Bass Wolf dead at age 38

April 1, 2005 9:48 AM

Farewell, jet generation."This is never easy. Please excuse me if I start making no sense. Hideaki Sekiguchi, AKA Billy, has left this world this morning, due to a heart attack at the age of 38. Billy was a brother, one of the wolf pack. He rocked harder than anybody in the room...." --Seiji, Guitar Wolf. Fans from all over the world respond. Oh, Bass Wolf, you will be in my heart forever.
posted by jennanemone (32 comments total)

What a week. Anyone who likes crappy guitars plugged straight into the board with the faders redlining should check them out. I didn't even realize the Guitar Wolf guys were so old.

/not that 38 is that old..
posted by dhoyt at 9:53 AM on April 1, 2005

I'm hoping it was 4/1 in Japan when this news broke.... Not that bad things can't just as easily happen on 4/1.
posted by cl at 10:00 AM on April 1, 2005

Heart attack at 38? Damn, what kind of drugs was he doing? Just so I can know to stay the hell away, I'm 35.

But maybe my metaphorical age is much older since I've never heard of the Guitar Wolf folks.
posted by fenriq at 10:01 AM on April 1, 2005

cl: No, it broke on the 31st. Yesterday. What a horrible day.
posted by jennanemone at 10:06 AM on April 1, 2005

.
posted by joe lisboa at 10:15 AM on April 1, 2005

Shit. Wild Zero is my favorite rock 'n' roll zombie movie.
posted by goatdog at 10:19 AM on April 1, 2005

I saw them when they played here in Philly a month or two ago. Unbelievable, ear-killingly loud, but great, and Wild Zero is amazing. This is sad.
posted by deafmute at 10:25 AM on April 1, 2005

CNN says the Pope's kaput, too. Crazy.
posted by dhoyt at 10:28 AM on April 1, 2005

What a bad omen. :( Have fun at the Great Gig In The Sky, dude.
posted by Drexen at 10:37 AM on April 1, 2005

Heh. This was more important to me than the Terri Shiavo thing (and important enough to post on Monkeyfilter) but I didn't want to get hammered for not putting a lot into the post here (Best of the Web?)...
That said, take this opportunity to learn more about the Rock of Japan (that's a good beginning site).
Other bands to check out:
The 5,6,7,8s
Thee Michelle Gun Elephant (if only for Smokin' Billy)
Supersnazz
The King Brothers
Voodoo Boots (both of which are on the awesome Bulb Records)

Over on the Monkeyfilter thread, we're trying to get some mp3s posted...
posted by klangklangston at 10:37 AM on April 1, 2005

Damn, what kind of drugs was he doing?

I always figured that they melted down vinyl copies of the Stooges' Raw Power and mainlined them.

This is too bad. That throbbing bass was the heart of their sound.
posted by wadefranklin at 10:38 AM on April 1, 2005

Jet Generation by Guitar Wolf. (Figured I might as well post it here too...)
posted by klangklangston at 10:43 AM on April 1, 2005

Ahhhh, their anthem. Thanks for finding and posting that.
posted by jennanemone at 10:44 AM on April 1, 2005

Mitch Hedburg, Bass Wolf, and the Pope? Wow. Yesterday sucked.
posted by honeydew at 10:49 AM on April 1, 2005

.
posted by kaseijin at 10:49 AM on April 1, 2005

Obituaryfilter
posted by caddis at 11:00 AM on April 1, 2005

Let's not forget the tasteful, heartfelt and genuine outpouring of grief here: Bass Wolf Wake Thread.

May not be safe for work.
posted by bwilliams at 11:04 AM on April 1, 2005

Hedberg, The Pope, Bass Wolf... and poor Frank Perdue. The tough man who made a tender chicken has also passed.

Reaper's working overtime this week.
posted by GreenTentacle at 11:21 AM on April 1, 2005

So just WTF is going on this week...

Saw GW a number of years ago at a local bar; absolutely amazing. Am so glad I have a shirt of theirs now, plus tapes of them on Hey Hey Hey. They were a musical inspiration to everyone.

??Hideaki Sekiguchi ????5 ??????????????????

May the light of Buddha bring us all peace.
posted by somnambulist at 11:54 AM on April 1, 2005

Sorry about the post, apparently no multi-language support
posted by somnambulist at 11:55 AM on April 1, 2005

.

I was fortunate enough to see Guitar Wolf play here in Toronto a few weeks ago, one of the best shows I'd been to in a long while. I will play records at an absolutely deafening level all weekend in your honour, Billy.
posted by helvetica at 12:10 PM on April 1, 2005

.
posted by underer at 1:20 PM on April 1, 2005

Amazing live act. Hope they find a way to move on.
posted by space2k at 1:21 PM on April 1, 2005

I considered posting this, but figured no one else would care...I'm glad I was wrong.

I was at the Philly show too, then drove to Baltimore the next day to see them again. My only regret is that I didn't follow then to New Jersey the next day. I don't normally care about "celebrity deaths" but damn...I was just standing next to him a few weeks ago.
posted by JoanArkham at 3:10 PM on April 1, 2005

.

But please note that this is the loudest dot ever posted in a Mefi memoriam.
posted by mwhybark at 4:50 PM on April 1, 2005

Saw them at a Matador showcase during SXSW in 1997. I was not expecting to be so thoroughly rocked.
posted by WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot at 5:00 PM on April 1, 2005

Crap.
posted by carter at 5:39 PM on April 1, 2005

.
posted by Eamon at 6:00 PM on April 1, 2005

Geez, they played a mile from my house just last Friday. I saw them a few years back, they rocked.
posted by intermod at 7:28 PM on April 1, 2005

cl : " I'm hoping it was 4/1 in Japan when this news broke."

Wouldn't matter if it were, there is no April Fool's Day in Japan.
posted by Bugbread at 7:40 PM on April 1, 2005

I need one of those Men In Black memory erasers please.
posted by mcsweetie at 10:23 PM on April 1, 2005

RIP Bass Wolf.
posted by lilita at 11:36 AM on April 2, 2005