Rick Froberg, a singer, guitarist, and visual artist, who was part of several national acts, most notably Drive Like Jehu, died suddenly on Friday in San Diego.
His death was reported by his longtime friend and bandmate John Reis on Instagram. He “passed away suddenly last night from natural causes”, he wrote.
“His art made life better. The only thing he loved more than art and rock and roll was his friends. He will forever be remembered for his creativity, vision, and his ability to bring beauty into this world. I love you, Rick. I will miss you for the rest of my life.”
55-year-old Rick Froberg was born in Los Angeles and played in several San Diego-based bands alongside Reis including Pitchfork and Hot Snakes. Separately, Froberg also played with the bands Last of the Juanitas, Thingy, and Obits.
As a visual artist and illustrator, Froberg created album art, promotional artworks, and merchandise designs for all of his bands as well as for Reis’ band Rocket from the Crypt and Swami Records label.
The Trash Lamb Gallery in San Diego’s South Park neighborhood, in 2022, featured an exhibition of posters Froberg created for the area’s underground music scene titled “Let My People Go: Art and Illustration 1988 to Present.”
Froberg was also known by the pseudonyms Rick Fork and Rick Farr. He performed in over 20 albums. His last album, “Jericho Sirens” with Hot Snakes, was released in 2018.
His group Obits separated in 2015 but released the live album “Die At the Zoo” in 2021. It was recorded in 2012 in Brisbane, Australia while the band was on tour.
Froberg posted several new photos of himself on Instagram, two weeks ago, with the caption “Hot Snakes, by the way, is working on a new record – very near done – so look out.”
