Harry K. Cody and Tim Skold to reportedly return as Shotgun Messiah
Harry K. Cody and Tim Skold to reportedly return as Shotgun Messiah
Talent agency Dynamic Talent International is indicating that guitarist Harry K. Cody and bassist (and later lead vocalist) Tim Skold will be reuniting as Shotgun Messiah.
Dynamic Talent International‘s website indicates:
“After a 30 plus year hiatus Harry Cody and Tim Skold finally cave to public demand and return as Shotgun Messiah.”
There is no mention of whether original lead vocalist Zinny J. Zan and drummer Pekka “Stixx” Galore will be part of the reunion. Zan did mention in an interview with the 80’s Glam MetalCast podcast back in January 2020 that he would be open to a Shotgun Messiah reunion but that he hadn’t spoken to Skold since 1990. Zan and Stixx combined forces along with Rob Marcello on guitar and Chris Laney on bass to release a live album titled Live Down Decadencia Drive in 2016 under the name Shotgun.
Wikipedia indicates the following about Shotgun Messiah (with slight edits)
“First era, 1985-1991
The band originally went under the name “Kingpin” while in Sweden, recording the album Welcome To Bop City; the album line-up featured former Easy Action vocalist Zinny J. Zan (vocals), joining Skövde musicians Tim Skold (going by “Tim Tim“) (bass), Harry K. Cody (Harri Kemppainen, guitar) and Pekka “Stixx Galore” (later simply “Stixx“) Ollinen (drums). This would become the original line-up of Shotgun Messiah as the band changed their name and relocated to Hollywood, California. The album they released under the “Kingpin” name was re-recorded and released as Shotgun Messiah‘s self-titled debut album, Shotgun Messiah. The style of this album was glam metal typical of early 1980s American bands such as Mötley Crüe and Ratt.
Second era, 1991-1993
Frontman Zinny J. Zan departed the band in 1990 leaving Tim Skold to take over vocal duties; Shotgun Messiah drafted an American bassist, Bobby Lycon, to fill Skold‘s former position. In 1991, the band’s follow up album Second Coming was released, spawning their most famous hit “Heartbreak Blvd”. Stylistically, due to Skold‘s less conventional singing style, this era saw the band playing sleaze glam-styled hard rock, closer to Guns N’ Roses and Faster Pussycat than their previous effort.
A punk rock influence is also notable during this period. The band released I Want More, an EP featuring cover versions of songs by the Ramones, The Stooges and the New York Dolls.
Third era, 1993
1993 was the final year for the band; Harry K. Cody and Tim Skold were left as the only members of Shotgun Messiah and created what would be the last Shotgun Messiah album Violent New Breed. This album is significantly different from the previous efforts as it focused heavily on industrial rock stylings, bringing in live players for the “Violent New Breed” tour. Soon after the tour, the band split permanently citing artistic differences as the reason.”
Shotgun Messiah‘s “Violent New Breed” video:
Shotgun Messiah – “Violent New Breed” music video, 1993
Shotgun Messiah’s video for “Violent New Breed” – 1993