With Fear Factory’s Obsolete approaching its 30th anniversary, Burton C. Bell is returning to the record — but not in the way fans might expect. Rather than performing the 1998 album in its entirety, Bell is bringing Obsolete: Word of Mouth to intimate venues, stripping the experience back to its most fundamental form: one man, a story, and an audience. The spoken-word event explores the creation of 'Obsolete', the ideas behind its songs and the narrative running through the album, with audiences asked to put their phones away and experience it as it might have been shared before the age of social media. Having already tested the concept in Australia, Bell is now bringing it to California, with plans to take it further afield. We caught up with the Dry Lung Vocal Martyr to talk the album, the show, and more. Edgecrusher; Eamon O'Neill.
Photo: Hannah Verbeuren
Hi Burton, how are you?
I'm very good.
What exactly is Obsolete: Word of Mouth?
Well, it's pretty much what it states. It’s a spoken-word event. I did a couple of versions of it in the past. I started doing it in 2023, here in LA, when a friend of mine was doing a book reading. He invited me to be one of his special guest readers. I didn’t have anything to do, so he suggested a couple of things and I thought, “Oh, that’s a good idea.” I pretty much read the story of Obsolete at this book reading, and I was like, “Wow, this is pretty cool.” Fast-forward a couple of years, after the Australia tour, and I set up two more versions, one in Melbourne and one in Sydney. I prepared more for it where I typed everything up and created a whole programme. I decided, firstly, that I only wanted to do it for 50 people, a very small, intimate venue, no microphone, and also, I’ll also ask everyone to silence their phones and put them away. For this social experiment to work, they also have to share their experience by word of mouth. Not only are they hearing the story through word of mouth from me, but that’s how they have to share the experiences. Much like - you look like a person of a certain age - tat's how we used to do it as well. You go to a show, and before cell phones, you’d have to share your entire experience of what you saw at the concert. That’s the idea: how are these people going to share their experiences?
There’s an interesting contrast in that 'Obsolete' is set in the future, yet you’re deliberately going back to the past in the way you present it.
Exactly. When man is obsolete, this is th e only way people have to share their experiences and their thoughts — by word of mouth.
Is 'Obsolete' the album you’re most proud of?
I’m very proud of it. My albums are like children, trying to decide which one is your favourite. They all hold a certain special space in my heart. But I’m very, very proud of Obsolete. It’s one of our finest moments.
You’re celebrating 30 years of 'Obsolete', but the actual anniversary is still a couple of years away. Are you starting now, with plans to perform this into 2027 and 2028?
Absolutely. I’m definitely going to move forward and prepping to extend it to different locations and different continents. However, yes, it is the 30th anniversary of 'Obsolete' is two years away, however, the concept and narrative of 'Obsolete' are very prescient right now. I think people hearing the story now will far more understand than they did 28 years ago.
The event is described as being built around both the story of 'Obsolete' and the way that story is experienced and carried forward. Are you working towards a sequel?
A sequel? That's is interesting. I'm not thinking of a sequel, however, I think it’s all about how it’s going to be presented. The whole event lasts essentially, an hour. The doors open at seven, people mingle, I’m talking to people, getting pictures, whatever — being a host. Then, before it starts, I’ll be up in the front and I’ll kindly ask people to silence and put away their phones. In Melbourne and Sydney, people happily did it, and that’s part of the social experiment. No phones. I don’t want to see any of this on the internet because that will ruin the whole concept.
It sounds like it will be a really personal event. There's only 50 tickets, but I'm sure you could have booked bigger shows.
I could. Maybe in the future we’ll see. But I like the fact that it’s intimate because it’s more personal. It’s a very personal experience, not just for the audience but for me as well. I can engage with more people. I can connect with more people.
What happens during that hour on stage?
It’s in three parts. The first part is a brief history of what led up to the recording of 'Obsolete' and how we got to that point. That involves audience interaction. The second part is me reading the synopsis I wrote for each song. I wrote a synopsis for every song that was never seen. It describes what I’m talking about, but it also sets up the scene. There’s some audience interaction during that too, if they want to ask questions. The third part is me reading and telling the story of 'Obsolete' — the story that’s inside the album. Not a lot of people understand or realise that there’s a story running through the entire record, and it’s actually written down, so I’ll be reading that story, but it’s not just reading. it’s also going to be part-performative. I’ll be like an orator on stage, telling the story, projecting my thoughts, projecting my words and animating myself. If you close your eyes, it’ll be like an old-time radio show.
So you’re essentially getting into character.
I'll be performative, exactly. I'll be getting into characters.
I'm very good.
What exactly is Obsolete: Word of Mouth?
Well, it's pretty much what it states. It’s a spoken-word event. I did a couple of versions of it in the past. I started doing it in 2023, here in LA, when a friend of mine was doing a book reading. He invited me to be one of his special guest readers. I didn’t have anything to do, so he suggested a couple of things and I thought, “Oh, that’s a good idea.” I pretty much read the story of Obsolete at this book reading, and I was like, “Wow, this is pretty cool.” Fast-forward a couple of years, after the Australia tour, and I set up two more versions, one in Melbourne and one in Sydney. I prepared more for it where I typed everything up and created a whole programme. I decided, firstly, that I only wanted to do it for 50 people, a very small, intimate venue, no microphone, and also, I’ll also ask everyone to silence their phones and put them away. For this social experiment to work, they also have to share their experience by word of mouth. Not only are they hearing the story through word of mouth from me, but that’s how they have to share the experiences. Much like - you look like a person of a certain age - tat's how we used to do it as well. You go to a show, and before cell phones, you’d have to share your entire experience of what you saw at the concert. That’s the idea: how are these people going to share their experiences?
There’s an interesting contrast in that 'Obsolete' is set in the future, yet you’re deliberately going back to the past in the way you present it.
Exactly. When man is obsolete, this is th e only way people have to share their experiences and their thoughts — by word of mouth.
Is 'Obsolete' the album you’re most proud of?
I’m very proud of it. My albums are like children, trying to decide which one is your favourite. They all hold a certain special space in my heart. But I’m very, very proud of Obsolete. It’s one of our finest moments.
You’re celebrating 30 years of 'Obsolete', but the actual anniversary is still a couple of years away. Are you starting now, with plans to perform this into 2027 and 2028?
Absolutely. I’m definitely going to move forward and prepping to extend it to different locations and different continents. However, yes, it is the 30th anniversary of 'Obsolete' is two years away, however, the concept and narrative of 'Obsolete' are very prescient right now. I think people hearing the story now will far more understand than they did 28 years ago.
The event is described as being built around both the story of 'Obsolete' and the way that story is experienced and carried forward. Are you working towards a sequel?
A sequel? That's is interesting. I'm not thinking of a sequel, however, I think it’s all about how it’s going to be presented. The whole event lasts essentially, an hour. The doors open at seven, people mingle, I’m talking to people, getting pictures, whatever — being a host. Then, before it starts, I’ll be up in the front and I’ll kindly ask people to silence and put away their phones. In Melbourne and Sydney, people happily did it, and that’s part of the social experiment. No phones. I don’t want to see any of this on the internet because that will ruin the whole concept.
It sounds like it will be a really personal event. There's only 50 tickets, but I'm sure you could have booked bigger shows.
I could. Maybe in the future we’ll see. But I like the fact that it’s intimate because it’s more personal. It’s a very personal experience, not just for the audience but for me as well. I can engage with more people. I can connect with more people.
What happens during that hour on stage?
It’s in three parts. The first part is a brief history of what led up to the recording of 'Obsolete' and how we got to that point. That involves audience interaction. The second part is me reading the synopsis I wrote for each song. I wrote a synopsis for every song that was never seen. It describes what I’m talking about, but it also sets up the scene. There’s some audience interaction during that too, if they want to ask questions. The third part is me reading and telling the story of 'Obsolete' — the story that’s inside the album. Not a lot of people understand or realise that there’s a story running through the entire record, and it’s actually written down, so I’ll be reading that story, but it’s not just reading. it’s also going to be part-performative. I’ll be like an orator on stage, telling the story, projecting my thoughts, projecting my words and animating myself. If you close your eyes, it’ll be like an old-time radio show.
So you’re essentially getting into character.
I'll be performative, exactly. I'll be getting into characters.
Let’s go back to 1998. 'Demanufacture' [1995] had been such a huge success, particularly in Europe. I'm guessing there was a lot of pressure to follow it up, going into' Obsolete'.
You’re not wrong. There was a lot riding on it. There was a lot of pressure — not just pressure we were putting upon ourselves, but pressure from management and the label. The success that 'Demanufacture' had was pretty much unexpected for them, and they loved it, of course. It did wonderful things not just for us but for Roadrunner as well. So the pressure going in was insurmountable, for sure. But going in, we wanted to make the best record possible, but we did not want to reiterate or reinvent 'Demanufacture'. We had to move forward, not just in sound but in concept as well. Where 'Demanufacture' has a cold, very technical, mechanical and precise sound, 'Obsolete' is the opposite. It’s warm and organic sounding, but still maintaining that metal industrial sound. They’re two completely different records, but the big difference was, where the concept of 'Demanufacture' was more skin deep, 'Obsolete' was a full-on concept from start to finish.
Was making 'Obsolete' a full concept something you planned from the beginning?
I knew going in that I wanted to write a story, and everything had to be set up properly. Once the track listing was done, I decided to make the track listing my outline for the story. So a lot of the pressure was pressure we put on ourselves because you have to grow as an artist, you have to move forward, and you always want to do the best you can do, and I think we achieved that.
The album also sounds more expansive than 'Demanufacture' with strings and additional sonic elements. What was that like for you to work on as a lyricist and vocalist?
It was exciting. It was stressful in an exciting way. Me writing lyrics to these songs while listening to the arrangements and the final recordings was really beautiful. There were a lot of beautiful moments during that recording. There were a lot of cool things happening, a lot of cool moments, happy accidents, as they say. The strings were real. Rhys Fulber had a chamber group come in and actually record the strings for 'Timelessness'. There were a couple of other parts here and there where we had them, but mostly they were for 'Timelessness'. For me, it was really a golden moment. It was one of the best times I’ve ever had in the studio.
'Resurrection' remains one of the standout tracks on the album. It's so pained and melodic, but it's brutal.
It's classic Fear Factory. I love that record. That’s one of my favourites as well. What’s odd about a lot of the lyrics is that they’re very personal, and what I did to them, I made them ambiguous, maybe in a third-person sense, but they were very personal from personal experiences. Writing from that, because they're personal, there’s more feeling and more passion in it. 'Resurrection', I turned into a song about humanity reviving its own soul, but essentially - it sounds pretty, not 'dumb' - but it was about a breakup I went through.
So something that sounds like a huge concept about humanity was actually rooted in something very personal that pretty much everyone can relate to.
Absolutely, I think so. It's pretty relative. It's a perfect song. Like I said, 'happy accident' before, and we had a melody for 'Resurrection' before going into it. While we were recording the vocals, the melody just wasn’t working, so we had to stop, and me and Rhys and got to a piano and were just trying to come up with something, and I said, “I’ve got an idea. Just keep it simple, but keep it powerful.” So I went into the vocal booth and worked it out, and finally it was like, “Yes, that’s it.”
So that was a last-minute change?
Exactly. That’s the beauty of spontaneity.
You’re not wrong. There was a lot riding on it. There was a lot of pressure — not just pressure we were putting upon ourselves, but pressure from management and the label. The success that 'Demanufacture' had was pretty much unexpected for them, and they loved it, of course. It did wonderful things not just for us but for Roadrunner as well. So the pressure going in was insurmountable, for sure. But going in, we wanted to make the best record possible, but we did not want to reiterate or reinvent 'Demanufacture'. We had to move forward, not just in sound but in concept as well. Where 'Demanufacture' has a cold, very technical, mechanical and precise sound, 'Obsolete' is the opposite. It’s warm and organic sounding, but still maintaining that metal industrial sound. They’re two completely different records, but the big difference was, where the concept of 'Demanufacture' was more skin deep, 'Obsolete' was a full-on concept from start to finish.
Was making 'Obsolete' a full concept something you planned from the beginning?
I knew going in that I wanted to write a story, and everything had to be set up properly. Once the track listing was done, I decided to make the track listing my outline for the story. So a lot of the pressure was pressure we put on ourselves because you have to grow as an artist, you have to move forward, and you always want to do the best you can do, and I think we achieved that.
The album also sounds more expansive than 'Demanufacture' with strings and additional sonic elements. What was that like for you to work on as a lyricist and vocalist?
It was exciting. It was stressful in an exciting way. Me writing lyrics to these songs while listening to the arrangements and the final recordings was really beautiful. There were a lot of beautiful moments during that recording. There were a lot of cool things happening, a lot of cool moments, happy accidents, as they say. The strings were real. Rhys Fulber had a chamber group come in and actually record the strings for 'Timelessness'. There were a couple of other parts here and there where we had them, but mostly they were for 'Timelessness'. For me, it was really a golden moment. It was one of the best times I’ve ever had in the studio.
'Resurrection' remains one of the standout tracks on the album. It's so pained and melodic, but it's brutal.
It's classic Fear Factory. I love that record. That’s one of my favourites as well. What’s odd about a lot of the lyrics is that they’re very personal, and what I did to them, I made them ambiguous, maybe in a third-person sense, but they were very personal from personal experiences. Writing from that, because they're personal, there’s more feeling and more passion in it. 'Resurrection', I turned into a song about humanity reviving its own soul, but essentially - it sounds pretty, not 'dumb' - but it was about a breakup I went through.
So something that sounds like a huge concept about humanity was actually rooted in something very personal that pretty much everyone can relate to.
Absolutely, I think so. It's pretty relative. It's a perfect song. Like I said, 'happy accident' before, and we had a melody for 'Resurrection' before going into it. While we were recording the vocals, the melody just wasn’t working, so we had to stop, and me and Rhys and got to a piano and were just trying to come up with something, and I said, “I’ve got an idea. Just keep it simple, but keep it powerful.” So I went into the vocal booth and worked it out, and finally it was like, “Yes, that’s it.”
So that was a last-minute change?
Exactly. That’s the beauty of spontaneity.
'Edgecrusher' was the first UK single and was probably the most obvious link back to 'Demanufacture'. What do you remember about making it?
Yeah, for sure. That was probably the most challenging song for me vocally because we were trying to create something that was different. We were all fans of hip-hop, so we wanted something that had that element to it. It was challenging for me writing in that type of meter and aesthetic. We were in Vancouver, and Christian [Olde Wolbers, bass] started hanging out with this hip-hop group called Swollen Members. Madchild, the vocalist, was one of the main guys, and we were hanging out with him. Christian was smoking a lot of weed with those guys, they were hanging out. The other guy, I can't remember his name, but he was the one who did the scratching on the song, so Swollen Members are a really big part of that song.
It sounds like it!
Madchild and I really got high in the studio and started writing lyrics. He was helping me, almost like a tutorial in hip-hop. He was saying, “This would be cool. Try and deliver it like this. Deliver it like this.”, and it fucking clicked! I was like, “Oh, I get it now.” That was a really incredible experience. It was fun. Christian was also figuring out how to play stand-up bass on the song and how to record it. That was a whole other level of insanity, but it worked and sounded killer.
Fear Factory were right at the forefront of what was happening in metal at that point, between grunge and what would become nu-metal. It was a long way from glam metal, which was dominating only a few years before.
Absolutely, 100%. Nirvana had already become a huge band. Kurt had already died. Nirvana came and went, but it was Nirvana that pretty much buried hair metal.
Fear Factory were appearing alongside everyone from Metallica and Sepultura to Bon Jovi and The Prodigy on the covers of Kerrang!. What was it like to suddenly become that visible? Sometimes it was just you, and not the band.
I’d be lying if I said I hated it. I was ecstatic. I thought it was fantastic. There were unnamed members of my band that were not too happy about it, but I thought it was fantastic. It was selling records, for sure. That's what it was all about, it was about promo, and of course they always want the frontman as the focal point. That’s not something I decided.
And then those magazines were fixated in the whole relationship between you and Tairrie B.
Wow, I haven't heard... Well, that's the song "Resurrection", right there. I think just reading the lyrics, it says it all.
One of the other memorable moments around Obsolete was your cover of Gary Numan’s 'Cars'. How did that come about?
That started while we were touring 'Demanufacture' during ’96, through Europe, the UK and Ireland. At the time, there was a beer commercial or something using that song, so we started playing it as a joke — not really a joke, but just for fun. We all grew up with that song. We thought, “Fuck it, it’s a popular song. We'll just throw this little ditty in for about a minute.” We’d play about a minute of it and stop, and people would go crazy. When it came to record it, someone said, “If you guys recorded this record, we could get Gary Numan on it.” They said, “If you record this song, and if we got Gary Numan, would you do it?” , and I'm like, "Well, yeah!" So when it came time, we were in Vancouver at Mushroom Studios. Gary was flown in. The track was already done, The vocals weren’t done -we were waiting for Gary to do his parts - but Gary came in, like the quintessential professional and nailed it first take. I was like, “Well, that was fucking awesome.” We weren't doing my vocals at the time, so when it came o do my vocals, I wasn’t trying to emulate him, I was just doing what I do. But man, that was fun.
Did you get to hang out with Gary?
We hung out with Gary Numan that day. That night we went to The Keg for dinner with Gary Numan and his soon-to-be wife, Gemma. They were lovely. The next day we had some time off, so we went to see Dark City, that movie, with Gary Numan in Vancouver. We sat next to Gary Numan watching Dark City.
Yeah, for sure. That was probably the most challenging song for me vocally because we were trying to create something that was different. We were all fans of hip-hop, so we wanted something that had that element to it. It was challenging for me writing in that type of meter and aesthetic. We were in Vancouver, and Christian [Olde Wolbers, bass] started hanging out with this hip-hop group called Swollen Members. Madchild, the vocalist, was one of the main guys, and we were hanging out with him. Christian was smoking a lot of weed with those guys, they were hanging out. The other guy, I can't remember his name, but he was the one who did the scratching on the song, so Swollen Members are a really big part of that song.
It sounds like it!
Madchild and I really got high in the studio and started writing lyrics. He was helping me, almost like a tutorial in hip-hop. He was saying, “This would be cool. Try and deliver it like this. Deliver it like this.”, and it fucking clicked! I was like, “Oh, I get it now.” That was a really incredible experience. It was fun. Christian was also figuring out how to play stand-up bass on the song and how to record it. That was a whole other level of insanity, but it worked and sounded killer.
Fear Factory were right at the forefront of what was happening in metal at that point, between grunge and what would become nu-metal. It was a long way from glam metal, which was dominating only a few years before.
Absolutely, 100%. Nirvana had already become a huge band. Kurt had already died. Nirvana came and went, but it was Nirvana that pretty much buried hair metal.
Fear Factory were appearing alongside everyone from Metallica and Sepultura to Bon Jovi and The Prodigy on the covers of Kerrang!. What was it like to suddenly become that visible? Sometimes it was just you, and not the band.
I’d be lying if I said I hated it. I was ecstatic. I thought it was fantastic. There were unnamed members of my band that were not too happy about it, but I thought it was fantastic. It was selling records, for sure. That's what it was all about, it was about promo, and of course they always want the frontman as the focal point. That’s not something I decided.
And then those magazines were fixated in the whole relationship between you and Tairrie B.
Wow, I haven't heard... Well, that's the song "Resurrection", right there. I think just reading the lyrics, it says it all.
One of the other memorable moments around Obsolete was your cover of Gary Numan’s 'Cars'. How did that come about?
That started while we were touring 'Demanufacture' during ’96, through Europe, the UK and Ireland. At the time, there was a beer commercial or something using that song, so we started playing it as a joke — not really a joke, but just for fun. We all grew up with that song. We thought, “Fuck it, it’s a popular song. We'll just throw this little ditty in for about a minute.” We’d play about a minute of it and stop, and people would go crazy. When it came to record it, someone said, “If you guys recorded this record, we could get Gary Numan on it.” They said, “If you record this song, and if we got Gary Numan, would you do it?” , and I'm like, "Well, yeah!" So when it came time, we were in Vancouver at Mushroom Studios. Gary was flown in. The track was already done, The vocals weren’t done -we were waiting for Gary to do his parts - but Gary came in, like the quintessential professional and nailed it first take. I was like, “Well, that was fucking awesome.” We weren't doing my vocals at the time, so when it came o do my vocals, I wasn’t trying to emulate him, I was just doing what I do. But man, that was fun.
Did you get to hang out with Gary?
We hung out with Gary Numan that day. That night we went to The Keg for dinner with Gary Numan and his soon-to-be wife, Gemma. They were lovely. The next day we had some time off, so we went to see Dark City, that movie, with Gary Numan in Vancouver. We sat next to Gary Numan watching Dark City.
Another favourite of is 'Descent'. I's so heavy and it's tuned right down.
I love that song. I think it’s tuned to A. I think it’s that heavy. That was another song where we were experimenting. Hip-hop played an essential role in a couple of the songs — 'Edgecrusher' and 'Descent'. For instance, the vocal idea I came up with for 'Descent', I was listening to a Bone Thugs-n-Harmony song. But lyrically, it’s very personal. I think it’s just one of the better songs. It has such a killer groove, and just a great feeling throughout the whole song. It just moves. It’s actually one of the songs I play live when I play solo with my band.
Would you ever consider performing 'Obsolete' in its entirety with your own band?
No, not really. Fear Factory is already doing it, so I don’t need to. That’s why I’m doing something different. Instead of hearing the music, I’m focusing on the story, and I'm focusing on the concept and the creation story behind it, which is also something people are interested in.
Will there be any visuals or theatrical elements to the spoken-word show?
No visuals. It’s just me on stage being a storyteller.
Have you ever had any formal theatrical training?
No, but as a frontman, there’s that experience. I’m very outgoing to begin with, and I’m really into experimenting and trying new things. I’ve never acted officially, but to project oneself and to get into character is something I feel like I’ve done for 30 years as a frontman. I go on stage and I’m one person before I get on stage. I’m one person before I get on the stage, I'm just Burt. When I get on stage, something switches. I’m Burton C. Bell when I get on stage. It’s a whole other persona. So that's the persona coming to my word of mouth.
What can people expect when they sit down in that room with you?
I wouldn't say it's intense, but it’s very intriguing, and people are literally just sitting there watching, eyes agape.
The event is currently coming to three venues in California in October. Are you hoping to bring it to Europe?
I plan to. I definitely plan to, depending on the success of this. I think it’ll do very well. When I did it in Australia, both venues sold out.
Does it mean something to you that the music you made in the 1990s still has such a hardcore following around the world?
I think it’s fantastic. I’m very proud of the work we’ ve done and the work we’ve created and shared with the world. Like you said, a hardcore fan would love this. It’s like a VIP experience with a performance.
Burton C. Bell's 'Obsolete by Word of Mouth' is on sale now. For tickets and further information, visit https://www.burtoncbell.com
I love that song. I think it’s tuned to A. I think it’s that heavy. That was another song where we were experimenting. Hip-hop played an essential role in a couple of the songs — 'Edgecrusher' and 'Descent'. For instance, the vocal idea I came up with for 'Descent', I was listening to a Bone Thugs-n-Harmony song. But lyrically, it’s very personal. I think it’s just one of the better songs. It has such a killer groove, and just a great feeling throughout the whole song. It just moves. It’s actually one of the songs I play live when I play solo with my band.
Would you ever consider performing 'Obsolete' in its entirety with your own band?
No, not really. Fear Factory is already doing it, so I don’t need to. That’s why I’m doing something different. Instead of hearing the music, I’m focusing on the story, and I'm focusing on the concept and the creation story behind it, which is also something people are interested in.
Will there be any visuals or theatrical elements to the spoken-word show?
No visuals. It’s just me on stage being a storyteller.
Have you ever had any formal theatrical training?
No, but as a frontman, there’s that experience. I’m very outgoing to begin with, and I’m really into experimenting and trying new things. I’ve never acted officially, but to project oneself and to get into character is something I feel like I’ve done for 30 years as a frontman. I go on stage and I’m one person before I get on stage. I’m one person before I get on the stage, I'm just Burt. When I get on stage, something switches. I’m Burton C. Bell when I get on stage. It’s a whole other persona. So that's the persona coming to my word of mouth.
What can people expect when they sit down in that room with you?
I wouldn't say it's intense, but it’s very intriguing, and people are literally just sitting there watching, eyes agape.
The event is currently coming to three venues in California in October. Are you hoping to bring it to Europe?
I plan to. I definitely plan to, depending on the success of this. I think it’ll do very well. When I did it in Australia, both venues sold out.
Does it mean something to you that the music you made in the 1990s still has such a hardcore following around the world?
I think it’s fantastic. I’m very proud of the work we’ ve done and the work we’ve created and shared with the world. Like you said, a hardcore fan would love this. It’s like a VIP experience with a performance.
Burton C. Bell's 'Obsolete by Word of Mouth' is on sale now. For tickets and further information, visit https://www.burtoncbell.com
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