SHADOW PROJECT

Shadow Project stood out as Rozz Williams’ most active venture apart from Christian Death, echoing the gothic style that first defined his reputation while weaving in stronger traces of his punk, glam, and experimental leanings. Built around Williams and his spouse Eva O., the group eventually drew on some of the same musicians supporting the alternate Christian Death lineup that Williams restarted in the late ’80s. Following his 1985 departure from the original Christian Death, Williams stayed largely out of view for several years, aside from sporadic appearances with Premature Ejaculation. In 1987 he wed Eva O. of the Superheroines, who had contributed backing vocals to Christian Death’s debut album five years earlier; the couple then launched Shadow Project, taking the name from the eerie silhouettes scorched into Hiroshima pavement by the atomic blast, bodies absent.

The band debuted onstage in San Francisco in 1987 yet stayed low-key until Williams and O. settled back in their hometown of Los Angeles in 1990. There they enlisted keyboardist Paris, bassist Jill Emery—previously O.’s bandmate in the Superheroines and later a collaborator with Hole and Mazzy Star—and drummer Tom Morgan, formerly of Flesh Eaters. This configuration finished Shadow Project’s self-titled debut, issued by Triple X in 1991. After Peter Tomlinson took over on drums, the band recorded Dreams for the Dying, released in 1992 and destined to become its most recognized effort. Subsequent membership proved changeable, with players already tied to Williams’ other endeavors—guitarist William Faith, drummer Stevyn Grey, horn player Ace Farren Ford, and drummer Christian Omar Madrigal Izzo—moving in and out. By 1993 Eva O. had turned toward solo work and Williams was shifting focus elsewhere, prompting Shadow Project’s final performance at a Denny’s in Orange County; that concert later surfaced as the live album In Tuned Out.

Williams and O. parted ways in the mid-’90s, yet from 1997 onward they reconvened for a predominantly acoustic Shadow Project recording that also featured guitarist and producer Michael Ciravolo alongside keyboardist Nathan Van Hala. Williams did not survive to witness its release; he died by suicide on April 1, 1998, and the album emerged afterward on Hollow’s Hill as From the Heart.