Veteran drummer Bill Rieflin, who played with several influential rock and metal bands over a decades-long career, has died after a battle with cancer. He was 59.
Rieflin’s best known work appeared on R.E.M.’s late career records. Though never an official member, he was de facto R.E.M.’s drummer both live and in the studio from 2003 to 2011, playing on the group’s final three albums. Rieflin also played in Robert Fripp’s rejuvenated King Crimson beginning in 2013, and worked as a member of the industrial metal scene with bands like KMFDM and Ministry. Ministry paid tribute to Rieflin on Twitter, writing, “Today we lost a wonderful artist, tremendous human being and an integral part of Ministry’s developments and success.”
