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Gorilla Biscuits Guitarist Alex Brown Dead at 52

Alex Brown, renowned visual artist and guitarist in the seminal NYHC band Gorilla Biscuits, has died following an aneurysm, as ArtForum reports. He was 52. The news was confirmed by Brown’s Gorilla Biscuits bandmate Anthony Civarelli, who posted a tribute video to the guitarist on Instagram.

“The world lost a son, brother, uncle, artist, musician, and loving friend this week,” he captioned on Instagram. “I lost my bandmate and friend of over 30 years, a piece of my heart died this week and all I can do is think of all the fun, shows, meals, flights, and trips we had together. All the late night talk and all the early morning hangs with him and my wife and kids. There will never be another Alex Brown.” The post also notes that a memorial service for Brown will be held in Iowa in the coming weeks.

Brown was born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1966 and studied art at the Parsons School Of Design in New York. As a student, he started the prominent hardcore label and fanzine Schism along with John Porcelly and played in numerous bands throughout the period.

Gorilla Biscuits formed in 1987 and released their self-titled EP the next year. Brown later joined, playing on their landmark sophomore release Start Today. Though the band technically broke up in 1991, they reunited to perform together numerous times in the years to follow.

In addition to his work with Gorilla Biscuits, Brown was an established painter, with solo shows at Feature Inc. (New York), Min Min (Tokyo), Blondeau Fine Art Service (Geneva), and Twig Gallery (Brussels), as ArtForum points out. Find a few social media tributes from his friends and bandmates below.

https://youtu.be/1iPF7M5AI94