The band's initial full-length release "Lifeline" garnered critical praise, citing influences including Nine Inch Nails and KMFDM among others.
After tumultuous years of competing personalities which ultimately led to the death of lead singer Brett Turner and the dissolution of Sri Lanka, Erb and Daniels reconnected in 1995 to pursue their musical path by forming the industrial dance band [needle].
Becoming popular within the industrial music scene, [needle] T-Shirts were seen being worn by major acts, including bands such as Sister Machine Gun.
[3] Erb and Daniels recruited other musicians to perform with them live, with the original lineup consisting of Steve Sidek on drums, Sean Jacobs on keyboards, and Stephen Lentz, formerly of Tubalcain [4] on bass guitar.
[needle] continued to perform shows throughout 1996 and 1997 while working on their next full-length studio release, when a hard disk crash caused all of their new material and original tracks to be lost.