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Impetigo Guitarist Mark Sawickis Passes Away Aged 58

Mark Sawickis, former guitarist of goregrind legends Impetigo, has sadly passed away at the age of fifty eight, following a long illness. He was an original member of the band and appeared on all their releases, including the two full length albums, "Ultimo Mondo Cannibale" and "Horror Of The Zombies," released in 1990 and 1992 respectively. Numerous musicians and scene veterans have paid tribute to Sawickis, praising him as a genuinely nice person with an encyclopedic knowledge of underground metal. Some of the tributes can be found below.

Anders Jakobson (Nasum/Axis Of Despair): "I am deeply saddened by the news of Mark Sawickis passing - one of the true underground legends. I bought the first LP by Impetigo "Ultimo Mondo Cannibale" when a local record store had a weird night sale. I sort of fell in love with their sludgy death/grind which was drenched in references that I didn't have. However, a few years later I got in touch with Stevo Dobbins, the bass playing singer, and we were pen pals for a while. Stevo was very instrumental in picking out a few songs for the "Necronycism: Distorting the Originals" cover MCD from Necrony.

"But in 1999 I met Mark at the Milwaukee Metal Fest when Nasum toured the USA for the first time. Or I should say, Mark met me, because as I remember it, he introduced himself to me. We had never been in touch before, but I am sure that since he was an underground connoisseur of biblical proportions he knew everything about me. We sat down in the Relapse room and had a conversation. I don't remember the details, but I remember that I had a good time.
We might have exchanged a few emails after that, but I never had a proper relationship with him. I sort of miss that now. It's evident today when Facebook is covered with tributes that he was a standout guy and I am happy to have known him, if only for a short conversation back in the Summer of 1999."

Alex Bouks (Immolation/ex Incantation): "R.I.P. to my old friend and underground legend Mark Sawickis. This is a sad day and huge loss."

Perra Karlsson (In Aeternum/Nominion): "I'm lost for words...

"Mark Sawickis was one of the most genuine underground OGs I have ever met. Rest in peace. I'll miss you brother, our late night conversations and just random 'Hey, what's up!?' messages."

Silvester Koorevaar (Fondlecorpse): "Sad to hear we lost Mark Sawickis, he was a real one. I had the pleasure of helping him with projects over the years and talking to him about horror and music and he was always the most humble, kind, and down to earth person i ever met. Hanging with him and Billy, Eggs and everybody else at the Impetigo reunion show will always be a highlight of my life. Sometimes they say never meet your heroes but i am glad i met Mark. Impetigo was always a big influence and inspiration on me in more ways then one. Also on how to be a fan of the music and part of the underground. He will be missed and i hope he finally found his peace R.I.P."