Goodbye Tim Very

Manchester Orchestra's drummer, Timothy Very, passed away suddenly at the age of 42 on 2/14/2026

When people ask me who my favorite band is, I sort of just laugh. I just celebrated my 47th birthday, and I’ve had a favorite band since I fell in love with New Edition when I was about six. New Edition is no longer my favorite, but for a period of time, “Mr. Telephone Man” had them atop my personal Billboard Charts. Guns ‘N Roses were there. Bon Jovi was there when I couldn’t stop listening to New Jersey. Pearl Jam, Acid Bath, Tool, Mineral, and Death Cab for Cutie have all had turns at the top of the heap, along with one of the most recent favorites, Manchester Orchestra, who suffered a crushing loss last week with the death of their longtime drummer Timothy Very.

Tim Very joined the band in 2011 in the middle of the sessions for the record, Simple Math. He became a full-time member and an integral part of the band’s career as they recorded some of their most important music. Tim’s drumming sometimes disappears into the songs, which is an incredible feat, because once you start paying close attention to his drum parts, he’ll amaze you with the creativity and intricacy of his parts.

“The Gold” is one of the band’s biggest hits, and the drums give that song an urgency and tension that it wouldn’t have otherwise. It’s amazing how it sort of disappears with how busy the backbeat is in that tune. You could imagine a million more straightforward parts to that song, but thankfully, the band and Very pushed the envelope.

Because of Tim Very, Manchester Orchestra was a sneaky great drum band. When you focus on him and his bombastic style, you get it, but the magic is in how he didn’t stick out all that often, serving the songs while driving them forward in an understated fashion.

Beyond that, he was a magnetic personality. I started following him more closely as an individual when he was recording drum loops for his very own package of samples he created with a sample and loop company out of Nashville. It was fun to see him be recognized as a drummer that people would aspire to utilize in their own home recordings via Ableton or Logic.

Subscribers to the band’s Patreon got to know Very even more via the band's podcasts.

It’s all just so sad to lose such an important member of a band that’s so important to me. Slowly but surely, Manchester Orchestra is becoming a band that I’ve seen more than any other. I took my family to see them on the Million Masks of God tour. I took my youngest to see the Mean Everything to Nothing anniversary tour when he was very young. I broke my Red Rocks cherry with Manchester Orchestra as they co-headlined with Jimmy Eat World a couple years ago. I got to see the Cope anniversary tour when I was on the road in Boston. Hell, even my love of Foxing is because Manchester Orchestra had them opening for them on three occasions when I’ve seen them.

You only have so many years in this life, and you only have so many favorite bands. Manchester Orchestra is one of them, and it really hurts this week to endure the loss of Timothy Very.

Recently, I heard someone say that in Jewish culture, the phrase “may his memory be a blessing” is used, and I really love that. It helps encapsulate a person's worldly contributions, even if they must now impact and inspire people through their legacy. And wow, what a legacy Tim Very has left in his time on this earth.

May his memory be a blessing.