Legendary singer of a popular rap-rock band from the 90s dies at the age of 49

June 25, 2024

Crazy Town frontman Shifty Shellshock has died. He was 49.

According to the Los Angeles County Coroner, he was at home when he died on June 24, but the cause of death was not disclosed.

Shifty Shellshock’s real name was Seth Brooks Binzer and he was born in Los Angeles in 1974. In 1992 he met Brett Mazur and formed the band Brimstone Sluggers with him, which the two later renamed Crazy Town when they added their bandmates Rust Epique, James Bradley Jr. (performing under JBJ), Doug Miller, Adam Goldstein (performing under DJ AM) and Antonio Lorenzo Valli (performing under Trouble).

The rap-rock band released their first album, The Gift of Game, in 1999 and toured with the Red Hot Chili Peppers following the release. In 2000, they released “Butterfly” as the third single from the album, which sampled the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Pretty Little Dirty.” The song eventually became Crazy Town’s biggest and most recognizable hit, staying at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks straight.

The band split up after the release of their second album, “Darkhorse” (2002), which was not as successful as their debut. Shifty Shellshock pursued a solo career after the split and released the song “Starry Eyed Surprise” in the same year. It reached number 41 in the charts. Binzer released his first solo album, “Happy Love Sick,” in 2004. It was successful outside the United States.

In 2007, Crazy Town reunited and released their third album, “The Brimstone Sluggers,” in 2015.

Shifty Shellshock reportedly struggled with addiction and alcohol abuse and spoke about his problems. In 2000, Crazy Town was scheduled to perform at Ozzfest, but had to cancel a few weeks before because Shifty Shellshock was arrested for throwing a chair through a window while drunk.

He was one of the celebrities who appeared on VH1’s reality show “Celebrity Rehab” in 2007 and eventually completed the program, but after his rehab he began treatment on “Celebrity Rehab 2.” He was on “Sober House 1” in 2008 before relapsing, and appeared on “Sober House 2” in 2009 after an accidental overdose and the death of one of his former bandmates.

In 2022, Shellshock was arrested for drunk driving and was most recently dating “Punky Brewster” actress Soleil Moon Frye. He leaves behind three children: Halo, Gage and Phoenix.