38 Facts About Rozz Williams

However, Williams disliked the "goth" label and actively worked to shed it during the 1980s and 1990s by focusing on punk rock, hard rock, cabaret, and spoken word music.

Rozz Williams committed suicide by hanging himself in his West Hollywood apartment on April 1,1998.

Rozz Williams was born Roger Alan Painter on November 6,1963, in Pomona, California, and was raised in a strict Southern Baptist family.

Rozz Williams even became friends with late Darby Crash of The Germs.

Rozz Williams took the name of Rozz Williams from a gravestone he found in a Pomona cemetery.

Rozz Williams sang and played the guitar, although he never performed on stage.

Rozz Williams then sang in a band called Daucus Karota with Mary Torcivia on percussion and Jay Albert on guitar.

Albert and Rozz Williams then went on to form Christian Death in October 1979 with James McGearty and George Belanger.

The band broke up temporarily in 1981, and Rozz Williams formed Premature Ejaculation with performance artist Ron Athey, with whom he had been living and having romantic relationship.

Rozz Williams then restarted Christian Death in the summer of 1981 with McGearty and Belanger, who brought in guitarist Rikk Agnew who liked them after seeing them live and was later asked to join.

In 1983, Rozz Williams formed a new band under the Christian Death name, this time with former members of Pompeii 99, with whom Christian Death had performed at a live show the previous year.

Rozz Williams officially left Christian Death after the American shows in April 1985, citing loss of interest and a distaste for touring as reasons for his departure.

Rozz Williams had asked Demone not to continue under the name Christian Death and Valor had agreed to change the name of the band to Sin and Sacrifice.

Rozz Williams considered Christian Death to be his creation and felt personally responsible for it as it was directly associated with his name, image, art and poetry.

Rozz Williams felt that it was his decision, not Valor's, whether the band continued or not.

Rozz Williams had been the only original member of Christian Death left when he departed the group in 1985, yet the remaining members continued to perform earlier Christian Death material and released several albums under the original group name.

Rozz Williams had already recorded two more songs, "Haloes" and "Spectre ", with Eric Westfall, but these were not officially released for five years.

The songs appeared on the Heavens and Hells cassettes, which included live performances Rozz Williams selected from his own tapes.

Rozz Williams released various material under different project names following his departure from the band; the first was Premature Ejaculation with Ron Athey, and then Shadow Project with Eva O, whom he married in San Francisco in 1987.

Later on, Rozz Williams reformed Shadow Project with Eva O, Jill Emery, Tom Morgan and Paris Sadonis.

At the time, Rozz Williams was increasingly falling under the influence of the philosophy of Charles Manson.

Rozz Williams occasionally took part in Christian Death reunions during the late 1980s and early 1990s with Rikk Agnew, the guitarist on the band's first album.

Rozz Williams had been quoted as saying "The Path of Sorrows is probably my favorite Christian Death album".

Rozz Williams was joined by Rikk Agnew, George Belanger and Casey.

Demone and Rozz Williams came together to release the album Dream Home Heartache in 1995.

In 1995, following his return from Europe, Rozz Williams joined up with Paris Sadonis and Ryan Wildstar to work on the spoken word album, The Whorse's Mouth.

Shortly following the recording of The Whorse's Mouth, Rozz Williams began playing bass for EXP, the musical troupe created by Paris and Ryan Wildstar.

Rozz Williams went on to play bass on their self-titled debut album with bandmates Paris, Ryan Wildstar, Doriandra, Ace Farren Ford, Justin Bennett and Ignacio Segovia.

In 1997, Rozz Williams again paired up with Eva O to record the final Shadow Project album, From the Heart.

Rozz Williams recorded Wound of Exit, his last solo CD as Premature Ejaculation.

Rozz Williams co-directed and scored Pig, a 1998 experimental psychological horror silent short film with underground film maker Nico B The film stars Rozz Williams and James Hollan and was produced and directed by Nico B Pig was the last work Williams did.

Rozz Williams was raised in a strict Southern Baptist family, but abandoned this as he formed Christian Death.

Rozz Williams made final phone calls to friends and family in the early morning hours the next day.

Rozz Williams's body was discovered by Wildstar, who heard worried messages on the answering machine and broke down the door to Williams' bedroom when he returned home that afternoon.

Rozz Williams had left a rose on the coffee table in the living room, along with several items, including The Hanged Man tarot card.

Theories have arisen regarding the reason for Rozz Williams's suicide, including failing health, depression, bipolar disorder, financial instability, and his fascination with the number 1334, which can be found in the liner notes of his albums, in his signature, and on his urn.

Rozz Williams' creativity had a profound effect on the Goth subculture and was influential in poetry and collage artwork.

In 2010, Gothic Beauty Magazine and a short film Necessary Discomforts an Artistic Tribute to Rozz Williams featured one such event at the Hyaena Gallery curated by A Raven Above Press.