Heroin overdose killed Gwar Dave

An accidental heroin overdose killed Gwar frontman Dave Brockie, tests have confirmed.

The 50-year-old singer – known by his stage name Oderus Urungus – was found dead by a friend in his home in Richmond, Virginia, USA, on March 23.

The Virginia State Medical Examiner’s Office has recorded the official cause of death as “acute heroin toxicity” and the means as “accident”, WTVR reports.

Police found evidence of heroin use at the scene but the cause of death could not be finalised until toxicology tests were carried out.

Tributes poured in for Brockie after his death. Lamb Of God singer Randy Blythe – who also lives in Richmond – said: “Dave truly was one of a kind. I can’t think of anyone even remotely like him.

“Right now, if I were to truly honour Dave in the way he would do it if it were me that had died, I would make a completely tasteless joke about his death. But I do not have the stomach for that – Dave would, but not me. He never put much stock in limits.

“Richmond has lost one of its most creative people. This is a crying shame to me.”

Gwar later launched a charity in Brockie’s name to promote music and the arts.

Stef wrote close to 5,000 stories during his time as assistant online news editor and later as online news editor between 2014-2016. An accomplished reporter and journalist, Stef has written extensively for a number of UK newspapers and also played bass with UK rock favourites Logan. His favourite bands are Pixies and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Stef left the world of rock'n'roll news behind when he moved to his beloved Canada in 2016, but he started on his next 5000 stories in 2022.