I recently interviewed the four original – and current – members of Killing Joke for a feature in Uncut. I met them one-by-one in and around Lancaster Gate and we discussed their extraordinary career, from Crowley-inspired magical rituals in Battersea to police raids in Notting Hill squats and recording sessions inside the Great Pyramid.
We also discussed one of their first major gigs, when they headlined a CND show at Trafalgar Square.
As guitarist Kevin “Geordie” Walker recalled: “My favourite gig was the CND rally at Trafalgar Square. 80,000 people and us playing on the steps of the National Gallery in 1980. Jaz told them ‘Margaret Thatcher has bought all these cruise missiles and all you can do is stand there with a fucking placard. You dserve what you are going to get. This one’s called “Wardance”.’ It kicked off. It was killer. We never got invited back and I’ve got my suspicion that’s why we never did Glastonbury cos it’s the same hippie crowd and they remember.”
You can listen to that performance here.
I’ve interviewed several bands over the years for Uncut, from Buzzcocks and Gun Club to Soundgarden and The Damned. I’ve never met any quite like Killing Joke.
The Great Wen 
You’d think with ingesting all those chemicals that hippies wouldn’t remember.
John was right. Never trust a hippie. I have been watching KJ as a returning Gatherer since they reunited and they are one of the few bands that still have something to tell us and they tell us through some truly great new music. Last summers small gigs were up there with the gigs I went to from 81 through 84 and in still bear the scars from them. Power, poise and total commitment from band and audience alike. A true renaissance as they are individually and collectively recognised for their contribution to music and culture. Yes Jaz is as mad as a box of frogs but that makes him all the more interesting.
Whatever happened to their first manager – Danny Mariner I think he was called. Did he stay with the band – he was a mate of theirs.