Sebastian Marino, a former member of Canadian heavy metal band Anvil, has died at 57.
A cause of death was not immediately disclosed but his friend Bruce Pilato wrote on Facebook that he “died suddenly after being rushed to a hospital.” WXXI News reported that Marino "fell ill and was hospitalized" while doing sound and lights at a New Year's Eve show in Florida and "died the next morning."
Pilato described Marino as “a brilliant musician” and “a diamond whose legacy will shine forever.”
Marino played in Anvil from 1989 to 1995, including on the band’s sixth studio album, Worth the Weight.
“Seby was a dear friend and I will miss him profoundly!!” tweeted Toronto’s Steven “Lips” Kudlow, lead singer of Anvil. “Worth the Weight was an extremely special Anvil album and it will keep Seby alive through our history forever!”
Marino left Anvil to join Overkill, with whom he recorded three studio albums.
Remembering him as “a great musician,” Overkill tweeted: “Seb was an asset in the studio as well as on the stage for the 3 releases he did with us. The music world has lost one of the good ones.”
Elvio Fernandes of rock band Daughtry, remembered Marino as “a gifted musician” in a Facebook post. “He toured all over the world, recorded, produced, and wrote songs on multiple albums, and reached a level that many only dream of,” he wrote. “He was humble to a fault and only spoke about his success if you forced it out of him.”
Marino owned Audio Images Sound & Lighting in his native northern New York. He is survived by a wife Betsy, and children Julia, Emily, Joey, Jenna, and Mason as well as mother Jenette and brothers John and Frank.