Painkiller (band)
Encyclopedia
Painkiller is a band originally formed in 1991. Their style can be described as a mix of avant-garde jazz
and grindcore
; later albums also incorporated elements of ambient
and dub
.
The three primary members of the band are: John Zorn
on saxophone
, Bill Laswell
on electric bass
and Mick Harris
(formerly of Napalm Death
and founding member of Scorn
) on drums
. The band has also had several musicians make guest appearances both live and in the studio, including Yamatsuka Eye, Buckethead
, Mike Patton
, Makigami Koichi, Justin Broadrick
and G. C. Green of Godflesh
, and Keiji Haino
of Fushitsusha
.
Harris departed from the band in 1995 to dedicate himself solely to computer music
; following his departure many assumed that Painkiller was defunct. However, Zorn and Laswell have recently resurrected the band name and played some dates with either Hamid Drake
or Yoshida Tatsuya
playing drums. Rumours of a new studio album from the band have not been confirmed.
(A bit of overlapping occurs in the discography: obviously Guts of a Virgin/Buried Secrets collects the first two discs onto a single CD; Collected Works includes the first two EPs with Execution Ground and a bonus live disc.)
Avant-garde jazz
Avant-garde jazz is a style of music and improvisation that combines avant-garde art music and composition with jazz. Avant-jazz often sounds very similar to free jazz, but differs in that, despite its distinct departure from traditional harmony, it has a predetermined structure over which ...
and grindcore
Grindcore
Grindcore is an extreme genre of music that started in the early- to mid-1980s. It draws inspiration from some of the most abrasive music genres – including death metal, industrial music, noise and the more extreme varieties of hardcore punk....
; later albums also incorporated elements of ambient
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
and dub
Dub music
Dub is a genre of music which grew out of reggae music in the 1960s, and is commonly considered a subgenre, though it has developed to extend beyond the scope of reggae...
.
The three primary members of the band are: John Zorn
John Zorn
John Zorn is an American avant-garde composer, arranger, record producer, saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist. Zorn is a prolific artist: he has hundreds of album credits as performer, composer, or producer...
on saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
, Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
on electric bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
and Mick Harris
Mick Harris
Mick Harris commonly known and credited both as Mick Harris or occasionally M.J. Harris, is an English musician....
(formerly of Napalm Death
Napalm Death
Napalm Death are a death metal band formed in Birmingham, England in 1981. While none of its original members remain in the group, the lineup of vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway, bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch Harris and drummer Danny Herrera has remained consistent for most of the band's ...
and founding member of Scorn
Scorn (band)
Scorn was an English electronic music project. The group was formed in the early 1990s as a side project of former Napalm Death members Mick Harris and Nic Bullen...
) on drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
. The band has also had several musicians make guest appearances both live and in the studio, including Yamatsuka Eye, Buckethead
Buckethead
Brian Carroll , better known by his stage name Buckethead, is a guitarist and multi instrumentalist who has worked within several genres of music. He has released 34 studio albums, four special releases and one EP. He has performed on over 50 more albums by other artists...
, Mike Patton
Mike Patton
Michael Allan "Mike" Patton is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and actor, best known as the lead singer of the metal/experimental rock band Faith No More. He has also sung for Mr...
, Makigami Koichi, Justin Broadrick
Justin Broadrick
Justin Karl Michael Broadrick is a British singer, songwriter, guitarist and drummer. He is best known as a founding member of the band Godflesh, one of the first bands to combine elements of extreme metal and industrial music.-Biography:Broadrick was born in the council estates of inner...
and G. C. Green of Godflesh
Godflesh
Godflesh are an English industrial metal band from Birmingham, England. Originally known as Fall of Because, they formed in 1988 by Justin K. Broadrick and G.C. Green and disbanded in 2002. Godflesh's innovative music is widely regarded as a foundational influence on industrial metal and post-metal...
, and Keiji Haino
Keiji Haino
Keiji Haino born May 3, 1952 in Chiba, Japan, and currently residing in Tokyo, is a Japanese musician whose work has included rock, free improvisation, noise, singer-songwriter, solo percussion, psychedelic, minimalism and drone styles...
of Fushitsusha
Fushitsusha
Fushitsusha is a Japanese rock band specialising in the psychedelic rock, space rock and noise rock genres. The band consists of electric guitarist and singer Keiji Haino, and a shifting cast of complementary musicians. The group released the majority of its material in the 1990s.-History:Haino...
.
Harris departed from the band in 1995 to dedicate himself solely to computer music
Computer music
Computer music is a term that was originally used within academia to describe a field of study relating to the applications of computing technology in music composition; particularly that stemming from the Western art music tradition...
; following his departure many assumed that Painkiller was defunct. However, Zorn and Laswell have recently resurrected the band name and played some dates with either Hamid Drake
Hamid Drake
Hamid Drake is an American jazz drummer and percussionist. He lives in Chicago, IL but spends much of his time traveling around the world for concerts and studio dates....
or Yoshida Tatsuya
Yoshida Tatsuya
is a Japanese musician and composer who is the only consistent member of the renowned progressive rock duo Ruins, as well as Koenji Hyakkei...
playing drums. Rumours of a new studio album from the band have not been confirmed.
Discography
- Guts of a VirginGuts of a VirginGuts of a Virgin is the first EP by Painkiller, a band featuring John Zorn, Bill Laswell and Mick Harris. It contains twelve tracks and was released on the Toy's Factory label in Japan and the Earache label in England in 1991...
EP (EaracheEarache RecordsEarache Records is a heavy metal-oriented record label based in Nottingham, UK and New York, USA. It helped to pioneer extreme metal by releasing many of the earliest grindcore and death metal records in the period 1988-1994.-History:...
, 1991) - Buried SecretsBuried SecretsBuried Secrets is the second EP by Painkiller released by Toy's Factory in Japan and Earache in the UK, featuring guest appearances from Justin Broadrick and G.C. Green from Godflesh.-Reception:...
EP (EaracheEarache RecordsEarache Records is a heavy metal-oriented record label based in Nottingham, UK and New York, USA. It helped to pioneer extreme metal by releasing many of the earliest grindcore and death metal records in the period 1988-1994.-History:...
, 1992) - Rituals: Live in JapanRituals: Live in JapanRituals: Live in Japan is a live CD by Painkiller, a band featuring John Zorn, Bill Laswell, and Mick Harris, performing live in Tokyo in 1991 with guest guitar and vocals from Haino Keiji. The album was released on the Japanese label, Toys Factory, in 1993....
(Toy's FactoryToy's Factoryis a Japanese record label founded in 1990 as a VAP subsidiary, based in Japan. It has since become an independent company.-Sub-Labels:* bellissima!* Carnage* Deep Blue* Idyllic* Kimi* Meme Tokyo* -Artists:*Aobozu*Armageddon*Bump of Chicken...
, 1993) - Execution GroundExecution GroundExecution Ground is a double CD by Painkiller, a band featuring John Zorn, Bill Laswell, and Mick Harris. The second disc contains ambient dub versions of two tracks...
(Subharmonic, 1994) - Painkiller: The Collected WorksPainkiller: The Collected WorksPainkiller: The Collected Works is a four disc box set that contains the two EPs Guts of a Virgin and Buried Secrets, the album Execution Ground and a live album previously released on the Japanese edition of Execution Ground....
(TzadikTzadik RecordsTzadik Records is a record label based in New York City specialising in avant-garde and experimental music. The label was established by the eclectic composer and saxophonist John Zorn in 1995; Zorn is the executive producer of all Tzadik releases...
, 1997) - Guts of a Virgin/Buried Secrets (EaracheEarache RecordsEarache Records is a heavy metal-oriented record label based in Nottingham, UK and New York, USA. It helped to pioneer extreme metal by releasing many of the earliest grindcore and death metal records in the period 1988-1994.-History:...
, 1998) - Talisman: Live in NagoyaTalisman: Live in NagoyaTalisman: Live in Nagoya is a live album by Painkiller, a band featuring John Zorn, Bill Laswell, and Mick Harris, performing live in Nagoya, Japan.-Reception:...
(TzadikTzadik RecordsTzadik Records is a record label based in New York City specialising in avant-garde and experimental music. The label was established by the eclectic composer and saxophonist John Zorn in 1995; Zorn is the executive producer of all Tzadik releases...
, 2002) - 50th Birthday Celebration Volume 1250th Birthday Celebration Volume 12-Personnel:*John Zorn – alto saxophone*Bill Laswell – bass*Hamid Drake – drums*Mike Patton – voice...
(TzadikTzadik RecordsTzadik Records is a record label based in New York City specialising in avant-garde and experimental music. The label was established by the eclectic composer and saxophonist John Zorn in 1995; Zorn is the executive producer of all Tzadik releases...
, 2005) - this album features Drake and Patton; it is the only one listed on which Harris does not play.
(A bit of overlapping occurs in the discography: obviously Guts of a Virgin/Buried Secrets collects the first two discs onto a single CD; Collected Works includes the first two EPs with Execution Ground and a bonus live disc.)