Isaiah “Ikey” Owens Found Dead, Jack White Cancels Remaining Tour

October 14th, 2014

Scott Murray

This morning, news broke that legendary keyboardist Isaiah “Ikey” Owens was found dead in a hotel room in Puebla, Mexico. Though the cause of death is still unknown, reports have stated that both drugs and alcohol were found in Owens’ room.

Owens was a member of Jack White‘s touring band, The Buzzards, an all-male group that supports White’s solo tours, sharing duties with The Peacocks, an all-female supporting group. White and The Buzzards were out on a world tour supporting Lazaretto, with 14 more stops across Mexico, Europe and the United States before the end of the year. White has since cancelled the remaining tour out of respect for Owens.

Apart from his work with The Buzzards, Isaiah “Ikey” Owens was perhaps best known for his long history with The Mars Volta, and its predecessor, De-Facto. In nearly 10 years with The Mars Volta, Owens worked with the group on two EPs and their first six records including 2001’s iconic De-Loused In The Comatorium. Owens had also been writing under the moniker Free Moral Agents for many years as well as working as a session musician for bands including TV On The Radio, The Aquabats, and Mastodon to name a few. A gifted player, Owens will be sorely missed.