Roli Mosimann (Swans / Wiseblood / The The) has died

Producer and musician Roli Mosimann, who played in Swans and worked with The The, Foetus, That Petrol Emotion and more, died on Sunday in Wroclaw, Poland from lung cancer. He was 68.

The sad news came via The The’s Matt Johnson: “I received very sad news today. My old friend, co-producer and collaborator — Roli Mosimann — passed away in the early hours of this morning in Wroclaw, Poland. I collaborated with Roli on ‘Sweet Bird Of Truth’, ‘Twilight Of A Champion’, ‘August & September’, ‘Beyond Love’. ‘The Violence Of Truth’, ‘Gravitate To Me’ and others. Roli was a larger than life character and we shared many crazy nights together. He was also one of the most original talents I have ever worked with. A very intelligent and insightful man, he had a unique way of looking at the world. My thoughts with his family. Rest In Peace my old friend xxx.”

Born in 1955 in Thurgau, Switzerland, Mosimann moved to NYC in the early ’80s and fell in with the loud and noisey No Wave scene. He played drums in Swans for albums Filth, Cop and Young God, and formed Wiseblood with Foetus’ Jim Thirlwell. He was also an in-demand producer, working with The The, That Petrol Emotion, The Young Gods, Faith No More, Celtic Frost, Skinny Puppy, The Hair and Skin Trading Company, and more.

The Young Gods’ Fraz Treichler shared a picture of Roli, and wrote: “Roli Mosimann when he was drumming for the Swans in 1984. I was then the house sound guy. He had a unique drumming style and a mind blowing musicality. Roli became a friend and the Young Gods producer. He shaped our sound from the beginning to 1995. My dear friend. Music is love. Franz.”

Rest easy, Roli.

Read tributes to Roli from JG Thirlwell and more, and watch a documentary about him made for Swiss television in 1993, below.

https://twitter.com/TomGWarrior/status/1835474085872050314