Biography

Then
Scrape is a one man project created by Erik. There have been, in the past as well as the present, collaborators and live personnel includng 1-K, Allison, and Raf. Currently, Scrape has recruited Allison for live keys and also to provide melodic tension to further explore what Erik has coined 'industrial-noise-techno' music.

Scrape began in late 1993 as a means to expell extreme and negative emotions. The first recordings were basic but slowly began taking shape. The output was recorded and entitled 'Corrode' in spring, 1994. This cassette led to live shows as well as interest in the tape trading underground. It also led to a partnership between Erik and newfound collaborator 1-K. With fresh ideas, Scrape started the initial recordings for the 'Chaos of Life' cassette that was released in summer, 1996. This in turn led to more live shows with bands such as Genetic Disorder and Angry White Mob.

Realizing that there was a need to expand, Erik left Northern Ontario to live in Montréal, Québec. In a new city, a great many songs were written under the Scrape moniker as well as Dementia Praecox (imagine the offspring between Skin Chamber and Scrape). For the first time, production credits were shared between Erik and LQ of Angry Wite Mob. The recording for the 'Corrupt.Condemn.Crush' cd was recorded in LQ's studio in the spring of 1998 but took until January, 1999 to finally release.

By this time, new songs were written and Scrape returned to a one man project. With the help of Raf (from Methamean), the latest release entitled 'Consciousness Razing' was recorded in January, 2000 and was released in summer 2000 complete with artwork designed by Erik himself.

The year 2001 was rung in with an (almost) new cd called 'Collection of Sins'. This contains several demo and live recordings as well as side project material and even multimedia content (more info in releases section as well as 'Collection of Sins' info page).

In summer, 2001, Erik personally re-mastered the 'Chaos of Life' cassette for cd release. Prompted by a fan, I decided to re-release it complete with new artwork.

Now

2001 is finally shaping up to be a comeback year. It has been very difficult to write music since the death of my father last year. Now the emotions are slowly pouring out and shaping themselves into the most personal and impactful songs that Scrape has created. The working title of the new release is 'Coldest of Snows'. Expect harsh beats and the ever present harsh vocals aligned with more tension and feeling than ever before. In addition, there will be a truly excellent remix of 'Worlds of Pain' by Axel Kleintjes of Cycloon. Recording for the new cd is expected to start in spring 2002.

Coldest of Snows was finished January 2002. It is absolutely the harshest and most personal release that Scrape has ever done. There is also more direct songwriting than on past releases (there is less instrumentation on Coldest of Snows than Consciousness Razing-preferring instead to have bigger sounds making more impact). It will be released March 30, 2002!

Coldest of Snows was released as planned in a limited run of 50 signed and numbered copies. We received several reviews and had a successful launch of the CD. It has also been picked up for distribution in Europe by Xtortion Distribution . Scrape have since then concentrated efforts on shows for the summer of 2002 and with the help of a guitarist brought Fire! 2002 which was played for the first time in December. Scrape are currently working on new material as well as remixes.

Screaming in The Void was released for the 10 year anniversary of Scrape on Hallowe'en 2003. We capped this off with a live performance playing songs from throughout the existence of Scrape. We received several remixes and also a video that is included on the CD. For more information about it go here.

Screaming In The Void was an evolution of the Scrape sound and mindset. We featured several remixes and had an official music video made. The sound also changed in ways that was a leap forward from previous releases. Since that time, Scrape have been keeping busy working on a movie score as well as getting ready for a new album. A move to Toronto from Montreal happened in August 2004 so naturally the music will change. Stay tuned for more noise!

'Cruelest Intentions' is now complete. In the 3 years it took to create this release much was changed. A move to more software instruments and a move to finally release a pressed CD (even in the wake of the mp3 and pirating revoltuion) have created a very powerful work. This release has the personal flavour of Coldest of Snows while being completely new and refreshing. The use of more melodic elements and even some techno elements within the Scrape framework have helped to keep the band evolving.

Scrape is now on hiatus while a side project called Combat Exhaustion moves forward. More information can be found here