Hey folks, on Saturday, April 30th, former guest of this show and my friend, Gabe Serbian, died just one day before his 45th birthday.

Gabe was best known as the drummer of San Diego band The Locust. I long admired him, not only for his jaw-dropping acrobatic drumming, but for his all-encompassing aesthetic vision.

Gabe was also a fantastic, wickedly funny friend and devoted husband and father.

If you're in the position to help, please consider donating to a GoFundMe that's been set up to benefit Gabe's wife and kids.

The link is in the show notes.

Here's my 2016 conversation with Gabe Serbian.

Rest in peace, Gabe.

You'll be missed. You are missed.

You are missed.

Oh! You are missed. This is Joe Wong. Welcome to the Traff Set, where each week we explore the lives of drummers.

I want to play something for you.

Thank you. You're hearing new erections by The Locust, featuring my guest, Gabe Serbian on drums.

The Locust formed in 1994 and soon proved themselves one of the most exciting and influential bands on the fertile San Diego scene.

Their rigorous aesthetic, which drew inspiration from metal, punk, and conceptual visual art alike,

permeated all aspects of their operation, from the music to their alien-like stage uniforms, to the beautifully rendered, unorthodox packaging of their releases.

Gabe's frenetic and agile drumming evolved in scope and ambition along with the increasingly

complex band. Aside from his work in The Locust, Gabe drums in Headwound City, whose album,

A New Wave of Violence, was released earlier this year.

He's worked with the Italian band Zoo, and when we recorded this conversation, he was at work

on a new album as the vocalist of Dead Cross, a band that features Dave Lombardo on drums.

And now our conversation with Gabe Serbian.

Yeah, I didn't really know my real dad. It's funny because, like, recently, I, like, was thinking about how I didn't really know him that well at all. And so I've been asking my, my uncle, who I'm really close with, a lot of questions, like, through, like, getting in this information, I found out my real dad was kind of a like

...