Bassist and founding member for the legendary both Rose Tattoo and later, X, Ian Rilen, has today lost his long suffering battle with bladder cancer.
Rilen died this morning (Monday, October 30) surrounded by friends and family.
With a career spanning thirty years, Rilen helped shape the sound of Australian hard rock in the 70s and 80s, playing with Rose Tattoo where he wrote the Oz-rock classic Bad Boy For Love.
Not happy with the direction Rose Tattoo were taking, Rilen left to form X (not the L.A. based punk rock group, but the Sydney formed, Melbourne based rockers) in 1977, where he launched a full scale sonic attack on the masses.
Sardine V was a more out-there group formed by him on vocals and guitar and his then-wife Stephanie on keyboards.
His most recent band was the Love Addicts, which featured him on vocals and guitar and often included a stripped back jazz-inspired version of the Rose Tattoo hit Bad Boy For Love.
Recently Rilen performed at a benefit for fellow ailing musician, Lobby Loyde, after spending the day in hospital. He had his own benefit shows in Melbourne less than a month ago with performances by Rose Tattoo, The Hoodoo Gurus, The Beasts of Bourbon, Don Walker and the Suave Fucks and Tim Rogers, including guests appearances by Billy Thorpe and Divinyls singer Chrissie Amphlett.
Money raised was to help Rilen pay for treatment, and will now go to his family.
In a June 2006 interview with the Sunday Daily Telegraph, Rilen said to his fans Don't talk to me about (the cancer), just enjoy the music.
