Mazzy Star Drummer Keith Mitchell Has Died

Keith Mitchell, the drummer of Californian alt-rock outfit Mazzy Star, has passed away of unspecified causes, the band has reported.

As Rolling Stone and others have noted, Mitchell was a seasoned percussionist who also performed with LA art-punk group Monitor, contemporaries Green On Red and Mazzy Star's direct predecessor, Opal, during his career.

Mazzy Star mainstays Hope Sandoval and David Roback posted of Mitchell's passing on Facebook yesterday morning (AEST): "Our hearts are broken. We have lost the much beloved Keith Mitchell, a very talented and amazing drummer that we have had the privilege to work with for many years, he will live in all of our hearts forever… We'll miss you Big Fella."

Mazzy Star formed in 1989 following Opal's disbandment, when Sandoval joined Roback and Mitchell after the departure of Opal vocalist Kendra Smith.

They have released four albums to date, all of which featured Mitchell on drums, the most recent being 2013's Seasons Of Your Day. The band found unexpectedly broad success via breakthrough single Fade Into You, off 1993 sophomore full-length So Tonight That I May See, with the song going on to feature in multiple movies and TV shows over the past two decades, including Starship Troopers, End Of Watch, Gilmore Girls, Without A Trace, True Blood and more.

Non-official single Into Dust, also off their second album, became another success for the band nearly 20 years after its release when, between 2009 and 2011, it featured in various commercials, including one for Gears Of War 3.

More recently, Mazzy Star's Look On Down From The Bridge, from third album Among My Swan (1996), was featured in Rick & Morty's first-season episode Rick Potion No. 9.