Geordie Walker Cause of death, Wife, Children, Net Worth, Illness

Geordie Walker, a founding member and guitarist of the post-punk band and goth rock pioneers Killing Joke, has died at the age of 64.

His bandmates confirmed the news in a statement, revealing that he died following a stroke Sunday morning (November 26).

“It is with extreme sadness we confirm that at 6:30am on 26th November 2023 in Prague, Killing Joke’s legendary guitarist Kevin ‘Geordie’ Walker passed away after suffering a stroke, he was surrounded by family,” the band wrote alongside an image of Walker. “We are devastated. Rest In Peace brother.

Who was Geordie Walker?

Geordie Walker was born on 18 December 1958 in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, England.

Walker’s family moved to Buckinghamshire. Walker and bassist Youth joined the band in 1979 after responding to an ad Jaz Coleman and Paul Ferguson put out in Melody Maker, which read: “Want to be part of the Killing Joke? We mean it man. Total exploitation, total publicity, total anonymity. Bass and lead wanted.”

“I liked the sound of it, it looked rather serious, fanatical, I don’t know what it was but it clicked with me,” Walker said in a 1984 interview. “So I went down to see this guy [Coleman] and immediately started arguing with him about his taste in music and whatever, and I kept in touch and kept hassling them for some reason. I think it was the intensity of the argument I liked.” He moved in with the band shortly after.

Coleman has said the band’s early manifesto was to “define the exquisite beauty of the atomic age in terms of style, sound and form.” The band played their first show in August 1979 and cited contemporaries such as Adam Ant, Lee “Scratch” Perry, and Public Image Ltd. as early influences. Following an EP in 1979, the band released their debut self-titled album in 1980.

A prolific series of releases would follow throughout the ’80s including 1981’s What’s THIS For…! and the Conny Plank-assisted 1982 album Revelations.

During that period, Jaz Coleman fled to Reykjavik, Iceland over concerns about the apocalypse. Walker and the band performed “Empire Song” on Top of the Pops with a roadie wearing a beekeeper outfit standing in for Coleman. Walker and Ferguson then decamped to Iceland to join Coleman.

The band followed that album with 1983’s Fire Dances. Their 1985 album Night Time featured hit singles including “Love Like Blood” and “Eighties.” The band was dropped from Virgin Records following 1986’s Brighter Than a Thousand Suns and 1988’s Outside the Gate.

In 1994, they released one of their best-selling albums with Pandemonium, which arrived in the middle of industrial rock’s boom. That same year they released Democracy. Their self-titled 2003 album was produced by Gang of Four’s Andy Gill and featured Dave Grohl on drums. The band followed it with multiple albums throughout the ’00s and ’10s.

Away from his career, he was a father and husband. Here’s everything we know about his family.

Geordie Walker Wife

Geordie Walker was narried to Ginny Kiraly, and together they resided in Royal Oak, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, during the mid-1990s.

However, no details are available regarding his marital status prior to or after this period, nor is there any information about his wife’s fate.

Geordie Walker Children

Geordie Walker had a son named Atticus with his wife Ginny Kiraly. They lived in Michigan, USA, in the mid-1990s.

However, there is no available information regarding any other children Geordie may have had at the time of his passing.

Geordie Walker Net Worth

Geordie Walker’s net worth or net income is estimated to be between $1 million and $7 million.

He has made such an amount of wealth from his primary career as a musician. He was the guitarist of the post-punk band Killing Joke, and also played in other bands such as Murder, Inc. and The Damage Manual.

He was praised by other guitarists such as Jimmy Page and Kevin Shields for his unorthodox and powerful style.

He was a legend in the rock music scene and influenced many other artists.