Anal Cunt guitarist Josh Martin has passed away after falling from an escalator.

According to a police report, the 45-year-old was reportedly “clowning around and riding the rail of the escalator” before he fell backwards off an escalator at the Providence Place shopping mall in Providence, Rhode Island.

The guitarist fell one whole floor and suffered a fatal injury after hitting his head on a table in the food court. He was taken to Rhode Island Hospital but was pronounced dead soon after.


Police are still investigating footage from the incident but officials have said they believe it to be accidental and that there is no evidence to suggest foul play or that the musician intentionally took his own life.

Martin joined the grindcore band in 1996 and played with them until 2001. He later rejoined the group in 2006, staying in the band until the passing of frontman Seth Putnam in 2011.

He appeared on numerous Anal Cunt albums, including 1996’s ’40 More Reasons to Hate Us’ and 1999’s ‘It Just Gets Worse’.

The band’s last full length was 2010’s ‘Fuckin’ A’ – an album that poked fun at “cock rock” bands and used the image from Mötley Crüe’s debut album Too Fast for Love for its artwork.

In addition to his work with Anal Cunt, Martin also lent his talents to Adolf Satan, Impaled Northern Moonforest, and Failure Clinic.