My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult at Amsterdam Bar, St Paul (21 Oct 2017)

 

Industrial rock, goth dance band My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult celebrated their 30th Anniversary at the Amsterdam Dam Bar & Hall in St Paul last night (October 21st).

Local rock group The Rope (singer Jesse Hagon, guitarist Michael Browning, bassist Sam Richardson, and drummer Ben Rickel) opened the show. They sounded like Psychedelic Furs’ Richard Butler, but with influences from Peter Murphy, or Joy Division. Their songs were dark, but surprisingly intelligent and danceable.

Songs on their 30-min set included some tracks like ‘Suffer’ from their 2015 Waters Rising. The record was co-produced with Ed Ackerson, who used to be in a band called Polara, but currently in BNLX with his wife Ashley Ackerson from The Mood Swings. The Rope was a special guest at the BNLX release party show at the Varsity Theater (RIP) in November 2014.

Midway into their set, guitarist Michael Browning’s equipment was causing distortion in his amp, which vocalist Jesse Hagon to comment, “Wouldn’t be a show without some sort of difficulty.”
They roughed it for the remainder of their set.

My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult was formed in the 1980s by Groovie Mann and Buzz McCoy, and the duo became the posterchild of censorship groups for their references to Satan, Jesus, sex, in their disco dance/industrial music. In the 90s, the band, became synonymous with Ministry, KMFDM, and Front 242, thanks to signing to Wax Trax!

The band’s 1990 record Confessions of a Knife… and 1991’s Sexplosion! became the best-selling record at the time on the Colorado label. Of course, major label Interscope Records saw this and signed TKK to reissue Sexplosion! and secure a two album deal for 13 Above the Night and Hit & Run Holiday.

With the major label on their side, they had Thrill Kill Kult’s songs on various film soundtracks, including cult classic Cool World and The Crow.

For this special 30th Anniversary tour, the band (Groovie Mann, Buzz McCoy, Mimi Star, Arena Rock, Bradley Bills) they decided to concentrate on their earlier albums, including their debut I See Good Spirits and I See Bad Spirits and Confessions of a Knife… .

As expected with these reunion shows, there were plenty of hardcore older (ages 30-50) fans in the audience. Many of them bringing their high school friends and making it a reunion for the audience, as well as the band.

While it may be challenging to play some rare tracks, especially if they weren’t written to be performed live, but it seemed that TKK put together a great set – complete with changing flame backdrop, colorful lightings, and a fog machine.

If you were an industrial music fan in the 90s, you can’t afford to miss these shows.

Tour dates: