Killing Joke

Taking a post-punk ethos into a darker world of heavy metal and more experimental synth pop, Killing Joke became cult heroes of the UK's alternative scene in the 1980s and left a lasting influence on the likes of Depeche Mode, Metallica, Nirvana and Soundgarden. Formed in London in 1978 by vocalist Jeremy ‘Jaz’ Coleman and drummer Paul Ferguson, the group’s classic lineup was solidified the following year with the addition of guitarist Kevin ‘Geordie’ Walker and bassist Martin ‘Youth’ Glover. Killing Joke’s big break came when a session for legendary Radio 1 DJ John Peel became a huge success and resulted in a deal with Island Records and debut album Killing Joke (1980). The single “Follow The Leaders” (from the album What’s THIS for…!) became an early anthem as the band started to use controversial imagery and dabble with the occult. In 1982, Coleman, Youth, and Walker moved to Iceland to avoid what they believed was an impending apocalypse, but they returned with the goth pop of fourth album Fire Dances (1984) and scored their biggest hit with the single “Love Like Blood.” The album Night Time (1985) became their best-selling album and was followed by Brighter Than a Thousand Suns (1986), which was their most commercial album yet. However, the band quickly took a turn towards a more experimental, electronic sound on Outside The Gate (1988) before delivering the thunderous guitar-driven Extremities, Dirt & Various Repressed Emotions (1990). By this time, the line-up had undergone several changes including the departure of drummer Ferguson and bassist Youth and the arrival of bassist Paul Raven, who would be in and out of the band several times between 1982 and his death on October 20, 2007, at the age of 46. Always darkly strange and eccentric, the band split in 1996 but reformed in 2002. Nirvana / Foo Fighters member Dave Grohl joined the line-up on drums for a short time and was featured on the album Killing Joke (2003). By 2008, the original line-up of Coleman, Walker, Ferguson, and Youth came together to tour and record albums such as Absolute Dissent (2010), MMXII (2012), and Pylon (2015). Longtime guitarist Geordie Walker died on November 26, 2023, after suffering a stroke two days earlier. He was 64.

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