by Gary HillSilent Force was formed in 2000 by former Royal Hunt vocalist D.C. Cooper after his ouster from that group. The original lineup of the band was Cooper, Alex Beyrodt (guitar), Andre Hilgers (drums), Torsten Röhre (keys), and Fleisch (bass). The group released their first album, The Empire of Future, in 2000. By the time they had released Infatuator the following year, Fleisch had been replaced by Jurgen Steinmetz.