The soft-spoken guitarist with proto-industrial heroes Killing Joke, Geordie (aka Kevin Walker) is one of the most interesting guitar players to emerge from the new wave movement of the early '80s.

Born in Newcastle, England, on December 18, 1958, Geordie's first steps toward fame came in 1979, when he answered an advertisement in Melody Maker, a U.K. music weekly. The people behind the ad were Jaz Coleman and Paul Ferguson, two former members of the Matt Stagger Band who were looking for people to join a new venture. Geordie got the job, and Killing Joke was born. The band quickly achieved critical acclaim as well as scoring a handful of hit singles in the mid-'80s. Sadly, the lineup did not prove stable, with original bassist Youth being replaced by Paul Raven in 1983, while drummer Paul Ferguson was fired in 1988. Only Geordie and singer Jaz Coleman have remained permanent members of the band. After reuniting for an album in 1990, Killing Joke once again dissolved, with all the members except for Coleman forming Murder Inc. with former Public Image drummer Martin Atkins. Despite the prestigious lineup, Murder Inc. was not entirely well-received, with Geordie's normally vibrant guitar parts being occasionally lost in the mix.

In 1994, Killing Joke began another short-lived period of stability, but by 1999 Geordie was once again working with a side project, this time the Damage Manual, once again featuring Atkins, as well as Jah Wobble and Chris Connelly. By 2001 rumours were circulating of another Killing Joke reunion, once again with Geordie and Coleman at its core. ~ Jim Harper, Rovi