Todd Ankrom’s 10-year stint on the local music scene epitomizes the musical everyman — a drummer who kept gigging while holding down a full-time job at Lubrizol. Ankrom kept the rhythm in a handful of forgettably named metal and progressive bands often listed in concert poster fine print but that you likely never caught live. Nonetheless, he did it out of love.
Sadly, when Ankrom, 33, and guitarist Joe Petrich launched a Primus-style genre-bucking trio called Something Involving a Monkey, he couldn’t have known it would be his last gig. Thanks to their connections, the band toured Ohio for 10 months, finally opening the Mushroomhead Christmas Show at Peabody’s.
“In all the years of playing locally on the scene, we’d never played with Mushroomhead,” says Petrich. “It was a unique opportunity for us to play with a Cleveland staple. We jumped right on it, and we had a good gig, and unfortunately, Todd didn’t leave that night.”
An hour after leaving the stage Ankrom collapsed next to his wife, Lynn. Word worked through the crowd and by the time Petrich rushed outside, the ambulance was already pulling out. Later, the bandmates learned they’d lost their pal.
“Apparently he had a massive heart attack even though there was no known history of heart conditions in his family,” Petrich says, who adds drugs or alcohol didn’t contribute to the death. “It was an absolute shock to everybody.”
The funeral was quick and small, happening before most friends had put their heads around the loss. Now, Petrich and others are gearing up for a proper farewell: On July 6 they’ll host a handful of local acts in a benefit concert at Peabody’s. Portions of the $10 door price will go toward the widow. “Lynn’s kind of left in a pretty awkward place emotionally and financially, so we wanted to do something for her.”.
This article appears in Jun 6-12, 2012.
Sad…Hope the long armed network of the Cleveland music scene comes through….
It’s sad that someone from the Scene Magazine knows so little about it’s local music scene and the people in it. 600 people came out to see the Mosquito Bitten Bastards reunion show a few years back, that Todd drummed for and The Family Riot got press on numerous occasions for the shows they headlined in the area, including the Plain Dealer. If you’re going to honor someone who’s been in the local music scene for over 15 years, the least you could do is not use the word “forgettable” to describe his impact on the local scene. Let’s remember him for what he was instead of what some Scene writer made him out to be………BeZo,
*dictated but not read