James Chance, no-wave legend and The Contortions frontman has died, aged 71
nme.comJames Chance 1953 – 2024Musician James Chance, Who Blended Punk Rock Aggression with Funk and Free Jazz Expression,…Posted by James Chance Official on Tuesday, June 18, 2024Chance had been in ill health for some time, with his friends and family launching a GoFundMe campaign in 2020 to help the musician through “personal health issues and the COVID situation”.A private funeral will be held for friends and family, with details of a public memorial set to be announced at a later date.Per Brooklyn Vegan, a second GoFundMe page was set up in November last year after the musician had been hospitalised.
On the campaign page, his brother David wrote: “He’s very frail. He’s down to 95 pounds. He needs to get some physical therapy to get his strength back but I don’t know how to navigate the health care system to get him approved for that.”James Chance was known for his unique approach to music, blending punk rock, jazz and funk.
After playing in a band named Death in Milwaukee, Chance moved to New York City and joined the band Flaming Youth in 1976 and later formed Teenage Jesus and the Jerks with Lydia Lunch.
He formed the Contortions in 1977, who appeared on the ‘No New York’ compilation album by Brian Eno.Friction between Chance and band members, partially due to Chance’s aggressive and confrontational attitude, eventually led to a breakup of the Contortions in the fall of 1979.
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