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Chris Connelly (born 11 November 1964) is a Scottish musician and author.[3] He is notable for his industrial music work of the late 1980s and early 1990s, particularly his involvement with the Revolting Cocks and Ministry.
Connelly has maintained his steady involvement within the music industry for over 40 years. He has released over 25 solo albums and 10+ additional albums while fronting other bands (the vast majority being musical groups of his own creation); as well as lending vocals to numerous collaborations spanning several genres in the process, resulting in over 600 total songs.
Early years
Connelly was born in Bruntsfield, Scotland to Michael and Sadie (née King) Connelly near the city centre of Edinburgh. Connelly's father died in a swimming accident early in his life,[4] causing Chris to focus on artistic interests outside the home to help fill the void. Connelly's Scottish ancestry includes Irish descent through the Connellys and Murphys, who originally came from Ireland to Scotland. His mother's side, the Kings and the McCullochs, were from the Highlands and migrated to Glasgow in search of work.[5]
Connelly began his music career in 1980 with the formation of Fini Tribe.[6] Through subsequent years he fronted or was heavily involved with numerous notable industrial, dance, and new wave acts. In 2008, Connelly published a memoir of his early years in the music industry, Concrete, Bulletproof, Invisible, and Fried: My Life As A Revolting Cock. It describes his professional debut in Finitribe, meeting Al Jourgensen in London, his involvement with the Revolting Cocks, Ministry, PTP, Acid Horse, Front Line Assembly, Murder, Inc., and Pigface, and the development of his solo career.
Connelly's first solo album 'Whiplash Boychild' was released in 1991. The band Pigface afforded Chris the luxury of performing solo material live at this time. 1992's 'Phenobarb Bambalam' saw a "proper" tour and with most of the musicians on the album, minus bassist Stuart Zechman.
Following the tour Chris put his solo efforts on hold in order to concentrate on Ministry/Revolting Cocks matters, resulting in a successful Ministry slot on the 1992 Lollapalooza tour, as well as heavy involvement in the recording of 1993 Revolting Cocks album 'Linger Ficken' Good'. The subsequent tour was canceled at the last minute and the Revolting Cocks ended up on an extended hiatus for 12 years, and with Connelly not joining back until 2011.
Chris severed ties with Ministry and briefly moved to Kansas City, Missouri. Also at some point around this time Connelly shaved his head and dreadlocks off, unceremoniously marking the beginning of a new era of "cleaner" living. Chris's take on heavy addictions and eventual sobriety is unabashedly documented in 1994's solo album 'Shipwreck', written during this period of transition.
'Shipwreck' marked the return of Bill Rieflin on drums, and the carryover of Chris Bruce and William Tucker from the Bambalam tour rounding out guitars. We also witness the beginning of Chris Connelly's inclusion of acoustic guitar, usually in the bottom of the mix and acting as sort of a guide-track (most likely carried over from the initial demo writings). This formulaic template would dominate most of Chris's output more or less from here on out. A matter of fact, following the completion of the Shipwreck tour Connelly and Tucker set out on an all "acoustic" (albeit plugged in) tour under the stage name "Swingin' Junkies", playing dive bars for little more than free beer most of the time.
Nonetheless, this period also marks Connelly's overall dissatisfaction with the music industry, and dissolution of the landscape that current musical trends have inhabited. He took another break from music except for his brilliant appearance on KMFDM's 1996 album 'XTORT'. Perhaps reinvigorating his passion Chris would sporadically write and record a collection of songs from 95-97 that resulted in 'The Ultimate Seaside Companion', released under the band name "The Bells" in 1997. A few local live shows were played to showcase the new album and band before everyone involved had to go their separate ways due to other commitments.
1998 found The Bells playing more live shows, but with a totally different band than on the record. This iteration of The Bells would enter the studio with Connelly to record the album 'Blonde Exodus', captured at Chicago Recording Company by the same producer as KMFDM's 'XTORT' (Chris Shepard). For some reason or another this album would not see the light of day until 2001, as attention now was placed towards writing and recording the long awaited Rieflin/Connelly offering entitled 'Largo' (released in 2000 on Rieflin's own label).
1999 also saw the re-uniting of Chris and Martin Atkins, who had a previous falling-out after the release of Pigface's 'FOOK', in which supposedly proper compensation was not given. Able to bury the hatchet for the sake of music, Connelly was approached by Atkins to fill the vocalist gap initially turned down by Johnny Rotten, and thus The Damage Manual was born. Rounded out by guitarist Geordie Walker (whom Connelly and Atkins had previously worked with in Murder, Inc.) and bass player Jah Wobble, the EP '>1' was released in early 2000, followed by the self-titled LP proper 'The Damage Manual'. A double-album remix compilation would be released in 2004.
Much to the chagrin of fans this installment of The Damage Manual was very short-lived, playing only a handful of UK shows and a few US dates in which Wobble didn't even participate (replacement on bass by Charles "Levi" Levi of TKK fame). Chris Connelly once again finds himself bandless and thus resorts to playing very stripped down acoustic sets live for the release of The Bells 'Blonde Exodus', whose original band members have all moved on to other projects by now after the 3 year gap between recording and releasing the album. Naturally, Chris's next solo album would be stripped down and "electric" acoustic, playing along to a drum machine and entitled 'Private Education'.
Simultaneous to this particular release the band "Everyoned" is formed with Chris and renowned guitarist Tim Kinsella as the nucleus. Presenting a quiet, laid back affair perfectly fit for a lounge, self-titled album 'Everyoned' is released in an almost surreptitious manner in 2003, much to the delight of those in the know and critics alike. Aside from a handful of practices and a single live performance this band would fade away into the ether from whence it came, yet would prove not be the last time Connelly would work with these particular artists.
Almost without missing a single beat the solo effort 'Night of your Life' drops in 2004, marking a return to form if you will. Drafting the more than capable handiwork of guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Chris Bruce (under the helm of producer as well), lending the album that neo-70's feel reminiscent of 'Blonde Exodus'.
Also in 2004 The Damage Manual was somewhat reanimated, with Steven Seibold admirably laying down both guitar and bass tracks due to the absence of Geordie Walker and Jah Wobble, respectively. 'Limited Edition' was released and a fall 2004 tour was planned in support of Pigface but Connelly had to pull out due to an apparantly serious undisclosed illness. The tour was delayed until spring of 2005 without Chris's presence, and once again the demise of The Damage Manual ensues.
2005 would remain quiet, and barring doing backup vocals on 3 songs by local musician Ahab Rex in 2006 Chris would not release anything new for another year, as real life takes over in the form of a new wife and kid.
Come 2007 Chris and everyone from his previous band Everyoned (and ALL of their friends) reunite to explore cut and paste forms of music. Christened the "Lake Wandawega Resort Band" (named after the lake in Wisconsin that they recorded everything on the spot, outdoors) these inventive musicians would create some of Connelly's most freeform songs ever, running through several separate takes involving different outcomes, and in the end sifting through literally hours of material and piecing together a finely juxtaposed work of art. 'The Episodes' took a little while until it found a rightful record label, and was released later that year. The overall sound and vibe is the closest Chris has ever gotten to a 60's tinged "hippie", experimental jam feel.
In 2008 the first of Chris's "politically active" trilogy of albums was released, entitled 'Forgiveness & Exile' (with contributions from Shirley Manson), soon followed by 2010's 'How this Ends' (last Connelly contribution by Bill Rieflin), and concluding with 2012's 'Day of Knowledge' (with electronic music by Jim O'Rourke, who also played bass on 1997's 'The Ultimate Seaside Companion'). 2010 also saw the product of collaborative efforts with Sonic Youth drummer Steve Shelley and notable local Chicago "experimental metal" bass player and producer Sanford Parker dubbed The High Confessions with the resultant album 'Turning Lead into Gold'.
Following his work with The High Confessions, Sanford Parker was pegged to produce Chris's next solo effort 'Artificial Madness'. Parker was also given the liberty to choose the session musicians who would bring Connelly's current vision to life, providing a once lost heavy punch back into his music. More punk rock than psychedelic, the album was well recieved across the board. The band would play one single show that year, performing the album in its entirety.
In 2013, he started two more industrial projects: Cocksure, with Jason C. Novak (Czar, Acumen Nation, and DJ? Acucrack), and Bells into Machines, with Paul Barker (Ministry, Revolting Cocks, and Lard), as well as the resurrection of the Cocks sans Al Jourgensen and with Richard 23 of Front 242 in 2016.
Cocksure hit 2014 in the form of an EP and their debut album 'TVMALSV'. Striking as the usual iron is hot, they waste no time in releasing the sophomore effort 'Corporate Sting' in 2015. Later that year Connelly's first solo album in 3 years arrived with much fanfare. Arguably his most commercially sounding work to date, with slick over-the-top production lending a dramatic feel, in addition to a bevy of female guest singers to round out most of the songs eloquently delivered in the form of duet and backup vox. Drummer Matt Walker also manned production and drafted the session musicians, most of which were already familiar with Chris Connelly due to being in his David Bowie tribute band Sons of the Silent Age (SOTSA for short) since its inception in 2013; and thus 'Decibels from Heart' is born.
2017 saw the release of Malekko's eponymous effort 'Malekko', the brainchild of Paul Barker and sharing the same moniker as the electronic gear used during the recording of the 5 song mini-album. Some of the songs date as far back as 2012 when Chris Connelly was initially asked to participate but was unable to due to a hectic schedule, and the project was indefinitely shelved as more focus was put into Cocks shows and Connelly's own offshoot Cocksure, until finally finding the proper time to focus and write the lyrics and lay down vocal tracks to the already existing music. The hauntingly simple and abstract solo album 'Art & Gender' also came to light at the end of the year, displaying a stark contrast to 'Decibels from Heart' released 2 years prior. Lo-Fi and self-produced, 'Art & Gender' would also begin a string of releases in which Connelly is the only contributing musician.
The following year Chris and Paul's other band, the "supergroup" Bells into Machines would finally put out their masterpiece self-titled debut, grabbing the industrial and rock worlds alike by the ears. Also in 2018 Chris was contacted to join The Joy Thieves, lending vocals to their debut release and title track 'This Will Kill That' in 2019. 2021 saw the fruition of a proper full-length album entitled 'American Parasite'.
The year 2025 saw the efforts of yet another "supergroup" of sorts Connelly finds himself in the middle of again called Sevendials, with former Killing Joke drummer Paul Ferguson and Mark Gemeni Thwaite (known as MGT) manning both six and four string guitars. The album 'A Crash Course in Catastrophe' was released to critical acclaim.
Personal life
Connelly is now based in Chicago and works at a record store in Wicker Park.[7]
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