Genesis P-orridge: non-binary multimedia artist and occultist
Genesis P-Orridge is a musician, painter, magician and occultist who has been involved with various bands, communes, and occult organizations since the early 1960s. They identify as non-binary and took the name ‘Genesis P-Orridge’ to emphasize a break with societal norms, and, in choosing the farcical ‘porridge’ as a surname, hoped to activate their ‘genius factor.’ P-Orridge is probably best known for their work in the influential industrial music group Throbbing Gristle or the experimental band Psychic TV, as well as for their performance art and personal life, including the Pandrogeny Project, during which P-Orridge sought to unite as a single entity with their spouse, Jacqueline Mary Breyer, through surgical body modification.
Early years and COUM Transmissions
Born Neil Andrew Megson in Manchester, England, in 1950, P-Orridge studied at Solihull School in Warwickshire, where they developed an interest in the occult, Beat poetry, and bands such as the Velvet Underground. They attended Hull University, where they founded an avant garde literary magazine called Worm and engaged in radical politics, before dropping out and spending some time living with the Transmedia Explorations commune in London, where meals were eaten at any time but the normal times and the members dressed themselves out of a communal chest. P-Orridge left after three months, displeased with the perks that the commune leaders had given themselves.
While living in Shrewsbury in 1969, P-Orridge had a vision wherein they heard the words “COUM TRANSMISSIONS,” and returned to Hull to found an avant garde collective by that name. The group performed around at nearby venues, doing improvised, often sexually transgressive performances featuring objects such as double-ended dildos, and gained a great amount of notoriety. They took as inspiration the ‘cut-up’ method of William Burroughs, seeking to create via experimental methods.
They also gave performances which challenged gender roles. In “Orange and Blue,” P-Orridge and his collaborator Cosey Fanni Tutti stood on either side of an orange and blue table. P-Orridge wore an orange laborer’s uniform and Tutti wore blue evening wear. Over the course of the performance, they swapped clothes and modified their body language and speech patterns accordingly.
The Throbbing Gristle years
In 1975, P-Orridge formed Throbbing Gristle with Tutti, Peter Christopherson and Chris Carter. Early shows were abrasive and traumatic, featuring loud noise, bright lights and shocking images projected onto a large screen. Songs such as “Discipline” cemented the band’s reputation as one of the foremost groups of the ‘industrial scene.
The band sought to confront the horrors of the modern age with this mixture of shock and a dispassionate, businesslike approach. They coined for themselves the memorable slogan “Industrial Music for Industrial People.” They continued to make music, including the genre-bending 20 Jazz Funk Greats, until 1981, when they split up under great interpersonal tension.
Psychic TV and its fan club
P-Orridge and Chistopherson formed the experimental band Psychic TV shortly after the breakup of Throbbing Gristle. The group fused video art, psychedelic and electronic music, and the regular practice of occult magic. P-Orridge often wrote only the lyrics, relying on a series of collaborators for the musical accompaniment. The band’s sound varied from release to release, from the Britpop of “Godstar” to the experimental acid house of albums such as Towards Thee Infinite Beat.
Alongside the musical project of Psychic TV, P-Orridge also founded a cult called Thee Temple Ov Psychic Youth, originally envisioned as a fictional ‘fan club’ for Psychic TV.
They also discussed sigil magic such as that championed by early occultist Austin Osman Spare, and engaged in occult rituals. One of these rituals, filmed and released to the press, led to an accusation of pedophilia for P-Orridge which forced them to flee to New York. They were later cleared of all charges.
The Pandrogeny Project
In 1993, P-Orridge and his second wife, Lady Jaye, began the Pandrogeny Project. Stating that they were so in love with each other that they wanted to become one entity, they began surgically modifying their bodies to look more alike. P-Orridge obtained chest implants and surgery on their face, as well as undergoing hormone therapy. Lady Jaye died in 2007; since then Genesis P-Orridge has referred to themselves as ‘we’ in order to honor Lady Jaye’s memory.
Non-musical projects
After retiring from Psychic TV in 2010, P-Orridge has worked in a variety of media, focusing on visual art. Shows such as Try to Altar Everything have focused on Nepalese approaches to identity and religion.
P-Orridge’s art explores the magic and ritual potential of orgasm and the possibilities offered by non-traditional modes of discovery.
Sources
Primal Evidence: The Strange World Of COUM Transmissions
The industrial evolution: Throbbing Gristle in 10 essential records
