Original Siouxsie and the Banshees Drummer Dies at 68

Kenny Morris, the original drummer for the pioneering post-punk band Siouxsie and the Banshees, has died at the age of 68. His passing was confirmed on Thursday by multiple sources, including his friend and music journalist John Robb, though no cause of death has been disclosed.

Morris joined Siouxsie and the Banshees in January 1977, shortly after the group's formation amid the UK's punk explosion. Born in London to Irish parents and raised in Essex, he had immersed himself in the scene early on, attending the 1976 100 Club Punk Festival where vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bassist Steven Severin performed an impromptu 20-minute rendition of "The Lord's Prayer" with Marco Pirroni on guitar and Sid Vicious on drums. Vicious, who later joined the Sex Pistols, had played on the band's sole gig that year, but Morris became their first permanent drummer.

His tribal, tom-heavy style defined the band's raw early sound. Morris recorded the group's debut single, "Hong Kong Garden," produced by Steve Lillywhite, layering cymbals and echo-drenched toms to create an enormous, unearthly rhythm that influenced post-punk acts for decades. He played on their seminal debut album, The Scream,...