Null Device
Band history. Null Device was formed in 1995 by Eric Oehler, William Annis and Tom Lawrence, all who were students at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Named after /dev/null, the group was originally an informal project for members of the university's Undergraduate Projects Lab who are interested in techno music during the burgeoning rave scene. Through connections to Stromkern's Ned Kirby and a variety of DJs from local clubs, the project slowly became more focused on vocal-oriented industrial music, using Lawrence's experimental audio software. After the departures of Annis and Lawrence, Dr. Eric  Goedken became the band's full-time lyricist and producer. By this time, the band shifted to a straightforward synthpop sound in the likes of Depeche Mode and New Order. After some local and underground success, they were signed to Nilaihah Records in 2002. As time passes by, their sound diversified, adding elements from breakbeat, trip hop, house and drum and bass. The band use dumbek, dholak, duduk, cumbus, sitar, dilruba and violin in their subsequent releases, as well as guest vocals by Arabic and Carnatic classical singers. Null Device has also contributed to various projects with a number of  other industrial, synthpop and electronic artists, including Armageddon Dildos, B! Machine, Blind Faith and Envy, Caustic, The Dark Clan, Distorted Reality, The Gothsicles, Epsilon Minus, Hungry Lucy, Stochastic Theory and Stromkern.