Bob Casale, longtime Devo guitarist, passes away at 61

One of the founding members of legendary alt-rock group Devo has passed away. Bob Casale, the group's longtime guitarist, died yesterday (Feb. 17) of heart failure.

Casale's brother and Devo bandmate Gerald Casale made the sad announcement about the sudden death today in a statement to Rolling Stone. "As an original member of Devo, Bob Casale was there in the trenches with me from the beginning. He was my level-headed brother, a solid performer and talented audio engineer, always giving more than he got," he said.

According to Bob, his brother's death was a sudden occurrence at 61 years of age.

Like the rest of his Devo brethren, Casale was born and grew up in the small city of Akron, Ohio. Best known for its 1980 smash hit "Whip It," Devo originally broke up in 1991 but had reunited for a series of tours in the mid-'90s and a new album in 2010.

Casale was with Devo for the entirety of the band's career, though he largely remained out of the spotlight. He is survived by his two children, Alex and Samantha, and his wife Lisa.

Casale is the second member of Devo to pass away in the last year. The band's third drummer (and most prominent) Alan Myers passed away on June 24.

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