The sudden death of Crazy Town frontman Shifty Shellshock three months ago has been linked to fentanyl, the powerful synthetic opioid also cited in the untimely deaths of fellow musicians Prince, Tom Petty, Mac Miller, and Lil Peep.
In a statement released Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner revealed that the official cause of death for the singer-songwriter born Seth Brooks Binzer was the combined effects of fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. The manner of death was an “accident,” the department said.
Binzer, 49, was found unresponsive at a residence on June 24. His rep, Howie Hubberman, told Rolling Stone he believed the cause would prove to be an accidental overdose. “Seth has been struggling with substance abuse problems for quite some time,” Hubberman said in June. “Seth was not happy with the daily struggle that’s called life. Some people cope in many different ways. It’s unfortunate we lose so many people to addiction and accessibility to harmful drugs. Shifty was a real-life tragedy. Too fast, too hard, too soon.”
Binzer had been open about his battle with addiction. He appeared on two seasons of VH1’s Celebrity Rehab and two seasons of its follow-up show Sober House, between 2008 and 2010. In one of his last Instagram posts in April, Binzer wrote that he was more of “a lover than a fighter …but the one I need to love more Instead of fight with is myself.” He ended the post with “# Sober alive and grateful.”
Binzer co-founded his Southern California rock-rap group with Bret Mazur in 1999 after the two musicians worked together under different names for a few years. Crazy Town received success relatively quickly, with their 1999 debut album, The Gift of the Game, scoring a Number One single with “Butterfly.” The song features a sample of the band’s one-time tour mates, the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
“The Peppers are a huge inspiration to us,” Binzer told Rolling Stone in 2001. He said Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis even stepped in to help him when he turned to substance abuse during a rough breakup. “Anthony found me and took me to lunch — where I tried to borrow money from him so I could get high. I didn’t finish my rampage for a couple of days, but he showed me that I had people who were worried and cared about me. Anthony’s this angel who appeared in my life,” he said.
Crazy Town briefly disbanded in 2003 following their second album, Darkhorse, and Binzer released his debut solo album, Happy Love Sick, in 2004. The record featured “Starry Eyed Surprise,” his collaboration with British producer and musician Paul Oakenfold.
Crazy Town reunited and released their third album, The Brimstone Sluggers, in 2015.
County officials said Tuesday that Binzer’s full autopsy report with more details of his tragic death is expected to be released by Oct. 11.