Jeremy Brown, a guitarist for Scott Weiland and the Wildabouts, died Monday. He was only 34 and a cause of death has not been revealed. The group’s first album, Blaster, was released on Tuesday.
Weiland, the former vocalist for the Stone Temple Pilots, announced Brown’s death on Facebook. He said that Brown was supposed to show for a rehearsal for an album release show on Monday, but did not. An hour after the rehearsal was supposed to start, Brown’s family called to tell them that he had died.
“I am in shock right now, everyone that knows him is devastated. It is a terrible loss that goes beyond words,” Weiland wrote. “He is one of my best friends, a truest friend and one of the most gifted guitar players that I’ve ever known. A true genius. It’s impossible to explain how much he will be missed and what a hole this will leave in our hearts.”
Rolling Stone reports that Weiland began working with Brown in 2008 for Weiland’s solo album “Happy” In Galoshes. Weiland, Brown and the other members of the Wildabouts also toured together before Weiland decided to record Blaster.
In interviews for Blaster, Weiland consistently praised Brown’s work on the album. While speaking with LA Weekly, he even credited the guitarist for coming up with “a majority of the riffs.”
The group was supposed to perform Monday night at School Night in Los Angeles, but Weiland obviously cancelled that date. In his Facebook post, the singer asked his fans, “Please keep his family in your thoughts.”