About Shiv-r

Formed in 2008, SHIV-R is all about impact and has already made a menacing impression upon the dark music scene worldwide.  The duo, originally from Australia, has been called one of THE new acts of the moment and instantly drew the attention of industrial record label heavyweights Infacted Recordings (Germany), Metropolis Records (USA) and Deathwatch Asia (Japan), who simultaneously released SHIV-R’s breathtakingly powerful debut album “Hold My Hand” in early 2010.
Combining solid club beats with eerie soundscapes, the quality and hard-hitting production of “Hold My Hand” immediately established SHIV-R as one of the top new talents in the dark electro genre, leading legendary artist/producer Kolja Trelle (SOMAN) to comment: “SHIV-R is one of the very few newcomer projects delivering true quality”.

Comprised of members Virul3nt (Pete Crane), musician behind THE CRYSTALLINE EFFECT, and Kong (Lee Bulig), sole mastermind behind STARK, the two collaborated sporadically for many years before combining to form the symbiotic force that is SHIV-R.
Following the release of “Hold My Hand”, SHIV-R’s sinister invitation was extended with the launch of the controversial filmclip to their song “The End”, resulting in the group being labelled “Kranken und Gesterten” (”sick and deranged”) by one outraged viewer.  The dark voice of SHIV-R was also heard in the REAPER single “Dirty Cash”, which charted in the Top 5 of the all-important DAC (German Alternative Charts).
SHIV-R continues to spread their monstrous club-sound to dancefloors worldwide through prolific remix work for artists including GOD MODULE, IMPLANT, UNTER NULL, XP8, LEFT SPINE DOWN and SAM, and the band is also a burgeoning yet powerful live force, having played in support of acts such as GENITORTURERS, GOD MODULE and AESTHETIC PERFECTION as well as being one of the headliners of Under the Blue Moon, Australia’s largest underground music festival.
In December 2010, to coincide with their slot as featured support act for the Australian leg of COMBICHRIST’s “Monsters on Tour”, SHIV-R released their new EP “Incision”.  Featuring the first new original material from the duo since “Hold My Hand”, the EP upgrades SHIV-R’s sonic arsenal with an entirely new musical weapon for the dancefloor.  Slower and heavier than anything previously heard on “Hold My Hand”, “Incision” fuses depth-charge PRODIGY-style drumbeats with heavy guitar riffs, and a low vocal delivery reminiscent in places of MARILYN MANSON.

Haunting and elegant, SHIV-R will extend their gossamer presence in 2011 with a new album and a European tour.   As their unsettling influence extends in a society alarmingly comprised of the desensitised and the apathetic, SHIV-R’s objective remains to leave listeners unnerved, elated and above all affected; “We won’t stop. We won’t hold back. We want to see what’s inside you”.