Tributes pour in for the Killing Joke guitarist Geordie Walker, dead at 64
Fans from across the world have shared tributes following the death of Killing Joke guitarist and original member Kevin ‘Geordie’ Walker, who passed away aged 64 following a stroke.
At the time of his death, Walker had been the only constant member of the influential post-punk group, alongside vocalist Jaz Coleman. He released 15 studio albums as a member of Killing Joke, from their self-titled 1980 debut to 2015’s Pylon. The 2022 EP, Lord of Chaos, was the band’s most recent effort.
Walker was born in Chester-le-Street in 1958 but moved to Bletchley, Buckinghamshire when he was 14. There, he earned his nickname ‘Geordie’ and learned to play guitar. He joined Killing Joke in 1979 and became one of the era’s most distinctive guitarists with his de-tuned sound. Tracks such as ‘Love Like Blood’, ‘Eighties’ and ‘The Death & Resurrection Show’ are some of his most famous moments.
Luca Signorelli, a longtime friend of Walker’s, broke the news of his death in a lengthy Facebook post. He said: “It was impossible not to get along with him. He was charming, polite, and very funny. The language barrier was not a problem–through a lot of impromptu translation and some laborious sign language, Geordie could make himself understood anywhere and anytime.”
Conforming the news of Walker’s death, Killing Joke wrote on Instagram: “It is with extreme sadness we confirm that at 6:30am on 26th November 2023 in Prague, Killing Joke’s legendary guitarist Kevin ‘Geordie’ Walker passed away after suffering a stroke, he was surrounded by family.” They added: “We are devastated. Rest In Peace brother.”
After the sad announcement of Walker’s passing, fans and colleagues took to social media to express their deep admiration for the late musician, who will remain an integral part of popular culture.
Martin Atkins, former Killing Joke drummer and Walker’s bandmate in the industrial supergroup Murder, Inc., took to Twitter and shared a clip of ‘Laugh Track’ by their other group, The Damage Manual. As the caption, he wrote, “Gutted”. Following this, he wrote in another tweet sharing the same song, saying to his fallen friend, “Tell Paul Raven I said hi xxxx”.
Also paying their respects to Walker on Twitter, Irish punk band Therapy? wrote: “Extremely sad to hear of the passing of Geordie Walker, a key architect in one of our favourite bands. Effortless player with a monstrous sound, rest easy Geordie. Our thoughts are with his family, friends & band mates.”
The original bass player in post-punk pioneers Public Image Ltd., Jah Wobble, wrote: “RIP GEORDIE WALKER”.
Find the threads for the tributes below.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.