Devin Townsend is a Canadian musician, songwriter, and record producer.
After launching his musical career in 1993 with singing effort on Vai's Sex & Religion and subsequent tour, Townsend released the album Heavy as a Really Heavy Thing under the pseudonym Strapping Young Lad, in 1995.[1] His debut solo release was 1996's Punky Brüster – Cooked on Phonics. Townsend formed a band under the Strapping Young Lad name to perform his next album, the industrial metal album City, in 1997. Townsend started a project initially called Biomech, under the Ocean Machine moniker, to release his less metal-influenced music. It was ultimately released under his own name as 1997's Ocean Machine: Biomech.[2] This was followed by his first charting album, the 1998 album Infinity, which appeared at number 29 in Japan.[3] Strapping Young Lad went on hiatus at this time so that Townsend could focus on his solo music,[4] which had a varying lineup of supporting musicians.[2] His 2000 release Physicist reached number 80 in Japan,[3] and was followed by the 2001 release Terria which charted in France[5] and Japan.[3]
In 2002, Townsend reunited Strapping Young Lad and formed a new group, The Devin Townsend Band, as a permanent fixture for recording and touring for his solo material. The two bands recorded new albums simultaneously, and released Strapping Young Lad and Accelerated Evolution, respectively, in 2003.[6] The former was Townsend's first album to chart in the US, appearing at number 97 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart.[7] Townsend also released a special edition of Accelerated Evolution which included an EP called Project EKO. The EP was Townsend's first foray into electronica, a genre which he explored further with Devlab in 2004.[2] Strapping Young Lad released Alien in 2005, which charted in four countries,[7][8][9][10] reaching 32 on Top Heatseekers.[7] In 2006, both bands released their final albums, The Devin Townsend Band's Synchestra charting in three European countries[5][11][12] and Strapping Young Lad's The New Black climbing to last place on the Billboard 200.[7] He also released a third electronica piece, an ambient album called The Hummer.
In 2007, Townsend disbanded both Strapping Young Lad and The Devin Townsend Band to spend more time with his family and less time touring.[13][14] That year, a solo comedic concept album, Ziltoid the Omniscient, was released. Townsend put his music on hiatus for a year, doing production work for other artists. In late 2008, he began recording a four-album series called the Devin Townsend Project, using a different musical style and band of supporting musicians for each album.[15][16] The first entry in the series, a relatively quiet rock album called Ki, was released in May 2009,[17] reaching number 26 in Finland[12] and appearing on the UK Indie[18] and UK Rock[19] charts. The second album in the series, a more heavy album called Addicted, was released in November 2009, reaching number 36 in Finland and number 2 on the US Heatseekers chart.[20] The third and fourth albums in the series, a metal album called Deconstruction and a new-age album called Ghost, were released simultaneously on June 20, 2011. After the four albums Townsend decided to continue under the Devin Townsend Project moniker and released the fifth record, entitled Epicloud, on September 18, 2012. The first album in its eponymous series, Casualties of Cool, was released on May 14, 2014.[21][22][23] The most recent studio albums include a double concept album project called Z² and seventh Devin Townsend Project album Transcendence, released on October 27, 2014 and September 9, 2016, respectively.[24][25] Townsend released his next solo album titled Empath on March 29, 2019. On December 3, 2021, he released The Puzzle and Snuggles, his next two studio albums, simultaneously. Lightwork, his latest studio album, was released on November 4, 2022.
Limited edition of 2,500 copies, features tracks from Strapping Young Lad album.
C:enter:###
Released: April 19, 2007
Label: Restrain
Format: 7"
Limited edition of 500 hand-numbered copies, includes Japanese-only bonus track "C:enter:###" from The New Black, a cover of Melvins song "Zodiac" and live versions of "In the Rainy Season" and "Underneath the Waves".
2003 CD re-release includes three bonus tracks. 2023 25th anniversary re-release with updated album artwork features the remastered album, four demo tracks from the Christeen EP and two acoustic bonus tracks.
Second and final album by The Devin Townsend Band. Special CD edition includes a bonus DVD titled Safe Zone, featuring live performances of eight songs.
Townsend's country and blues rock album project featuring Ché Aimee Dorval and Morgan Ågren. Deluxe editions include a second CD featuring 13 additional tracks.
Double concept album, consisting of Dark Matters (a sequel to Ziltoid the Omniscient) and Sky Blue (sixth album of the Devin Townsend Project). Stand-alone CD and 2×LP versions of both albums were released in 2015.
Seventh and final album of the Devin Townsend Project. Deluxe CD edition and vinyl edition include a bonus disc titled Holding Patterns, featuring 11 additional tracks.
Compilation of Grey Skies, Strapping Young Lad and Devin Townsend demos recorded in 1986–1994. Released accompanying Townsend's autobiography Only Half There.
Includes four original Devin Townsend Project albums and both released and unreleased bonus material; limited to 5,000 copies, 500 hand-numbered copies featured a special 10" vinyl and a signed drawing.
Includes live material of four special Devin Townsend Project concerts held in London in November 2011; limited to 5,000 copies.
Eras: Vinyl Collection Part I
Released: June 8, 2018
Label: InsideOut
Format: 7xLP box set
Vinyl box set including four original Devin Townsend Project albums (Ki, Addicted, Deconstruction and Ghost); released as black, clear and transparent blue vinyl versions, altogether limited to 2,000 copies.[45]
Eras: Vinyl Collection Part II
Released: August 31, 2018
Label: InsideOut
Format: 8xLP box set
Vinyl box set including solo albums Ocean Machine: Biomech, Infinity, Physicist and Terria with The Devin Townsend Band album Synchestra; released as black, clear and orange vinyl versions, altogether limited to 2,500 copies.[46]
Eras: Vinyl Collection Part III
Released: December 7, 2018
Label: InsideOut
Format: 10xLP box set
Vinyl box set including The Devin Townsend Band album Accelerated Evolution with Devin Townsend Project albums Epicloud, Sky Blue, Transcendence and Live at the Royal Albert Hall ("by request" part of the Ziltoid Live at the Royal Albert Hall live album); released as black, clear and dark green vinyl versions, altogether limited to 2,500 copies.[47]
Eras: Vinyl Collection Part IV
Released: August 23, 2019
Label: InsideOut
Format: 9xLP box set
Vinyl box set including studio albums Ziltoid the Omniscient and Dark Matters with live albums Ziltoid Live at the Royal Albert Hall and The Retinal Circus; released as black, orange and transparent green vinyl versions, altogether limited to 2,500 copies.[48]
EP albums
Title
Album details
Notes
Christeen + 4 Demos
Released: 1998
Label: HevyDevy
Format: CD
Includes the "Christeen" single and four B-sides from the Infinity sessions.
Live video recording of a special show held at Roundhouse, London in October 2012. Released as three standard versions alongside two limited edition box sets.[51][52]
Ziltoid Live at the Royal Albert Hall
Released: November 13, 2015
Label: HevyDevy
Formats: 3xCD+DVD, BD, 3xCD+2xDVD+BD box set
—
—
Live video recording of a special show held at Royal Albert Hall, London in April 2015. Released as standard versions alongside a limited edition box set, containing all formats and a hardcover book.
Live video recording of a special show held at the Roman Theatre of Plovdiv, Bulgaria in September 2017. Released as standard versions alongside a limited edition box set, containing all formats and a hardcover book.
Order of Magnitude: Empath Live Volume 1
Released: October 23, 2020
Label: HevyDevy
Formats: 2xCD+DVD, BD, 2xCD+DVD+BD box set
—
—
Live video recording of a show of the "Empath Volume 1" tour held at Roundhouse, London in December 2019. Released as standard versions alongside a limited edition box set, containing all formats and a hardcover book.
Blue-gray picture disc, features "Feather (edit)" as a B-side. Originally only made available as a part of a limited "The Calm & the Storm" bundle, featuring Deconstruction and Ghost albums.
2012
"Kingdom"
Released: October 27, 2012
Label: InsideOut
Format: 7"
Epicloud
White picture disc, features "Heatwave (demo)" as a B-side. Originally only made available to VIP attendees of The Retinal Circus concert as "Soft Inc. EP".[53]
"Coast (Take Two)"
Released: November 5, 2012
Label: InsideOut
Format: 7"
By a Thread: Live in London
Single-sided picture disc, limited to 1,000 hand-numbered copies. All copies include hand-written and signed certificate by Townsend.
Lightwork: "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 14 November 2022". The ARIA Report. No. 1706. Australian Recording Industry Association. November 14, 2022. p. 6.
