Who is Milo Silvestro, Fear Factory’s New Vocalist?

Who is Milo Silvestro, the new lead vocalist of the industrial metal mainstays Fear Factory?

On Tuesday (Feb. 21), Fear Factory guitarist and bandleader Dino Cazares finally announced Silvestro as the band’s new singer after nearly three years without one. Cazares teased the reveal for the last two years.

Following an exhaustive audition process that included 300 different vocalists, Silvestro got the gig after Cazares spotted the singer’s videos of him performing covers of Fear Factory songs. Silvestro, an Italian musician who plays electronic metal under the name Dead Channel, comes from a musical family and started his creative journey on the drums.

“Both my parents are pro musicians,” Silvestro says in the video announcement that revealed his involvement this week. “My mom is a vocal coach; my dad is a professional blues guitar player and songwriter.”

He was 12 when he “started playing drums and percussion,” the vocalist adds. “That was my main passion … for rhythm and groove.” However, with metal, Silvestro found a way to “let certain things out of my system,” he explains. “To start with lyrics and start learning how to scream, how to do metal vocals.”

How Fear Factory Found Their New Singer

In the clip, Silvestro admits he landed his dream job as Fear Factory vocalist. And it came to pass through the type of Cinderella story — established band plucks new singer from relative obscurity — usually reserved for the movies. Remember 2001’s Rock Star?

“I did a vocal cover, a [Fear Factory] Soul of a New Machine medley, with like pieces of songs from that album,” Silvestro recalls. “I decided to post it … just to get some people to see it. And fortunately enough, Dino was on that page, and he complimented me. He was like, ‘Oh, this is amazing, dude.'”

Cazares adds, “He was doing all the heavy growls, all the killer melodic voices and stuff like that. And it was very impressive. … I kinda had been following him for the last couple of years ’cause I saw some of his videos that he put up on the ‘New Breed‘ page, which is a Fear Factory fan page [on Facebook].”

Cazares also points to a 2013 Fear Factory cover video made by Silvestro in which the musician sings and plays guitar, drums and bass all by himself.

Original Fear Factory singer Burton C. Bell left the band in 2020. The next year, Cazares said he found a new vocalist. But he held off on revealing them.

Silvestro Was the Right Musician for the Job

“I know for sure we got the right guy,” Cazares says. “It is a big week for us in Fear Factory as we make our final preparations for our return to the live stage touring across the U.S., beginning Feb. on the ‘Rise of the Machine’ tour [with Static-X]. We can’t wait to get out on the road and start kicking some ass.”

“This is a huge opportunity for me,” Silvestro adds. “I’ve been a fan of the band for many years and it feels very surreal but I’m excited to be part of it. I know I have some massive shoes to fill but I’m here to do it in the best way possible and give justice to the vocal legacy of this legendary band.”

Fear Factory Continue Their Continuum

Fear Factory formed in 1989 and released albums such as Demanufacture (1995) and Digimortal (2001). They have endured hiatuses and legal entanglements. Cazares is their only original member left. The band now includes drummer Mike Heller (Malignancy) and bassist Tony Campos (Static-X, ex-Soulfly).

Aggression Continuum, Fear Factory’s latest studio LP, arrived in 2021. The album features Bell’s vocals. (A remix effort, Recoded, followed in 2022). In a September 2020 statement, Bell said he was “announcing to my fans my departure from Fear Factory, to focus all my energy” on his other projects, such as the gothic rock outfit Ascension of the Watchers.

See Fear Factory’s upcoming docket of 2023 tour dates with Static-X here. Get your Fear Factory concert tickets here.

Fear Factory Announcement – Feb. 21, 2023

Milo Silvestro, “Dielectric” (Fear Factory Cover)