History:
Often criticized for following whatever musical trend was popular at the time, Shotgun Messiah managed to transform from glam to sleaze to industrial with varying results.
  Originally known as Kingpin, the Swedish band consisting of Zimmy J. San (vocals), Harry K. Cody (guitar), Tim Tim Skold (bass) and Stixx Galore (drums) were making waves in their homeland in the mid 80s. Their debut album Welcome To Bop City was released in 1988 and featured the group in outrageous haircuts and outfits. With the album doing great locally the boys decided to uproot and head for the bright lights of the late 80s Los Angeles rock scene.
  Upon their arrival, Kingpin changed their name to Shotgun Messiah, toned down their image slightly and remixed Welcome To Bop City as Shotgun Messiah. The album reached the Billboard Top 100 and the band was doing respectable business. However it wasn't long before San was fired from Shotgun Messiah and they recruited bassist Bobby Lycon (who was best known as a member of The Guttercats that made an appearance on Married With Children) so that Skold could take over vocal duties. Second Coming was arguably the bands finest moment, but it failed to match the success of the debut album.
  It wasn't long before Shotgun Messiah was without a rhythm section, but Skold and Harry Cody never missed a beat as they decided to use programming to create the industrial sounding Violent New Breed. The album was a huge departure from their roots and fans all but ignored the release, leading to the bands demise. Skold would continue in the same genre with a solo release before joining bands such as KMFDM and Marilyn Manson. Cody showed up in short lived bands like Coma (which included Saigon Kick and Kingofthehill members) and Das Cabal (with Rhino Bucket's vocalist), neither of which recorded albums. Lycon and Stixx dontinued working together in U.N.I. while San (now known as Zinny J. Zan) resurfaced with his own band Zan Clan.

Links:
The Official Tim Skold Page
The Official Bobby Lycon Page
The Official Zan Clan Page

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