by Michael SuttonChris Carter (vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards) turned a childhood hobby into a career. Born in Islington, London, England on January 28, 1953, Carter became enchanted with high-tech equipment early in his youth. When he was only a boy, Carter spent hours playing with a tape deck; his father would record family conversations and add sound effects to them, even changing speeds. At the age of 13, Carter fell in love with mixing electronic sounds. Carter joined a garage band called the Dragsters in 1967. A year later, Carter took drugs and saw Pink Floyd perform at a dive in North London. The group's visual presentation and acid-damaged pop left Carter spellbound. Inspired, Carter formed Orpheus Lites with his friend Chris Panayiotou, providing local acts with Pink Floyd-ish psychedelic light shows. Orpheus Lites eventually turned into an integral part of their biggest client, the outfit Willa. Carter joined Willa as a keyboardist, but he left in 1974.In 1975, Carter made his solo debut, performing at Thurrock Technical College in England as Waveforms, utilizing synthesizers and keyboards. He then met future bandmates Genesis P-Orridge (vocals) and Cosey Fanni Tutti (guitar), both of whom were in COUM Transmissions, a performance art ensemble that disgusted and disturbed English audiences by torturing their genitals and licking their vomit on-stage. With the addition of Carter, COUM Transmissions evolved into industrial pioneers Throbbing Gristle. In 1980, Carter released his first album, The Space Between. Throbbing Gristle broke up a year later, and Carter started collaborating with Fanni Tutti as Chris & Cosey and Creative Technology Insitute, otherwise known as CTI. They also created their own record label, Conspiracy International. Carter entered the journalism field in the '90s, writing music reviews; he also designed album covers with Fanni Tutti and remixed two songs from Erasure.