Howie Pyro, D Generation and Danzig Bassist, Dies at 61
variety.comA.D. Amorosi Howie Pyro — bassist, DJ and longtime veteran of the New York punk and underground scenes — died Tuesday due to complications from Covid-19-related pneumonia after a lengthy battle with liver disease.
His death was confirmed by a rep; he was 61.Rest In Peace Howie Pyro-keep playing and spinning that vinyl up in Heaven old friend.
pic.twitter.com/wTuV8DuNV0— Matt Pinfield (@mattpinfield) May 5, 2022Born Howard Kusten in Queens, New York, Pyro was best known as a founding member of the ‘90s glam-punk band D Generation with singer-guitarist Jesse Malin, but he was a widely recognized figure on the city’s scere for more than two decades, jamming with other musicians, DJing or throwing legendary regular parties such as Greendoor and many nights at the East Village club Coney Island High, which was basically the band’s clubhouse.Adopting the name “Pyro” by the age of 15 and picking up the guitar at the same time, he became the de facto leader of the Blessed, a 1977-era band where all of its members were underage when they set foot on the stages of Max’s Kansas City and CBGB.
In 1979, while the Blessed released one single in “Deep Frenzy,” Pyro gained notoriety by befriending’ Sid Vicious, and reportedly was one of the last people to see the Sex Pistols bassist alive before his overdose later that year.By the mid-1980s, Pyro created the pre-grunge punk band Freaks (with Andrea Matthews, eventually Mrs.
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