RIP Metal Church Singer, Mike Howe

As reported by the Metal Church Facebook page...

 

Damn!! This is some horrible news!! Mike was a huge talent!!

 

R.I.P.

 

Oh wow. That sucks. RIP

 

This sucks so much. Been a Metal Church fan since the beginning, when the late David Wayne was their front man.

I was lucky enough to see them live w/Mike on vox once, on the ill fated "Operation Rock N Roll" tour in 1991 with Judas Priest, Alice Cooper, and Motorhead.

He had just returned to the band within the last five or six years and the new stuff they were putting out rivaled the albums from his first go-round.

I will be playing a lot of Metal Church over the next few days.

R.I.P. sir.

 

Rest in Peace

 

Wow, what happened?

 

This is hitting me hard. I've always championed Metal Church to my friends both in real life as well as online as one of the better bands from the 80's that are still putting out great metal. I discovered the band through Blessing so Mike was my first introduction to them. Rest in Peace.

 

R.I.P. Mike. I was bummed when David Wayne left the band but that didn't last long once I heard 'Blessing In Disguise.' 55 is WAY too young.

 

Sad to hear this, he had a great voice that really suited Metal Church's sound. 'Blessing In Disguise' and 'The Human Factor' are both under appreciated classics of the genre, in my opinion, I loved them when they first came out and still love them now (which can't be said of a lot of music I listened to when I was young). R.I.P..

 

PS - is there a way for the title to be changed to 'RIP Mike Howe of Metal Church' or similar? It would draw more attention to his sad passing for what I am sure are more than 9 fans on the forum.

 

Nothing confirmed but saw on another site it was self-inflicted.

 

I actually thought about it. I'll alert the Gorts to change it.

 

No word on a cause. The Metal Church Facebook page just asked for privacy.

 

oh don't tell me that

 

I didn't want to speculate, but I did see someone comment, "I hope you found your way." It may have just been a reference to the Badlands lyrics, but one could also read more into it.

I ride alone, the wasteland that I cross
Will take another life, we'll take another loss
I feel a dry wind, dust is in my eyes
The artic cold at night, the earth, it tells me lies
God in heaven, my only friend
Will I live to see my journey's end?
As the world awakens me so hard, my values have been changed
I make a promise to myself: Never again
A dusty godforsaken path, endless to my dismay
I know these are the badlands, somehow I'll find my way
No more paradise, no more soothing rain
All the sacrifice, the pain is all the same
Still I'm pushing onward, alone I can't deny
My presence fills the desert, my spirit never dies
Will these lonely nights ever end?
Will I live to see my journey's end?
As the world awakens me so hard, my values have been changed
I make a promise to myself: Never again
A dusty godforsaken path, endless to my dismay
I know these are the badlands, somehow I'll find my way
The vultures that circle, cloud the empty sky,
Patiently waiting, they wait for me to die
Tortured and beaten, blistered by the sun
Forceful and heartless, have the badlands won?
Still I'm pushing onward, alone I can't deny
My presence fills the desert, my spirit never dies
As the world awakens me so hard, my values have been changed
I make a promise to myself: Never again
A dusty godforsaken path, endless to my dismay
I know these are the badlands, somehow I'll find my way

 

Such sad news. His voice was perfectly suited to Metal Church.

 

RIP.

FWIW Howe was also in an 80s metal band called Heretic that put out two underrated records on Metal Blade.

 

Yup, Heretic was a good band too.

Mike only sang on their second album (Breaking Point) though.

 

That's a bummer. So unexpected, and young.

 

RIP Mike Howe. Thoughts goes out to his family, bandmates and friends. I was looking forward to a new Metal Church album, the last studio album was really good.

 

Whatever the cause, 55 is way, way too young.

 

I'm gutted. Absolutely loved Mike Howe. Blessing in Disguise was the current album when I discovered Metal Church so Howe was my favorite era. I was so stoked when they reunited and was looking forward to finally seeing them in concert. It will never happen now.

 

RIP

 

I heard the music of Metal Church from a friend of mine (smoking buddy) back in Arizona who was a big fan of thrash metal fan in general. He still had a turntable and had some 12 inch singles that he was quite proud of and he wore his Metal Church t-shirt to school almost everyday and it was quite faded and worn out. RIP Mike.