Gabe Serbian, drummer with San Diego hardcore outfit The Locust, has died at the age of 44.
The news was confirmed in a statement from the band on Facebook, which read "It’s with heavy hearts that we have to share the passing of Gabe Serbian on April 30th, 2022. This world will miss Gabe as a friend, family member, musician, and artist.
"He will continue to live on in so many ways and through everyone he has connected with during his time with us. May 1st is his birthday, and we hope that you can find a way to celebrate his life. During this difficult time we ask that you give Gabe’s family privacy."
A memorial fund has been launched, which will raise money to support the Serbian family.
In 1996 Serbian was a founding member of cult deathgrind band Cattle Decapitation. He played drums for them for a year before switching to guitar, and in 1998 he joined The Locust, for whom he played guitar before switching to drums.
He remained with The Locust until his death, but also built up a varied international discography, performing with the likes of San Diego rockers Holy Molar and Retox, Japanese noise project Merzbow, German digital hardcore icon Alec Empire, Mexican garage punks Le Butcherettes, and Italian math rockers Zu.
Serbian was also a member of two hardcore supergroups: Head Wound City, who also featured members of the Blood Brothers and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs alongside fellow The Locust member Justin Pearson, and Dead Cross - in which Serbian was frontman – alongside Pearson, former Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo, and Retox guitarist Michael Crain.
Serbian left Dead Cross in 2016 due to family commitments, and was replaced by Faith No More and Mr Bungle frontman Mike Patton, who re-recorded Serbian's vocal parts before the band's self-titled debut album was released in 2017.
No cause of death has been confirmed.
