×File, AIFF, Album, Reissue
    Cleopatra – CLP 0062 US 2022 US2022
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2022-07-08, Vinyl The Initial Command
    LP; LP, Single Sided; All Media, Album, Deluxe Edition, Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered, Special Edition, Tan Transparent [Beer Transparent]
    Mecanica – MEC068 Poland 2022 Poland2022
    New Submission
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2022-07-08, Vinyl The Initial Command
    LP; LP, Single Sided; All Media, Album, Deluxe Edition, Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered
    Mecanica – MEC068 Poland 2022 Poland2022
    New Submission
    Cover of The Initial Command, 2023-10-06, Vinyl The Initial Command
    LP, Album, Limited Edition, Reissue, Blue Haze
    Cleopatra – CLO 3741 US 2023 US2023
    New Submission
    Cover of The Initial Command, , CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album
    KK Records – KK 006 Belgium Belgium
    Cover of The Initial Command, , CD The Initial Command
    CD, Album, Reissue
    KK Records – KK 006 Belgium Belgium
    New Submission

    Recommendations

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      1988 Europe
      Vinyl —
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    • Masterhit
      1987 US
      Vinyl —
      12", 33 ⅓ RPM, 45 RPM, Stereo
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    • Caustic Grip
      1990 Europe
      Vinyl —
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    • Plague
      1987 Belgium
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    • Pain And Pleasure
      1986 Belgium
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    • State Of Mind
      1987
      Vinyl —
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    • Bites
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    • Face To Face
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    Reviews

    • rivermind77's avatar
      rivermind77
      Agreed with previous review! Sounds very very good and zero surface noise! Amazing early front line album!
      • pyenapple's avatar
        pyenapple
        Gotta say, the ROIR cover art was pretty weird. I have both the first two albums on cassette, the ROIR versions, in early 90s, and I just went with it. But in retrospect, odd stuff. Not that Leeb has great taste in cover art generally. Sometimes it works, sometimes it's horribly cheesy.
        • pikax's avatar
          pikax
          Both versions are still available through Mecanica store here:

          https://mecanica.bigcartel.com/product/flatheinitialcommand

          Transparent beer vinyl > 30,00 euro
          Standard edition black vinyl > 28,00 euro
          • AM_777's avatar
            AM_777
            This should be seen without no doubt as Front Line Assembly's best Album, because of its sheer bleakness and raw technological beauty. FLA sounds on this Album still fresh and pure, and not so retractet like on latter Albums like Tactical Neural Implant and so on...
            • City_Never_Sleeps's avatar
              This as awesome! It sounds great with fantastic bass and absolutely no surface noise.
              • anthony67's avatar
                anthony67
                First heard Nine Times on a 10" sampler and was immediately hooked. The initial Command is a primitive dark EBM masterpiece that has stood the test of time, even the heavy KK vinyl release seemed to have a weight that other similar EBM releases lacked.
                • Butterman's avatar
                  Butterman
                  I will never forget my « initial » introduction to F.L.A.; my best friend at the time came back from Dutchy’s record store (R.I.P.; was an underground institution in Montreal, semi-similarly as Bunker records) and being a “rental” member (one could rent out records and tapes for a week’s time) came back with this LP, after we had both stumbled upon “No Control” from an underground radio show at the time.

                  We both were stunned at this “new sound” we hadn’t been exposed to. We thought Skinny Puppy and Front 242 were “the sh*t” in of cold industrial music (we were still novices back in those days), and weren’t ready for this record, which to this day remains a testament to this period in time. Never before had we heard so coldly calculated machinic maddening repetition with such a drive and fervor; this was the purest form of “industrial” (or so we thought) - music seemingly designed to induce unease and a perpetual sence of anxiousness and dread. And even today, whenever I re-visit this album, an uncanny sensation of stress envelops me, reminding me of those early days of pre-dancefloor EBM assault.

                  “The Initial Command” is a serious must listen to any fan of the band, at the very least to hear where they came from. With “Total Terror 1 + 2” readily available, we can more easily hear the genesis of the post-Puppy Leeb, and even elements from those archival collections can be heard on this album. Although the general sound of F.L.A. would slowly mutate with each subsequent album released afterwards, it is still important to understand where they came from and the other directions the project itself could have explored instead of what they chose to focus on.

                  Not for everyone as this early entry in the band’s repertoire may be misunderstood as a necessary birth pain, to some of us it remains, alongside the follow-up “State Of Mind”, one of the most representative acheivements of a band just starting off on their long journey. I personnaly recommend it hands down and would still consider this a great industrial album from start to finish.
                  • TheProjectedMan's avatar
                    TheProjectedMan
                    Edited one year ago
                    I hate the bonus tracks on this release (not the songs themselves, just their existence here). First off, bonus tracks shouldn't go at the beginning of the album and secondly, these were recorded nearly a decade later and absolutely don't belong. Complexity sounds like it was left off of Synaesthesia's Ephemeral. Core is a much more interesting track, it's hard to place it (proto Pro-Tech before Bill said "fuck it" and just sampled every Chemical Bros song?), but it absolutely isn't from anywhere near 1987. This is the version of the album you get now though, so place those two songs in your FLA rarities & b-sides playlist instead.
                    • Stylesy71's avatar
                      Stylesy71
                      Nine times was the one that got me..Came across this album in 1990 (Australia)
                      I don't think I'll ever get sick of it either..
                      • stahlnetz's avatar
                        stahlnetz
                        This is THE FLA-album for me. I bought it in 1987, and I fell in love with Black March & Nine Times (they are still in rotation in my mp3-player).

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                        • Avg Rating:4.29 / 5
                        • Ratings:411

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