|
Rozz Williams (November 6, 1963 - April 1, 1998) was the lead singer and founder of Christian Death. Other projects he started include Shadow Project and Premature Ejaculation. He was born Roger Alan Painter in Pomona, California and was raised in a strict Southern Baptist family with his three older siblings (two brothers and one sister). On April 1st 1998, Rozz Williams hung himself.
While his older brothers preferred stuff like Leonard Skynard and his sister preferred stuff like Janis Joplin, Rozz, as a child, preferred stuff along the lines of David Bowie, Roxy Music, T-Rex, Alice Cooper, Iggy Pop, and The New York Dolls. When he reached adolescence, in the late 1970s, he became attracted to the American Punk scene and shaved his head.
By sixteen, Roger Alan Painter began performing in bands. He took the name of Rozz Williams from a gravestone he found in his favorite cemetery. His first band was called Crawlers to No who then became known as The Upsetters. Rozz sang and played the guitar, though the band never performed on stage. Rozz then went on to form The Asexuals. He sang, played guitar and the organ, Jill Emery played bass and also sang and Steve Darrow played drums. They performed at a few parties but played no real concert dates.
He then sang in a band called Daucus Karota with Mary Torciva on percussion and Jay on guitar. Jay and Rozz then went on to form Christian Death in late 1979, though Jay would leave the group in 1981. Rozz had been the only original member left of Christian Death when he left the group in 1985, yet the remaining members continued to perform and release several albums under the name Christian Death. The latter is commonly called Valors Christian Death since it was under Valor Kands leadership.
Rozz released various material under different project names following his departure from the band; first with Premature Ejaculation and then Shadow Project with Eva, whom he married in San Francisco in 1987. The band lineup included Johann Schumann (bass) and also Barry Galvin and David Glass, both of whome came from Valor's Christian Death. The name, Shadow project, was taken from the tests in Hiroshima following the nuclear bomb which left impressions or shadows, but no bodies
Later on, Rozz reformed Shadow Project with wife Eva O, Jill Emery (bass), Tom Morgan (drums), and Paris (keyboards). Rozz was, at the time, becoming increasingly influenced by Charles Manson.
Rozz also occasionally did Christian Death reunions during the late 1980s and early 1990s with Rikk Agnew, the guitarist on Christian Deaths first album. Rozz and wife Eva O also released a couple new albums under the name Christian Death during the 1990s, resulting in two bands being called Christian Death.
Rozz was found hanged on 1st April 1998 by his roommate, Ryan, in their West Hollywood apartment. A memorial was held at the El Rey Theatre shortly after his death, and a small gathering of family and friends offered his ashes to the earth at Runyon Canyon.
|
