[kj] Re Future of Killing Joke

Wed Nov 29 08:57:48 EST 2023

There are bands that can solider forward ... I am reminded of AC/DC, who drafted Brian Johnson to assume the microphone not long after Bon Scott passed. More recently, I remember -- when Brian Johnson had to bow out to protect his hearing, for a while -- they drafted Axl Rose to take his place. It seemed heartless and mercenary, at the time, but AC/DC had tour dates to fulfill, and they weren't going to let their audience down.

Killing Joke, meanwhile, is.... was (I hate typing that) a very different beast, indeed. Yes, members have come, gone, returned and left again, but it's always been a band about a very specific chemistry (beyond the fact, of course, that Geordie was in every iteration along the way). I remember assuming the end when Big Paul left, but what an inspired replacement Martin Atkins was. Ted Parsons was also a great fit (although I believe there was a bit of fallout over a missed flight). Young Ben Calvert was a nice, energetic addition for a while, but never really seemed like a proper member of the band. I saw bassist Taif play with them in 1989, and he didn't seem like quite the right guy for the job (and let's not even discuss the late Andy Rourke). RAVEN was assuredly not the same type of player as Youth, but HOLY SHIT was he ever a good fit, adding a new degree of menace and whallop to the proceedings. I remember being incredulous and devastated upon learning of his death, as well. 

But while Jaz, Big Paul and Youth are all consummately Killing Joke to the very bone, without Geordie, it can never be the same. I mean, I can't really imagine Killing Joke without Jaz, for example, but the thing that really DEFINES Killing Joke -- the essence that sets them well apart from all others -- in the singularly UNIQUE sound of Geordie's guitar. Full stop. That's it. Without Geordie -- despite the best of intentions -- it can never be Killing Joke.

I also have a hard time wrapping my head around the notion of them pulling a Beatles-y "Free as a Bird" stunt, trying to build songs around remaining Geordie riffs. It strikes me that Geordie was a very driving component of the musical directions they made, and without his input and weigh-in, it wouldn't *really* be the same.

This all said, I fully expect Jaz, Youth and Big Paul to stay active. I can see them working together, but I don't see them calling it Killing Joke.

..but, y'know, I've been wrong before.

It sounds somewhat ridiculous to suggest this, but I've truly be crestfallen all week. I mean, I was 17 years old when I first heard Killing Joke, and as I'm sure it was with many of you, that first taste of their music INSTANTLY made them my favorite band, and I mean that very literally. Like, not just my favorite punk band, or my favorite band of the moment or whatever -- my first hearing of "Eighties" in my friend Spike's Dad's living room in the Spring of 1984, INSTANTLY marked me as a Killing Joke acolyte for life. I literally ran out the door and across the street to a tiny shop on Cornelia Street in Greenwich Village called Subterranean Records and bought the 12" on the spot, and then feverishly combed NYC's then-thriving network of indie record shops, snapping up every bit of their music that I could put my hand to. I have loads of "favorite" bands --- bands I'm slavishly devoted to, but none of them --- N O N E. OF THEM -- ever came close to Killing Joke.  Their music speaks to me like no other's, and I have been as slavishly sworn to them for 39 years. It sounds presumptuous to say, but they have become part of my very identity. So, to lose such an integral component of that life-affirming element that has enriched my 56 years like nothing else is a genuine, palpable pain. I cannot say that I truly knew Geordie (I met him -- and interviewed him, disastrously -- a few times), but I never got to know him as I got to know Big Paul and Raven (I've similarly met Jaz several times, but I doubt he has the foggiest clue who I am). Youth I've spoken with a few times and he is an incredibly nice, welcoming gent. But the sound, vision, mythos, lore, essence and force that is Killing Joke has informed, enlivened and empowered me for literally every day since that Spring day in 1984. To think that that's all over is almost too much for me to take. 

Sorry, soppy rant over.

-Alex in NYC

-----Original Message-----
From: A list about all things Killing Joke (the band!) <gathering at misera.net>
Sent: Nov 29, 2023 1:30 AM
To: A list about all things Killing Joke (the band!) <gathering at misera.net>
Cc: adrianwason <adrianwason at btinternet.com>
Subject: Re: [kj] Re Future of Killing Joke

100% agreement Mike...Maybe re-work some of his demos into KJ tracks... I was suprised they did Big Buzz as there are some totally outstanding tracks there...
Every band is different but Rush stopped after Neil Peart died...

------ Original Message ------
From: "Mike Logvinoff" <mlogvinoff77 at live.ca>
To: "gathering at misera.net" <gathering at misera.net>
Sent: Wednesday, 29 Nov, 2023 At 04:10
Subject: [kj] Re Future of Killing Joke

Without Geordie there is no Killing Joke.

It has always at least been Jaz & Geordie.

Best that can be hoped for in the future would be unreleased material from the band and re-issued material.

Such a loss.

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