Killing Joke’s Jaz Coleman Disappears After Tirade

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UPDATED 8/13/12:

Well apparently Jaz Coleman has been found alive and well in the Sahara of all places. The Facebook rant against the Cult has yet to be fully explained, but Coleman asserts he was impersonated. But he said they will not be on the tour, which totally contradicts the other band members wishes. Sigh. You can get the full scoop on Pitchfork by clicking here, or by going to the band’s facebook page.

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It’s been a weird week for Killing Joke fans.

Fans of the band were looking forward to some gigs in Europe featuring Killing Joke, The Mission U.K. and The Cult.

For those new to this site, I’m a massive fan of both The Cult and Killing Joke, having reviewed both of their latest albums (Cult review is here, Killing Joke is here),  and given a Cult concert review.

But now singer Jaz Coleman has disappeared. Why?  It’s not unprecedented . He vanished in 1982 to head off to Iceland, hoping to survive the apocalypse he believed was imminent.

Coleman has always been of the paranoid conspiracy theory persuasion, but this time around it looks like he’s just being contrarian.

Coleman ranted on Facebook, insulting both bands on the bill, and saying of the Cult:

“It gives me great pleasure to announce the cancellation of the upcoming gigs with The Cult and The Mission. Frankly, playing at a gig with The Cult never appealed to me in the first place. Gatherers [Killing Joke fans] would only get to listen to a one-hour set. Then there would be a problem with the dressing room and witnessing The Cult charge the fans $200 per head for a meet-and-greet.”

The post continued, “Lastly, all their songs suck! They clearly have no integrity (they refer to their hometown as L.A.).”

I’ve met the Cult before. I wasn’t charged a dime, but perhaps something has changed. But Coleman’s had a beef with the band ever since they sampled “Requiem” for their song “The Witch” in the 90’s.

When Killing Joke bassist Youth produced the Cult’s 2006 album “Born Into This”, I assumed this had blown over.

And the rest of Killing Joke clearly though the gigs were still on, as they stated on their Facebook page:

“A statement was posted on Facebook, reputedly by our singer, maligning both The Cult and The Mission and pulling us out of the shows.”

It continues, “He is now AWOL and has not contacted any of his band mates.”

We are deeply embarrassed by this and offer our sincere apologies to all involved.

We are all concerned about our missing singer’s welfare.

Killing Joke made a collective decision to play with The Cult and The Mission in September.

It was agreed by all of the band that we would do these shows. Indeed, we thought that they were something to look forward to, even though they were downsized.

We would still like to honour our commitment to this tour, the other bands, and all the Gatherers and people who have already bought tickets and made travel arrangements.

If this proves not possible, Killing Joke will make alternative arrangements to compensate for the trouble caused.

Meanwhile we are doing everything we can to make this tour happen and locate our missing singer.”

In fact I wonder if the downsizing of the venues (as CMU reported) is a big factor in his blow-up. Perhaps there’s misdirected blame. But these are bands that have strong (pun intended) cult followings. Smaller venues were more realistic. But it’s a very cool bill with its connective post-punk goth thread.

Hopefully Coleman resurfaces happy and healthy. I know many are worried for his safety, but he’s an elusive mercurial spirit. Every once in a while he short circuits.

It’s worth noting Coleman went on a similar rant against Nirvana saying they ripped off the riff from “Eighties” for “Come As You Are”. Dave Grohl later copped to the charge and made amends by playing an incredible drum performance on their 2003 self-titled album.

It sucks when you’re a fan of 2 bands that have a falling out together, but such is the world of rock star egos. I’m sure Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy are as bewildered as the rest of us.

*What are your thoughts on Coleman’s odd disappearance? Rest assured I’ll be checking the news regularly for updates on his situation. I’ll be on vacation for the next few days, but will have lots of cool content up by next weekend!

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