We caught up with Christian Olde Wolbers – artist, producer, mixer and writer with a past in bands like Fear Factory and tons more – to talk new projects, songwriting and Toontrack!

You grew up in Belgium but relocated to the US in the early ‘90s when joining Fear Factory on bass. How did life change?
Yes, I grew up in Antwerp, Belgium and relocated to Los Angeles in November 1993. Two weeks later I joined Fear Factory. Life changed a lot, but that’s what I was hoping for when I came over to pursue music. Being able to work on music full time was my dream.

Between 1995–2005, you participated on five Fear Factory records. During that time, you played a pivotal role in the evolution of the band’s sound, helping bring electronic layers and textures to the forefront. What fascinated you about sound and production?
The band in general was influenced by a lot of different music, especially industrial and electronic. Having only one guitar player in the band, sometimes the backgrounds needed other melodies and musical texture. Not many death metal bands were adding things like this to their music.

Since then, you have been involved in producing and engineering several bands and projects. Give us a quick rundown of some of the works in your catalogue you feel most proud of in terms of engineering, production or mixing.
That’s a pretty long list. I worked on about 35 video games contributing music, movies like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Saw, Johnny Mnemonic, Mortal Kombat and a few others. The first Threat Signal album from 2005 I’m very proud of – it was the first record I produced. Fear Factory’s “Archetype,” Cypress Hill’s “Skull & Bones” and “Stoned Raiders,” as well as my latest release with Cypress Hill (“Live at the Royal Albert Hall with the London Symphony”). My mom would’ve been proud.

After the Fear Factory chapter of your career, you’ve been in several other bands. Tell us more about your endeavors leading up to your latest ventures.
Right after Fear Factory, I did a record with Fear Factory’s drummer and members of Threat Signal, mixed by Terry Date. Then I worked with Sen from Cypress Hill and Billy from Biohazard on two Powerflo records and did some touring. Right now, I am going to be working full time with Cypress Hill, and I have been working on my own solo band record with the working title “Angst Fabrik.” It’s really heavy – a la Fear Factory.

Looking back on all these years of making records and touring the world, what are some of the most memorable takeaways or accomplishments for you personally?
The London Symphony show at the Royal Albert Hall is probably the biggest accomplishment. That’s a big one. Not too many people can say they played with the LSO at the Royal Albert Hall. I have a long list of accomplishments, but that is the biggest one.

How did you discover Toontrack’s products and which of our tools do you use in your work? How do these help in your creative process?
I discovered Toontrack in the fall of 2017. I needed a tool to easily write drum parts and be able to work without a physical drummer. Being able to build amazing-sounding drum tracks is such a leap in my workflow. I only wish we had Superior Drummer when doing Fear Factory records back in the ‘90s – we would have been able to take things to higher levels. My creative process never lacks with Superior Drummer 3. I have worked with it for nine years now. I couldn’t think of not having it in my workflow – it’s easy to push boundaries of creativity.

What’s next on your agenda?
Currently writing music for Cypress Hill as we are doing live songs again and writing and producing a side project with members of Deftones and Korn. We just wrote two new songs and are working on writing “Angst Fabrik” songs. There are a lot of creative juices flowing, and 2026 is going to be a packed year touring with Cypress Hill and working on my solo album, which is to be released in 2027.