William Frederick Rieflin (September 30, 1960 [1] – March 24, 2020) was an American musician. Rieflin came to prominence in the 1990s mainly for his work as a drummer with groups (particularly in the industrial rock and industrial metal scenes) such as Ministry , the Revolting Cocks , Lard , KMFDM , Pigface , Swans , Chris Connelly , and Nine Inch Nails . He worked regularly with R.E.M. following the retirement of Bill Berry in 1997. He was a member of King Crimson from 2013 until his death in 2020.
Rieflin was born on September 30, 1960, [1] and began his professional career in his hometown of Seattle. In 1975, he was in The Telepaths, a band which played backup for a couple of live gigs by the pre- The Screamers band The Tupperwares. [2] He played drums for The Blackouts starting in 1979. His bandmates included Mike Davidson, Paul Barker , Roland Barker and Erich Werner. Eventually that band dissolved and Paul Barker joined the nascent Ministry . [3] His earliest collaboration with Al Jourgensen was
Later, he participated in the creation of Ministry's album The Land of Rape and Honey , and was noted for his performance in the live video In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up (alongside fellow drummer Martin Atkins ). [5] His work with Ministry and its side projects lasted through to the mid-nineties, though he noted that he was never credited as a member of Ministry proper, always as an "other" musician. Therefore, when he parted ways with the band during the Filth Pig sessions, he did not really quit