mikey-hodges

Mikey Hodges aka Pop Zeus killed in motorcyle accident (Rest in Peace Michael)

Mikey Hodges

A motorcyclist was killed Thursday in a crash with another vehicle in downtown Los Angeles.

The crash occurred about 2:50 p.m. at the intersection of Cesar Chavez Avenue and Broadway, said Sgt. S. Bailey of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Central Traffic Division.

The victim, a 29-year-old Los Angeles man, was riding on Broadway when a 78-year-old Los Angeles woman attempting to turn her vehicle left onto Cesar Chavez Avenue drove into the path of the motorcycle, Bailey said.

The man was thrown onto the street and died after being taken to a hospital, he said.

The woman stayed at the scene and cooperated investigators, Bailey said.

She was not immediately cited or arrested, but the case is under active investigation and the findings will be referred to prosecutors, he said.
– [My News LA]

We’re very sad to learn that the victim referenced in that news story is Michael Hodges who performed and recorded power pop under the name Pop Zeus. While he’d moved to LA, he was a familiar face in the NYC/Brooklyn indie rock scene and in addition to Pop Zeus (who had records out on Burger), he also drummed on and off for The Memories and played in Boom! Burger Records posted a tribute on their Facebook today:

So unbelievably sad to say we lost the talented and amazing Mikey Hodges aka Pop Zeus yesterday. He really and truly was one of the nicest, raddest and most welcoming dudes we’ve ever had the pleasure to call a friend. We released Mikey’s debut cassette, Pop Zeus, a few years back after I discovered his demos while riding on a train for the holidays. I couldn’t get the songs out of my head so I made a note in my book to follow up on it when I got home. So very glad I did because it gave us a reason to let this giant puppy dog of a man into our lives. He was one of a kind.

You may also know Hodges from working behind the bar at both Knitting Factory and The Commodore, and for a while at record labels Partisan Records and Secretly Canadian. Rest in peace, Mikey, you’ll be missed.

There are two fundraiser campaigns for his family, who live in Indiana, to help pay for expenses.

Pop Zeus released the Tell Me So EP this year on Burger. You can stream that, and check out a Spotify playlist of his favorite 2014 songs (his final tweet), below…