Shadow Project

Shadow Project was a deathrock band formed in 1987. Its members included Rozz Williams, Eva O and Paris Sadonis.

Formation

The band was named after a study of the effects of nuclear bombs in Hiroshima. Shadow Project gave its first performance in San Francisco in 1987, but didn't really maintain much of a profile until Williams and Eva O returned to Los Angeles in 1990. Once there, they recruited keyboardist Paris Sadonis, Super Heroines bassist Jill Emery, and drummer Tom Morgan.

Centered around Williams and Eva O, Shadow Project grew to share some of the supporting personnel from the alternate version of Christian Death: Johann Schumann on bass and David Glass on drums, which Williams revived concurrently beginning in the late 1980s.

Shadow Project (1991)

The band's self-titled first album was released on Triple X in 1991.

Dreams for the Dying (1992-1993)

With Peter Tomlinson replacing Morgan, the group completed a follow-up, Dreams for the Dying, that became their best-known work when it appeared in 1992. Bass guitarist William Faith and drummer Stevyn Grey joined the line-up for the Dreams For The Dying tour and recording albums. On-tour, Paris Sadonis played the keyboard.

For the last and final live line up was keyboards Paris Sadonis, bass guitar Mark Barone and drummer Christian Omar Madrigal Izzo. By 1993, Eva O had decided to focus on solo material, and Williams was moving on to other projects. The band stopped recording in 1993.^[1]

From the Heart (1997-1998)

In 1997, they recorded their last CD. It was an acoustic Shadow Project album which also featured guitarist/producer Michael Ciravolo and keyboardist Nathan Van Hala of Saviour Machine. Sadly, shortly after the test pressing was finished, Rozz Williams hanged himself on April 1, 1998, after which the album appeared on Hollow's Hill under the title From the Heart.

Style

Shadow Project also most closely resembled the work that made Rozz Williams and Eva O goth icons, though it incorporated elements of punk, glam, metal and experimental influences to a slightly greater degree. They mixed a blend of different styles ranging from punk to metal to Roxy Music and David Bowie.

Selected discography

• Helter Skelter Demo (1987)
• Shadow Project (1991)
• Dreams for the Dying (1992)
• In Tuned Out- live '93 (1994)
• From the Heart (1998)
• The Original (EP) (2005)

References