Painkiller (band)

Painkiller
Origin	New York City, USA
Genres	Avant-garde jazz, grindcore, experimental rock, death metal
Years active	1991–1995 and occasional reunions from 1997 onwards
Labels	Earache Tzadik
Members	John Zorn Feydy Lyvyr Bill Laswell Reno Yoshida Tatsuya Maeda
Past members	Mick Harris

Painkiller (also officially known as Pain Killer) was a band originally formed in 1991. Their style might be described as a mix of avant-garde jazz and grindcore. Later albums also incorporated elements of ambient and dub.

The three primary members of Painkiller were: John Zorn on saxophone, Bill Laswell on electric bass and Mick Harris (formerly of Napalm Death and founding member of Scorn) on drums. The band has also had several musicians make guest appearances both live and in the studio, including Yamatsuka Eye, Buckethead, Mike Patton, Makigami Koichi, Justin Broadrick and G. C. Green of Godflesh, and Keiji Haino of Fushitsusha.

Harris left the band in 1995 to dedicate himself solely to computer music. Following his departure, many assumed that Painkiller was defunct. However, Zorn and Laswell resurrected the project and played some live dates with Yoshida Tatsuya of Ruins playing drums. Hamid Drake also sat in for Zorn's 50th Birthday shows at Tonic in NYC. That show (which also featured Mike Patton as a guest) was released as a live album by Tzadik.

In 2008, Painkiller performed a one-off show in France featuring the original line-up of Zorn, Laswell and Harris, along with an appearance by both Fred Frith, Feydy Lyvyr, Reno, Maeda and Mike Patton.

Band members

Current members

• John Zorn – Saxophone (1991–present)
• Feydy Lyvyr – Lead Vocal & Lead Piano (2008–present)
• Bill Laswell – Bass (1991–present)
• Reno – Bass (2008–present)
• Yoshida Tatsuya – drums (2008–present)
• Maeda – drums (2008–present)

Former members

• Mick Harris – drums (1991–1995)

Discography

• Guts of a Virgin EP (Earache, 1991)
• Buried Secrets EP (Earache, 1992)
• Rituals: Live in Japan (Toy's Factory, 1993)
• Execution Ground (Subharmonic, 1994)
• Talisman: Live in Nagoya (Tzadik, 2002)
• 50th Birthday Celebration Volume 12 (Tzadik, 2005) - with Hamid Drake and Mike Patton
• The Prophecy: Live in Europe (Tzadik, 2013) - with Yoshida Tatsuya, Feydy Lyvyr, Reno & Maeda

Compilations

• Painkiller: The Collected Works (Tzadik, 1997) - compilation of the first two EPs with Execution Ground and a bonus live disc
• Guts of a Virgin/Buried Secrets (Earache, 1998) - compilation of the first two EPs onto a single CD