ShockHound

This morning (October 29), ShockHound was deeply saddened to report the death of legendary drummer Chuck Biscuits, who reportedly passed away this past weekend at the age of 44, following a long battle with throat cancer. However, rumors of his demise now appear to have been greatly exaggerated in what seems to have been an elaborate hoax.
    The powerhouse percussionist was born Charles Montgomery on April 17, 1965 in British Columbia, Canada. After an initial stint with Vancouver punk pioneers D.O.A. — during which he played on their classic albums Something Better Change and Hardcore '81 while still in his teens — Biscuits moved to Los Angeles, where he played with both Black Flag and the Circle Jerks.
    After briefly retiring from the punk scene to pursue studies in art and electrical engineering, Biscuits was lured back into action by producer Rick Rubin, who was then helping assemble a band for Glenn Danzig's first solo record. (He also got Biscuits a gig playing drums on RUN-DMC's Rubin-produced 1988 album Tougher Than Leather.) Biscuits' muscular yet precise attack meshed perfectly with Danzig's new stripped-down, hard-rocking direction, and he wound up playing on the first four Danzig albums, before finally leaving the band in 1994 over what he described as "a contract dispute." Biscuits finished out the '90s playing with Social Distortion, before leaving the music biz altogether.
    Though he never exactly became a household name, Biscuits remains extremely revered by several generations of punk and hard rock fans, as well as many of his colleagues. “Chuck was one of the best of the original wave of punk drummers,” Descendents drummer Bill Stevenson told writer James Greene, Jr. last year. “His style was easily recognizable, and he seemed to have just a ton of extra energy when playing drums. He is one of those people who did not have to practice a lot to play really well.
    “It came very natural to him,” Stevenson continued. “He was hugely influential without really being as ‘famous’ as drummers who were actually much less influential musically.”
    It was Greene, Jr.'s blog that first disseminated news of Biscuits' passing — supposedly imparted by the drummer's wife — which was then picked up by a number of internet outlets, including ShockHound. But several of Biscuits' close friends now claim to have spoken with him as recently as yesterday, and Greene, Jr. received an email this afternoon from Chuck's older brother Bob Montgomery in response to the report, which read, "Chuck and I have been somewhat estranged for a time, but this seems fishy. I am going to his home to get to the bottom of this, I will let you know one way or the other. If this is a hoax, I will pop Chuck in his beak. I am allowed. He is my little brother."
    ShockHound contributor Tim "Napalm" Stegall now reports that he has received direct confirmation from Bob Montgomery's wife, Tabitha, that Biscuits is still alive. "I can confirm this to be a hoax," she wrote in an email to Stegall. "I'm married to Bob Montgomery. He spoke with Chuck today. Thank you for helping to dispell this sick rumor."
    ShockHound humbly regrets the error, and hereby apologizes to Biscuits and his family for participating in the viral spread of his death rumors. And now, we're left wondering two things: Who started this bizarre rumor? And when is Biscuits gonna get his ass back onto a drum throne?

— Dan Epstein

Related Artists Black Flag Circle Jerks D.O.A. Danzig Social Distortion