Konstruktivists (sometimes known as Konstruktivits or Konstruktivist) are a British experimental industrial group who were founded by Glenn Michael Wallis in the early '80s. Wallis was previously a member of a Krautrock-influenced group called Heute and an associate of industrial originators Throbbing Gristle before he began releasing solo material under his own name in 1980. In addition to joining power electronics pioneers Whitehouse, he started making music as Konstruktivits, issuing several tapes on the Flowmotion label as well as debut LP A Dissembly. Recorded in London with musicians Dave Rouse, Adrian Grover, and Dave Kenny, the album was a murky, unsettling collage of ominous drones, submerged vocals, and broken equipment. Throbbing Gristle member Chris Carter modified one of the drum machines used on the album, giving it a unique echo sound. The LP was followed by further LPs on Third Mind Records (Psykho Genetika, Black December) and Sterile Records (Glennascaul), as well as several cassettes on Harsh Reality Music. Some of their mid-'80s work became more rhythmic, but it still felt more abstract and detached than the more danceable industrial/EBM that was becoming popular. The group went on hiatus from its release and performance schedules in 1985, recording but never releasing an album titled Jihad. They returned in 1990 with an updated sound and lineup, including members Joseph Ahmed and Lawrence Burton. Cult industrial label World Serpent signed the group and released its "Tic Tac Toe" single in 1991. A full-length titled Forbidden was recorded, but wasn't released until 1993. Impulse Magazine publisher Mark Crumby joined the group, and they constantly toured Europe and issued cassettes. Sax player and percussionist Dr. R. Alcapone Shiells joined Konstruktivits in 1995. In 2000, Crumby moved to Vienna, Austria and left the band. Wallis changed the spelling of the band to Konstruktivist, as he often worked solo, although recordings and performances including other musicians were credited as Konstruktivists. For the 2006 album Dark Odyessey, Wallis and Shiells were accompanied by songwriter Bridgette Cassese. Also released in 2006 was Back to Black, a more accessible effort that featured Konstruktivists' renditions of songs by David Bowie, John Lennon, and Yello. The group continued issuing new recordings as CD-Rs and digital downloads, as well as a few compilations of older material. In 2009, German label Vinyl-On-Demand released Flowmotion Years: 1980-1982, a two-LP collection of early material by the group. Following 2014's Their Darkest Hour, a digital collection of rare and unreleased recordings, Konstruktivists released two albums in early 2015, both featuring returning member Crumby: the CD Anarchic Arcadia (on Germany's E-Klageto) and LP Destiny Drive (on Austrian label Bleak). Two of the group's songs were included in a 2015 documentary about the history of industrial music titled Industrial Soundtrack for the Urban Decay. In 2016, Dark Entries reissued the group's debut album, A Dissembly, on vinyl. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi