Xotox released several self-published albums from 1998 to 2002, gaining some attention in Germany. After the release of Disinhibition in 2000, the band started performing live at various venues in Germany, attracting media attention and several favourable reviews. In 2002, songs such as eisenkiller and zweischicht went into rotation at numerous clubs in Germany, attracting the attention of the record label Pronoize, which signed them. "Lichtlos", their debut album with Pronoize, was the first album by an industrial act to reach #1 on the Deutsche Alternative Charts.