The Quietus | News | Steve Albini Has Died, Aged 61
A scabrous and sometimes controversial voice of anti-commercialism in music, Albini was a towering figure in American independent rock music
Staff at Albini's Chicago recording studio, Electrical Audio, have confirmed the news of his passing to Pitchfork, revealing that he suffered a heart attack.
As frontman of the bands Shellac and Big Black, Albini established himself as a keystone of underground indie rock. His latest album as part of Shellac, To All Trains, is scheduled for release next week, and he had been due to head out on a tour in support of the record shortly. He also appeared on the cover of the current issue of The Wire alongside his Shellac bandmates.
In addition to his work with Big Black and Shellac, Albini had a hand in the production of countless classic albums, though he frequently insisted that people describe him as an 'engineer' rather than a 'producer'. Among those albums are Pixies' 1988 debut Surfer Rosa, The Breeders' 1990 debut Pod, Nirvana's 1993 third album In Utero and PJ Harvey's 1993 second album Rid Of Me.
Born in Pasadena, California in July 1962, Albini took up bass guitar in his early teenage years while recovering from a broken leg. Having been introduced to the work of The Ramones by a school friend at the age of 14 or 15, he became obsessed with the band and later credited his music career to hearing their debut album.
