James J. Woolley (1966 – August 2016) was a keyboard and synthesizer player for industrial metal group Nine Inch Nails for the 1991 Lollapalooza Tour and the beginning part of the 1994 Self Destruct Tour. Woolley also appears in the videos for “Wish” and “March of the Pigs”, as well as parts of the Nine Inch Nails release Closure (1997). Woolley won a Grammy in 1993 for “Best Metal Performance” for Wish.
Previous to NIN, Woolley was a major collaborator along with former NIN drummer Chris Vrenna to Chicago band Die Warzau. In 1994, just before NIN hit the road, Woolley contributed heavily to Sister Machine Gun’s album Torture Technique.
Subsequent to NIN, Woolley made contributions to Die Warzau albums again, particularly 2005’s Convenience album. In 1998 Woolley toured with Rob Halford’s one-time band 2wo, which also included John 5 of Marilyn Manson fame. After 2wo, Woolley did some studio audio work in L.A. By 2005 Woolley had relocated to Chicago. Since 2006, he has been involved in a new band, V.O.I.D., whose long-awaited album was due in early 2009. The band is led by Woolley and features players Jon Roberts, Mark Pearlman, and DJ Aaron Chase. A demo is available at V.O.I.D.’s MySpace page: www.myspace.com/voidspace
Woolley last resided in Round Lake Beach, Illinois and had a studio near Lake Forest, Illinois. On August 17, 2016, it was announced that Woolley had died during the previous weekend. Mr. Woolley was 50 years old.