London rock band Helix drummer, Greg ‘Fritz’ Hinz, dies after battle with cancer

London, Ont. rock band Helix are mourning the loss of their drummer, Greg “Fritz” Hinz, who passed away Thursday after a battle with cancer.

Hinz joined the group in 1982 and stayed until 1996, and then rejoined Helix 13 years later. He would play with the band up until spring of 2023, when he began treatment for his cancer.

At the time of his passing, Hinz was 68.

Brian Vollmer, the lead singer of Helix, posted on Facebook after Hinz’s passing, writing, “Fritz was like a brother to myself, Brent, Kenny, and many other people who worked for the band… I could go on for hours about the guy, but right now I’m devastated, as are the other guys in the band. We’ve known about this since last April, but were unable to tell anyone, at Fritz’s request.”

Helix, formed in 1974, is considered quite a successful Canadian rock band, with particular success in the 1980’s after the release of the album Walkin’ the Razor’s Edge, which sold more than 400,000 copies worldwide.

The London group toured with bands including Kiss, Rush, Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Motörhead and Quiet Riot.