Alan Myers, a musician best known as the drummer for punk/new wave band Devo, has died following a battle with brain cancer. The news was first reported via Facebook from Myers’ friend, jazz musician Ralph Carney.

Myers’ tenure with Devo started in 1976 when he became the band’s third drummer. Through his ten years with the band, Myers performed on seven of Devo’s albums, including the classic Q: Are We Not Me? A: We Are Devo! and the smash hit Freedom of Choice, which contains Devo’s ubiquitous hit “Whip It.” Myers quit in 1986 as the band began relying more and more on electronic drums. After Devo, Myers had been playing with his wife Christine in the improvisational group Skyline Electric; he was also working with his daughter, Laena Geronimo, in the experimental group Swahili Blonde.

Myers’ former Devo bandmate Gerard Casale called him “the most incredible drummer I had the privilege to play with for 10 years.” Drummer Josh Freese, who has been playing with Devo since 2006, called Myers “a human metronome and then some.”