[kj] Re Future of Killing Joke

Thu Nov 30 16:25:38 EST 2023

Geordie's death, personally, happens in the context of the death of a
cousin close to my age. Not to air details about that, but I'm drawn to
similarities and differences in processing these events. Both relatively
young, both sudden. Grief is not linear. It was easier to let go of one
grandparent with whom I had a satisfactory relationship, compared to
another who was always distant.

>From my outsider angle, I would simply point out the parallel history of
dub experiments that correspond with Youth's involvement. Many diverge
wildly from written songs, defying any sense of live take, but we also had
the "Pandemonium" single around 30 years ago, not to mention "Almost Red".
"Lord of Chaos" EP smells of digital workstation, no shade intended.
Without knowing any of what work-in-progress is in what technical condition
and so on, the long precedent of dub experiments lends itself to the
possibility of a respectful, third way forward on the original premise.

For my sensibilities, all road acts are somewhat distinct since the
audiences are not the same as for new recordings. I can't see how the live
band could continue playing legacy material in guitar-based arrangements,
if at all.

--Mark

On Thu, Nov 30, 2023 at 4:06 AM Neil Perry <65snoopy at gmail.com> wrote:

> Just last week I was putting together a fresh KJ playlist and marvelling
> at how many of those songs sparked memories, often of where and when
> I first heard them. Like Are You Receiving?, lying in bed in October 1979
> with my ear pressed to the radio listening to John Peel. And also
> marvelling at how the passion that 14 year old boy suddenly felt for this
> band is still alive in this 58 year old man.
>
> The last time I saw them was with you Dave in Glasgow, whenever that was,
> 2018 or something? Gutted now more than ever that
> lack of funds conspired to keep me away from recent gigs, particularly the
> Albert Hall. But I have so many insane/joyful memories of
> KJ shows that I can just turn on the show reel in my head - the Camden
> Barfly gig still makes me shake my head in amazement, and that was
> close to 20 years ago. I still remember the hairs on the back of my neck
> prickling at the Lyceum in 1980 and 81, Hammersmith Palais in 82, Forum in
> 94... etc etc,
> you all know how it goes!
>
> It's an emotional thing, letting go, but Killing Joke is over as far as
> I'm concerned. I don't want to hear those same songs with a different
> guitar sound,
> and nor do I want to hear someone else trying to emulate Geordie. I can't
> imagine how Jaz would feel standing on stage, looking to his right
> to see... someone else. After 45 years. But it's not up to us, is it...
> the band must do whatever makes them happy, but for me Killing Joke
> continuing now would be like Motorhead without Lemmy (fill in your own
> examples...).
>
> Personally I'm not against hearing some studio stuff put together from
> anything Geordie left in the vaults. In fact I'd bloody love it, but
> understand some see that
> as sacrilege. And perhaps that's how the band would feel about it.
>
> Christ, 45 years of music and performance is a hell of a legacy, and what
> Geordie did is out there, and will continue to ring out for ever. We've
> been so lucky.
> N
>
> PS Aside from the circumstances, makes me happy to be chatting on the
> old-school email list again
>
> On Wed, 29 Nov 2023 at 15:28, gingoblin--- via Gathering <
> gathering at misera.net> wrote:
>
>> Well put Alex.
>> As much as I hate to say it, Killing Joke have to be over. I've seen my
>> other favourite bands (The Damned and Hawkwind) change key members and do
>> some fantastic stuff, but Killing Joke without Geordie is just impossible
>> to me.
>> It's fucking grim thinking I will never witness the power of Killing Joke
>> live again, but am grateful I did have all those opportunities over the
>> years, right up to the Albert Hall in March.
>>
>> Dave in Edinburgh
>>
>>
>> Sent from Proton Mail mobile
>>
>>
>>
>> -------- Original Message --------
>> On 29 Nov 2023, 13:57, Alex Smith < vassifer at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>
>>
>> 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
>>
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>> -----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.
>>
>>
>>
>> Get Outlook for Android <https://aka.ms/AAb9ysg>
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