Former TWISTED METHOD Manager On Guitarist's Passing: 'We're All A Mess Right Now'

The News-Press has issued the following report:

Andy Howard, 23, former guitarist of the popular Cape Coral, Florida punk-rock band TWISTED METHOD, died Friday (Sept. 16) in his home.

Cape Coral police confirmed the death but could not confirm the cause.

Gaye Levine, former manager of the now-defunct rock club Club Neptune's, was in shock when she heard the rumors Saturday afternoon.

"He was a sweetheart," Levine said. "He was the quiet one, real shy. I'm stunned."

Levine watched Howard and his mates in TWISTED METHOD grow from a garage band into a national touring act. They played here before they were signed and when no one knew who they were.

And they played here after they were signed to a place that was jampacked with kids.

"This makes me sick," Levine said. "It doesn't feel good."

Howard quit TWISTED METHOD earlier this year to spend more time with his young twin girls. Ben Goins, the drummer, left the band at the same time to devote more time to his church.

Andy Howard, the drummer from BLACKFISH and THE UNKNOWN, was often confused with the younger Howard.

"Everyone thinks I died. I didn't know what the story was. It's just really sad," said Howard, a big fan of TWISTED METHOD.

"He was a really sweet kid. And he wrote a bunch of their early songs," Howard continued. "It's sad because he quits the band and then dies. There are so many of those stories in rock. He was a good kid and a real big talent."

Howard added that he will try to put together a benefit concert in honor of the TWISTED METHOD guitarist.

Charlie Pennachio, the manager of TWISTED METHOD, said that Howard's former bandmates were shocked. "Nobody's doing good," he said. "We're all a mess right now. I don't know what to say."