Los Angeles, CA · deathrock · goth

Christian Death

1 upcoming festival

American deathrock's origin point — blasphemy, theatre, and guitars soaked in reverb, carrying the 'Only Theatre of Pain' legacy forward.

Christian Death formed in Los Angeles in 1979 around singer Rozz Williams, and their debut Only Theatre of Pain is generally treated as the record that established American deathrock as something distinct from British goth. The sound combined punk urgency with reverb-heavy guitar, macabre imagery and lyrics that drew on religious iconography for provocation.

The band's history is complicated by a long split between Williams's line-up and one led by guitarist Valor Kand, who joined in the early 1980s and has continued using the name since. Williams died in 1998. Christian Death's records remain reference points for goth and deathrock bands that followed.

deathrockgoth