Apoptygma Berzerk’s ‘Exit Popularity Contest’ arrives on digital platforms 27 October
Apoptygma Berzerk brings ‘Exit Popularity Contest’ to digital platforms and streaming on 27 October 2026, a decade after its 2016 Rough Trade release.
Apoptygma Berzerk, the Norwegian EBM and futurepop band led by Stephan Groth, brings its 2016 album Exit Popularity Contest to digital platforms and streaming services for the first time on 27 October 2026. The album was originally released only on CD, cassette and 2xLP through Rough Trade and The End Records; the rights reverted to Apoptygma Berzerk after ten years, clearing the way for a digital edition now that the physical stock is sold out.
Bandcamp supporters get early access to the album ahead of its wider release. The band described the move in its own announcement: “Since the album is now sold out from our warehouse and most of our distributors, the decision to release it onto the digital platforms and streaming services has been made. The point for a physical release has been made, and to all of you who bought it on a physical format and loved it in the last ten years, we salute you.”
Apoptygma Berzerk compiled ‘Exit Popularity Contest’ from three EPs
“Exit Popularity Contest” gathered reworked versions of tracks from Apoptygma Berzerk’s three instrumental EPs released between 2014 and 2016: “Stop Feeding The Beast” (2014), “Videodrome” (2015) and “Xenogenesis” (2016). Side-Line covered the album’s run-up at the time, including its teaser video and preorder campaign.
The ten-track album runs:
- The Genesis 6 Experiment
- Hegelian Dialectic
- For Now We See Through A Glass, Darkly
- Stille Når Gruppe
- In A World Of Locked Rooms
- The Cosmic Chess Match
- U.T.E.O.T.W. (Instrumental)
- The Devil Pays In Counterfeit Money
- Rhein Klang
- U.T.E.O.T.W. (Extended Version)
About Apoptygma Berzerk
Apoptygma Berzerk formed in Sarpsborg, Norway, in 1989, when Stephan Groth and Jon Erik Martinsen began working together on early EBM and electro-rock material. Groth has remained the band’s constant presence since, handling vocals, programming and guitar, and the project’s sound has moved across electro rock, industrial rock, synthpop and the melodic, rhythm-driven style that came to be called futurepop. The current line-up adds Ted Skogmann on drums and additional guitar, Jonas Groth on keyboards and production, Audun Stengel on guitar and Leandra Ophelia Dax on keyboards.
The band’s studio album chronology runs from “Soli Deo Gloria” (1993) through “7” (1996), “Welcome To Earth” (2000), “Harmonizer” (2002) and “You And Me Against The World” (2006) to “Rocket Science” (2009) and “Exit Popularity Contest” (2016). Between full albums, Groth built “Exit Popularity Contest” out of three instrumental EPs released in close succession, “Stop Feeding The Beast,” “Videodrome” and “Xenogenesis,” before Rough Trade and The End Records issued the physical album in October 2016. Groth has continued to revisit the band’s catalogue since, including reissues and remix editions of the 2000 single “Kathy’s Song (Come Lie Next To Me).” The digital release of “Exit Popularity Contest” puts the album in front of streaming audiences for the first time, a decade after its original physical-only run.
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For almost 15 years I’ve been writing about music, interviewing artists and reviewing releases for Peek-A-Boo Magazine. Recently, I also launched my own WordPress website, where I continue to share interviews, reviews and news from the underground scene. The darker side of music has been part of my life for more than 30 years, with a passion for everything from ’80s synthpop and New Wave to EBM, Futurepop and dark electronic music in general. Also Metal and Rock is part of my world. Away from the scene, I work in a public library, where books are part of my everyday life. I enjoy both fiction and non-fiction, especially books on politics, religion, health and travel. I’m also a fan of thrillers and horror films. When I’m not listening to music or reading, you’ll usually find me exploring nature, enjoying a good sauna, experimenting with vegan cooking, or travelling to my second home, Finland. I’ve always believed the underground has the best stories. My job is simply to help tell them
