Cynic drummer Sean Reinert has died at the age of 48. He was found unresponsive at his home in California on Friday night, according to Blabbermouth.
A cause of death was not revealed
Sean Reinert bio: Early years
Sean Reinert was drawn to music from an early age. He was playing the piano at seven years old. He took up drumming at the age of 10. Reinert enrolled at the New World School of the Arts (NWSA) at the age of 15 in 1987. He graduated from NWSA in 1989.
In the same year that he enrolled at NWSA (1987), Reinert formed the progressive rock/metal band Cynic with the guitarist Paul Masvidal. The band played rock and metal with jazz and fusion influences.
He listed artists, such as Frank Zappa, Chick Corea, and Allan Holdsworth among his influences. He also credited drummers including Vinnie Colaiuta, Gary Husband, and Dave Weckl as having influenced his approach to drumming.
Sean Reinert bio: Stint with metal band Death
Chuck Schuldiner of the Florida metal band Death recruited Reinert to record with them 1990. He and Masvidal recorded the album titled Human with Death in 1991.
He also toured with Death before returning to Cynic. Reinert’s approach to drumming was influenced by his progressive rock and fusion background and it is widely cited as having exerted a major influence on Death’s music.
After touring with Death, Reinert and Masvidal returned to Cynic.
Reinert bio: Cynic debut album
Cynic released their debut album Focus in 1993. The album incorporated fusion and jazz influences and is widely considered to have influenced the subsequent direction of progressive metal.
After Cynic broke up in 1994, Reinert returned to his studies and obtained an Associate of Arts (AA) from Miami Dade Community College. He went on to study composition and music theory at the University of Miami School of Music.
He later moved to Los Angeles where he studied orchestration with Steven Scott Smalley and composition with Robert Drasnin.
Reinert bio: Aeon Spoke
Sean Reinert formed the alternative rock band Aeon Spoke with Masvidal in 1999.
Aeon Spoke’s track Emmanuel was featured in the movie What the Bleep Do We Know!? in 2005. Their track Transformed was also featured in the TV series One Tree Hill, while Damaged was featured in Smallville. Their song I’ve Seen Those Eyes was featured in the film Cry Wolf.
Cynic came back together in 2007 to release their critically acclaimed album Traced in Air in November 2008. The group toured around the world and released their EPS Retraced (2010) and Carbon-Based Anatomy (2011) before disbanding in September 2015.
Reinert and Masvidal came out as gay in 2014.
In the years before his death, he focused his efforts on TV and film composing, as well as teaching.