Chris Connelly (musician)

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.

Chris Connelly
Connelly in 2008
Background information
Born	(1964-11-11) 11 November 1964 (age 60)
Origin	Bruntsfield, Edinburgh, Scotland
Genres	Industrial rock[1] alternative rock[2]
Occupations	Musician singer-songwriter author
Instruments	Vocals guitar
Labels	Underground, Inc.
Website	chrisconnelly.com

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]

Music career

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 (ISBN 0946719950). 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.

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.

Personal life

Connelly is now based in Chicago and works at a record store in Wicker Park.^[7]

Band affiliations

• Acid Horse
• Bells Into Machines
• Catherine
• Cocksure
• The Damage Manual
• Die Warzau
• Everyoned
• The Final Cut
• Finitribe
• The Joy Thieves
• KMFDM
• The Love Interest
• Ministry
• Murder, Inc.
• Pigface
• PTP
• Revolting Cocks
• Sons of the Silent Age (David Bowie tribute band)^[8]

Solo discography

• Whiplash Boychild (1991)
• Phenobarb Bambalam (1992)
• Shipwreck (1994)
• Songs for Swinging Junkies with William Tucker (1994)
• The Ultimate Seaside Companion with The Bells (1997)
• Blonde Exodus with The Bells (2001)
• Largo with Bill Rieflin (2000)
• Private Education (2002)
• Initials C.C., a collection of rarities and Connelly's personal favorites (2002)
• Night of Your Life (2004)
• The Episodes (2007)
• Forgiveness & Exile (2008)
• Pentland Firth Howl (2009)
• How This Ends (2010)
• Artificial Madness (2011)^[9]
• Day of Knowledge (2012)
• Decibels From Heart (2015)
• Art + Gender (2017)
• The Tide stripped Bare (limited release-2018)
• Bloodhounds (limited release-2018)
• Sleeping Partner (2019)
• Graveyard Sex (2020)
• The Birthday Poems (2021)
• Firth Rebirth (2021)
• Abandoned Premonitions (2022)
• LARGO 22 (2022)
• Eulogy to Christa (2022)
• SHELTA (2023)

Guest appearances

• Front Line Assembly – Wake Up the Coma (2019)
• Paul Barker – Fix This!!! (2012)
• Jarboe – The Men Album (2005)
• Catherine – Hot Saki & Bedtime Stories (1996)

Music compilation appearances

• "Desperado" on Welcome to Our Nightmare: a Tribute to Alice Cooper (1993)
• "A Mutual Friend" on Whore: Various Artists Play Wire (1996)
• "Hard Hearted Alice" on Mutations – A Tribute To Alice Cooper (2002)
• "What's Left But Solid Gold?" on ...It Just Is (2005)
• "Don't Make Me Go" on Cash From Chaos – A Tribute to the Man in Black, Johnny Cash (2005)
• "Looking for a River" on Whispers From the Offing (A Tribute to Kevin Coyne) (2007)

Bibliography

• Confessions of the Highest Bidder: Poems and Songwords, 1982-1996 (1999) KB Publishing
• Concrete, Bulletproof, Invisible and Fried (2007) SAF Publishing^[10]
• Ed Royal (2010) Shipwrecked Industries

Spoken word

• New Town Nocturnes (2016) a collaboration with Michael Begg^[11]