Nick Menza, former drummer for influential metal band Megadeth, has died after collapsing on stage during a performance of his progressive jazz trio in Southern California.
Family spokesman J. Marshall Craig says Menza's latest band OHM was three songs into a set at a Los Angeles-area club on Saturday night when the drummer collapsed.
Friends and audience members rendered first aid while paramedics were called.
Craig says the 51-year-old died at the club of a suspected heart attack.
Menza was Megadeth's longest-serving drummer, performing on five records over nine years, including 1990's thrash metal landmark, Rust In Peace.
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After leaving Megadeth in 1998, Menza pursued an interest in jazz and became an accomplished woodworker.
He is survived by his parents and two sons.
