Photo by Cody Ross Cowan Photo by Mel issa Wel liver
Photo by Melissa Welliver
Photo by Cody
Ross Cowan
RELENTLESS MACHINERY
YOUTH CODE’S SARA TAYLOR FINDS CREATIVE WELLBEING IN VIOLENT MUSIC FOR AN ALIENATED WORLD WORDS ANDREW C. RUSSELL
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efore industrial music claimed a mass youth audience in the ‘90s, thanks in part to the danceable brutalism of Nine Inch Nails and the parent-scaring theatricality of Marilyn Manson, it belonged to a much larger, less-publicized musical underground, just one untamed species among others as disparate as hardcore punk and extreme metal, wedded only in their total cutoff from the pop world. Industrial itself would’ve seemed the hardest sell at the time suspended as it was between early experimental, synth, dance music and unsettling, hellish imagery. Decades later, as genre boundaries blur and the term “underground” becomes a more useful description aesthetically than territorially, industrial hardcore/EBM group Youth Code thrives happily outside of the concept of scene. Though they have more in common with their ‘80s forebears like Front 242 and Skinny Puppy the de-balkanization of the streaming age has won them
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fandom amongst punks, metalheads, goths, hip-hoppers and synth-poppers, leading to collaborations with Chelsea Wolfe, Refused, AFI and Clipping, not to mention praise from industrial OGs Front Line Assembly and Psychic TV. Youth Code, a duo consisting of couple Sara Taylor and Ryan George, formed in Los Angeles on a whim in 2012, sparked by an impulsive claim from Taylor that she had a band ready to perform at an impending record store showcase. George had been a figure on the straight-edge punk scene some years prior, but he had an itch to dabble in electronics, and as a new couple, the two had bonded over a mutual adoration of sonically adventurous ‘80s industrial. Nearly eight years later, after two albums, numerous EPs, an impressive amount of collaborations and a formidable touring schedule, Youth Code is a more energetic beast than ever. Later releases have shed some of the classic ‘80s industrial trappings in favor of more brutality and speed—their raw and mechanically enhanced
Issue 311 • February 12 – February 26, 2020
energy spiked with the adrenaline and panic of the online rage age. Just listen to 2016’s “The Dust of Fallen Rome,” or their 2018 single collab with HEALTH, “INNOCENCE,” to feel the full brunt of their art. Taylor’s vocals have a frightening power, harsh to the extreme, the sound of a tormented cyborg soul attempting to crack the heavens from the razored depths of the digital wasteland. But for all of Youth Code’s hostile trappings, they are ultimately fueled by their central relationship, both personal and artistic. A mutual love for their music, a shared instinct for spontaneity and a constantly renewed energy to attack every track, performance or development with the same ferocity. Ahead of their March show at Ace of Spades as part of their 2020 North American tour with Swedish punk icons Refused, we got the chance to speak with Sara Taylor about Youth Code’s particular brand of dystopian hardcore. Dive Into Sacramento & Its Surrounding Areas