[2] With his increasing exposure to technology and science fiction, Idol decided to base his upcoming album on the cyberpunk genre, and quickly set about educating himself in Cyberdelic counter culture.

HyperCard stack, a collection of essays based on fanzines, political tracts, conspiracy theories, and which referred to itself as "a do-it-yourself guide to the future."

Idol also hosted a "cyber-meeting" attended by the likes of Timothy Leary, famed counterculture guru; Jaime Levy, author of books published on disks under the "Electronic Hollywood" imprint; R. U. Sirius, co-founder of Mondo 2000; and Brett Leonard, director of The Lawnmower Man.

Karen Schoemer, of the New York Times, commented that "[w]ith its booming techno beats, screeching guitar riffs, sampled computer voices and songs like 'Power Junkie' ('I feel tonight we're bought and sold/Ah yeah, I think I'll overload'), the album functions as Mr.

Idol came to expound on his belief in their future importance for the music industry, and quoting Gareth Branwyn, referred to the computer as "the new cool tool".

[2] However, he rejected the idea of referring to the music as "computerized", on the grounds that nothing was done for the album that could not have been done with standard recording equipment, and that the computer had simply sped up and simplified the creative process.

Placing emphasis on the contribution of the performers over the computer tools they used, Idol felt the album achieved a "garage band" spirit, that had captured the "Sturm und Drang" he found in rock and roll, and had simply modified it digitally.

[11] Idol also hoped that the rapid ability to do whatever he desired with the production would allow raw forms of rock music to remain relevant after the Grunge movement swept America in the early 90s.

[5] It included album clip art, sample sound bytes, a biography by Mark Frauenfelder, lyrics, and a cyberculture bibliography by Gareth Branwyn.

This included its use for the album and singles' cover art, the Billy Idol's Cyberpunk floppy disk, and in the press pack released to the media.

As Idol explained for MTV News, he had originally created the song with an entirely different set of lyrics, but upon witnessing the riots on television he immediately rewrote and recorded them that day.

Idol further felt that the camcorder – as displayed in the witnessing of the Rodney King beating – was a "potent way of conveying ideas" and an important metaphor for technology used in rebellion.

Its cover art featured images of the cyborg freedom fighter played by Billy Idol in the "Shock to the System" music video, and included taglines that suggested a story of a dystopian world of high technology and rebellion.

"For the most part, other than keyboards that add a pervasive nod to the jittering beat of techno-rave music, Cyberpunk sounds pretty much like every other Idol album.

"[36] Manuel Esparza of The Daily Cougar wrote a more mixed review, praising some elements, such as the track "Shangrila", the use of sound space echo effects, and Idol's talent as a singer.

However, Esparza felt that Idol attempted the same techniques across too many songs, and referred to the lyrics as "[just barely making] more sense than a monkey pounding away on a typewriter".

"[38] Johnny Dee of NME believed that the album is still "predominated" by the "same basic ingredients of mock rebel gesturing and fist-pumping melodrama" which Idol is known for.

He felt it "just sounds more digital, shrink-wrapped and synthetic" than before, and added his belief that it would do well commercially for Idol by stating that there are "more than enough chant-along hits to keep him on MTV for another couple of years".

[39] Every counter-culture is, for a brief initial period, the sole domain of a handful of founding elites who inevitably find a certain sense of superiority in the exclusive nature of their undertaking.

The charge of illiteracy was not entirely false, as at the time of the album's release, Idol was still typing using the "hunt and peck" system, and needed notes to log onto the internet.

[10] In defending himself from what he believed was the elitism of his online critics, Idol admitted that he was still learning about computers, but compared it to the early punk ethic of simply trying your best as a musician, even if you had difficulty.

Of Billy Idol's attempts to base his fashion and music on it, it states, "No matter how sincere his intentions might have been, scorn and charges of commercialization have been heaped upon him in this and other forums.

"Even if his interest was originally piqued by the dollar signs that appear in front of his eyes whenever he encounters the magic rune p-u-n-k, that's the fate of any good idea—sooner or later it touches people who have no deep connection to it."

However, unlike some critics who asserted Idol had no genuine interest in cyberculture, Christgau assumed he did and that this was to be expected, as many subcultures are eventually adopted by mainstream society.

Shawn P. Wilbur, a left-libertarian academic then associated with the Bowling Green State University, closely critiqued the concept of the supposed "cyberpunk movement".

"[48] While examining Pat Cadigan's 1991 novel, Synners, Wilbur also referenced the Cyberpunk single, "Shock to the System", interpreting the song on multiple levels.

[49] The single, "Shock to the System", and its accompanying music video were also heavily analysed for the overtones of racial, sexual, and physical trauma presented within them by Thomas Foster, associate professor at Indiana University, in his 2005 book, The Souls of Cyberfolk.

[52] During the intermittent years between albums, Idol created music for the Speed and Heavy Metal 2000 film soundtracks and regularly wrote and performed new songs for several tours, but never attempted to experiment with the style he explored in Cyberpunk.

An accompanying review stated, "The result [of Idol's casting as a "futuristic maverick" and the album itself] is as laughably dated as it is difficult to endure in its entirety.

The Boston Globe reported, "[Cyberpunk] demands recognition as a style setter, not for its musical content, but for the changes it may prompt in the ways recordings are made and marketed".