KILLING JOKE
Heavy and slow, Killing Joke (at least early in their career)
was a quasi-metal band dancing to a tune of doom and gloom. They
eventually became less heavy and more arty (the latter seems almost
impossible) -- more danceable even -- but early on they made some
urgent slabs of molten dynamite that oozed with the power of thick
guitars, thudding drums and over-the-top singing.
The origins of Killing Joke lay in the Matt Stagger Band. Paul
Ferguson was drumming for the group when he met Jaz Coleman (vocals,
keyboards) in the late '70s. Coleman joined the Matt Stagger Band
briefly, but soon he and Ferguson split to form Killing Joke in
late 1978. The duo recruited bassist Youth (born Martin Glover
Youth), who had previously played with the punk group the Rage,
and guitarist Geordie (born K. Walker) to complete the band's
lineup. Killing Joke moved to Notting Hill Gate and recorded their
debut EP, Turn to Red, with money borrowed from Coleman's girlfriend
of the time. BBC disc jockey John Peel was impressed by the EP
and offered the group a session on his show, which became one
of the most popular shows he broadcast in the late '70s. By the
end of 1979, the group had signed with Island Records, who allowed
them to set up their own label, Malicious Damage.
Killing Joke released "Wardance," their debut single
on Malicious Damage, in February of 1980. Following its release,
Killing Joke and Malicious Damage switched from Island Records
to EG and released their eponymous debut album. The group began
playing shows regularly throughout England and they gained a reputation
for being controversial. Their artwork often featured repulsive
or inflammatory images, and after one of their concert posters
pictured the Pope blessing legions of Nazis, the group was banned
from performing a concert in Glasgow. Despite the controversy,
the group began amassing a following of both punk and disco fans
with hard-edged but danceable singles like "Psyche"
and "Follow the Leader." The band released their second
album, What's This For...!, in 1981.
After recording and releasing the group's third album, 1982's
Revelations, Jaz Coleman -- who had developed an obsession with
the occult -- decided that the apocalypse was near, so he left
the group and ran away to Iceland with Geordie. While in Iceland,
Coleman and Geordie worked with a number of Icelandic bands, most
notably Theyr, which would later evolve into the Sugarcubes. Youth
followed Coleman to Iceland shortly after his departure. After
a few months with no sign of the end of the world, Youth returned
to England and formed Brilliant with Ferguson. However, Ferguson
left shortly after the group's formation and moved to Iceland
with Killing Joke's new bassist, Paul Raven. Youth continued playing
with Brilliant, while Killing Joke's new lineup -- featuring Coleman,
Geordie, Ferguson, and Raven -- worked in Iceland for a brief
period. Soon, the group returned to England and recorded Fire
Dances, which was released in 1983. Fire Dances demonstrated a
calmer, more straightforward band than the one showcased on the
group's earlier records.
For the rest of the '80s, Killing Joke continued to release albums,
all of which failed to regain the audience they had in the early
'80s. After 1988's Outside the Gate, the group broke up, only
to reunite two years later for Extremities, Dirt, & Various
Repressed Emotions. Extremities featured a new drummer, Martin
Atkins, and returned the band to the noisy dance experiments of
their earlier records. Following its release, the group took a
four-year break. In 1994, Killing Joke re-formed as a trio with
Coleman, Geordie, and Youth and the group released Pandemonium,
a harder-edged, heavier album than their previous records. Two
years later, the band released Democracy.
