It’s been a week since musician Virgil Howe died Sept. 11, the day before his band, Little Barrie, was scheduled to begin a brief U.K. tour to support their new album with a now-haunting title, Death Express. Howe, 41, played drums for Little Barrie, alongside Barrie Cadogan (vocals, guitar) and Lewis Wharton (bass, vocals).
As of Sept. 19, no cause of death has been announced.
Today (Sept. 20), a message from Virgil Howe’s father, Yes guitarist Steve Howe, was published on the band’s Facebook page: “On behalf of my wife Jan and all our family & his loved ones, we would like to thank everyone who has written so movingly to us following the sudden death of our younger son, Virgil Howe, at age 41. Your message [sic] are helping us through this most difficult of times. Virgil’s love for his daughter was paramount. He was a truly gifted musician who will be sadly missed by all who knew him.”
On Sept. 18, Little Barrie wrote on their Facebook page: “Little Barrie would like to thank you all for your support during this very difficult time. So many messages of love for Virgil, his family and the band. We are sorry we can’t reply to all of them, but they are much appreciated.”
Virgil Howe and Steve Howe had recorded an instrumental album together, Nexus, which is scheduled to be released on Nov. 17. Virgil’s brother, Dylan, is also a drummer and was touring with Yes this summer. The group canceled the remainder of their tour upon Virgil’s death.
The Nexus album is being released by progressive rock and metal label, Inside Out Music. Though the company hasn’t formally announced the recording, it appears on Amazon’s U.K. site, albeit with no details. It’s expected to be an all-instrumental release.
Little Barrie’s most prominent recording was the main title theme for the AMC TV series Better Call Saul. Viewers may not have been aware it is a full song with vocals.
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Little Barrie was formed in 2000. Their debut album, We Are Little Barrie, was released in 2005.
