DH Peligro, drummer for the Dead Kennedys, dies aged 63 | Punk

A renowned drummer for rock bands the Dead Kennedys and the Red Hot Chili Peppers has died after an accidental fall at his home.

DH Peligro, whose legal name was Darren Henley, was 63.

The Dead Kennedys announced Peligro’s death in an Instagram post on Saturday. Peligro had died from head trauma resulting from a fall at his home in Los Angeles, according to that post, which cited information provided by police.

Details on funeral arrangements for Peligro were pending as of Monday, but the band said they would be announced in the coming days.

Peligro had been a staple in the bustling San Francisco and Los Angeles music communities since 1978. He drummed for the Dead Kennedys from 1981 until the legendary punk outfit broke up in 1986 and then again after it reformed in 2001. He also spent some time on the kit for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and started his own band, Peligro, for whom he sang and played guitar on three albums.

The Peligro album Sum of Our Surroundings won rock album of the year at the 2004 American Independent Music Awards. He also earned a Grammy nomination for a cover of Jimi Hendrix’s Purple Haze and had recently toured Europe with another musical act, showing his comfort with playing everything from punk rock to “funked up, groove-oriented raucous jams”, his biography on the Dead Kennedys website said.

Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea was among those to mourn the unexpected death of Peligro on social media.

“My dear friend, my brother I miss you so much,” Flea posted on Instagram. “I’m devastated today, a river of tears, but all my life I will treasure every second.”

In his post, Flea recalled seeing Peligro first perform in 1981, which “blew” his mind. “You are the truest rocker, and a crucial part of [Red Hot Chili Peppers] history,” Flea’s post added.

Meanwhile, the Alice in Chains guitarist William DuVall went on Twitter to share his memory of Peligro diving over his drum kit and into the crowd “in a single leap” at the end of a Dead Kennedys gig in 1983.

“Drum hero,” DuVall’s tribute tweet said. “Super cool guy.”

A renowned drummer for rock bands the Dead Kennedys and the Red Hot Chili Peppers has died after an accidental fall at his home.

DH Peligro, whose legal name was Darren Henley, was 63.

The Dead Kennedys announced Peligro’s death in an Instagram post on Saturday. Peligro had died from head trauma resulting from a fall at his home in Los Angeles, according to that post, which cited information provided by police.

Details on funeral arrangements for Peligro were pending as of Monday, but the band said they would be announced in the coming days.

Peligro had been a staple in the bustling San Francisco and Los Angeles music communities since 1978. He drummed for the Dead Kennedys from 1981 until the legendary punk outfit broke up in 1986 and then again after it reformed in 2001. He also spent some time on the kit for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and started his own band, Peligro, for whom he sang and played guitar on three albums.

The Peligro album Sum of Our Surroundings won rock album of the year at the 2004 American Independent Music Awards. He also earned a Grammy nomination for a cover of Jimi Hendrix’s Purple Haze and had recently toured Europe with another musical act, showing his comfort with playing everything from punk rock to “funked up, groove-oriented raucous jams”, his biography on the Dead Kennedys website said.

Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea was among those to mourn the unexpected death of Peligro on social media.

“My dear friend, my brother I miss you so much,” Flea posted on Instagram. “I’m devastated today, a river of tears, but all my life I will treasure every second.”

In his post, Flea recalled seeing Peligro first perform in 1981, which “blew” his mind. “You are the truest rocker, and a crucial part of [Red Hot Chili Peppers] history,” Flea’s post added.

Meanwhile, the Alice in Chains guitarist William DuVall went on Twitter to share his memory of Peligro diving over his drum kit and into the crowd “in a single leap” at the end of a Dead Kennedys gig in 1983.

“Drum hero,” DuVall’s tribute tweet said. “Super cool guy.”