it is very hard for me to believe how old this record is. i feel like we started working on this in a meaningful way thirty years ago, in 1995…working through technical hurdles from our primitive equipment in Jeremy’s basement, trying to figure out the overall direction and vibe, doing plenty of drugs. although it wears some of it’s influences rather obviously, it’s difficult for me not to be proud of this first born baby…it certainly sounded nothing like what was going on around us in the boston music scene. our live show at that time was something to see, for sure.

trying to write very complex music like this on hardware synths and sequencers, using some very lame outboard gear, and a very limited sampler made our lives very difficult. although they say necessity is the mother of invention, i’d argue that limitations on your capabilities are the more important factor in grinding out something the hard way that you can live with. i can’t honestly even understand exactly how songs like ‘Sworn’ or ‘Static’ were recorded… probably direct to 2 track DAT from the console, with live vocals overdubbed at Cybersound or at SINless.

this was a volatile time for three young hard men, and even though this was possibly a creative apex, by the time we finished this record we were basically at odds too frequently to keep at it together. so when the original record deal collapsed, it was game over for “the band” and we didn’t get this properly out into the world until many years later. fortunately enough positive relationships spun out of this for me, so it was recoverable in time… although it did put this project on ice for a couple of years.

i wish that we could have kept this lineup going, it would be so interesting to hear what could have come after this record if our egos and stubborn attitudes hadn’t gotten in the way.

From the liner notes...

"Looking back at it now, it's a miracle this record was ever finished. Our receipe was flawed from the start: a bunch of misanthropic young haters with a taste for drugs and a talent for overly complex electronic beats; yet somehow we ended up completing this album after three long years of work."

Drawing disparate elements from a variety of genres, 'Product' was intended to set the benchmark for industrial music on it's release. Due to circumstances beyond the bands control, the debut album was not to see widespread release until it's remastering in 2005. As powerful as it ever was, 'Product' continues to make waves a decade after it's completion, with songs like 'Sworn', 'Static', and the popular Informatik remix of 'Blunt Force Trauma'. For fans of harsh industrial, drum and bass, and noise!

Programming on all songs by Battery Cage

[Tyler Newman, Jeremy Page, AJ Kaelin]

All tracks programmed at Digital Aggression Studio / OFFWorld Studio

All tracks recorded at Cybersound Studio, Boston MA, except:

Killfile - recorded at Digital Aggression Studio

Sworn - recorded at The Emergency Room, Boston MA

Blunt Force Trauma (Informatik Mindlock Mix) - reconfigured at The Emergency Room, Boston MA.

Informatik appears courtesy of Metropolis Records.

All post production and mastering performed by Da5id Din and Tyler Newman at The Emergency Room, Boston MA, on a Macintosh Quadra 950 and the ProTools 4 system.

Engineering and production on all tracks by Battery Cage and Joshua Greco except where noted:

Additional production on Sworn by Da5id Din

Engineering and production on Caged by Perry Geyer

Guest Vocal on Penalized performed by Alex Pean