Alexander Schlee, Bassist of Award-Winning Rock Band, Dies at 69

By: Henry Renfield.
October 12, 2060
The New York Times

Alexander Schlee, bassist of award-winning progressive rock band Helio and small-time published author, passed away this past Saturday, October 5th, while on a reunion tour with the band in Chicago, Illinois. He was 69 years old. He died when a speaker on stage caught fire and exploded, throwing him from the stage.

“I like to think that he was playing so hard that his own amp couldn’t take how awesome he was,” says Eugine Fredrikson, singer and guitarist for Helio. “At least he died doing something that he loved, you know, rocking out, starting fires, and stage diving.”

Schlee was born on August 29th, 1991 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was a music enthusiast from the young age of eight, when he picked up the clarinet. It wasn’t until high school that he became more outgoing with his interests, picking up the bass guitar and joining a band with his friends.

After college, the band took off, recording their first album when Schlee was 23. Two years later, the band was given an award for "Most Original New Act," for their use of theatrics and choreography during their performances.  Even once the band had started moving, lineup issues kept progress slow. Helio went through four drummers before finally sticking with Frank DiCarlo, who recorded their next seven albums with them, four of which were nominated for Grammys, and three of which won. 

Schlee considered his work with Helio to be his one true career, though he held down many other jobs throughout his lifetime, including one as a freelance photojournalist, and another as an illustrator with a cartoon strip published in several newspapers, and still another as an author, though his writing projects were admittedly less popular than his other endeavors. “A single vocation would not have been nearly fun enough for him,” said his sister, Carly Schlee.

Schlee is remembered as man who was in things for the fun of them. “Really, what’s the point of it if you’re not going to enjoy it?” he said in an interview between him, the other members of Helio, and Guitar Player Magazine. He believed that while his music should be treated as a career, but should still be taken lightly. “I just wanted to play for fun, and then Euge went and turned [the band] into a small business, but man, it’s got to be the best small business ever. Really though, that’s how you get successful; you treat it like it’s serious, but you still enjoy it.”

His death was met with sadness, but good humor. Wolfgang, his son, who gave the eulogy, said, “Dad once told me that he wanted to go out with a bang, which I guess he did. I can’t help bus suspect he planned it to end something like this... He also told me he didn’t want anyone to cry at his funeral. That’s one final wish I don’t think we did a very good job of granting today, but I bet he’d have been cool with it anyways.”

Upon final request, both Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” and AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell” were played at the funeral. “He told me once that he wanted those songs played because it’d be confusing, and funny,” stated his wife, Janet.

In addition to his wife, sister and son, Schlee is survived by his daughter, Chloe; daughter-in-law, Kayla; brother-in-law, Joe; niece, Delilah; and grandson, Josh.