CINECYDE DRUMMER DIANE SCHROEDER DIES

REMEMBERING DIANE SCHROEDER: As the beloved veteran quartet was gearing up to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary, tragedy struck suddenly on 04 February 2026 with the passing of CINECYDE drummer Diane Schroeder. Blitz Magazine - The Rock And Roll Magazine For Thinking People Editor / Publisher Michael McDowell celebrates Schroeder's legacy, followed by a December 2025 interview with band co-founder and front man, Gary Reichel.  (Click on above image to enlarge).

CINECYDE DRUMMER

DIANE SCHROEDER DIES

By Michael McDowell

Triumph suddenly turned to tragedy on Wednesday the fourth of February for the veteran Michigan band Cinecyde.

"It is with an indescribable sadness that we let everyone know of the sudden passing of our drummer, Diane Schroeder", said band co-founder, front man and principal visionary, Gary Reichel.

"She was our band mom, our little sister, our rebellious pixie and our voice of reason all rolled into one".

The beloved quartet, which also includes co-founder and guitarist Jim Olenski and bassist (and Flirt co-founder) Skid Marx, was gearing up to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary in 2026. Their 1977 Gutless Radio single for their own Tremor label was hailed by Blitz Magazine - The Rock And Roll Magazine For Thinking People as one of the definitive anthems of the so-called punk/new wave movement of the mid to late 1970s.

The band had spent the closing weeks of 2025 in the studio in preparation for the celebration.

"We have a nice group of songs recorded and mostly completed", Reichel told Blitz Magazine in December 2025.

For now, that celebration will have to wait, as Cinecyde comes to terms with this tragedy.

"We haven't wrapped our heads around the news", the band said in a collective statement.

"Gary, Jim, Skid and Diane's husband Matt also ask for a bit of room to process this loss. We will let you know more when we figure it out."

Memorial services are pending.

(Blitz Magazine - The Rock And Roll Magazine For Thinking People's December 2025 interview with Cinecyde's Gary Reichel follows below).

I'M GONNA LOOK:

CINECYDE PREPS

FOR A MILESTONE

By Michael McDowell

Where does an ambitious band go when it has created one of the definitie anthems of a musical movement?

In the case of the Michigan-based Cinecyde, that anthem was the 1977 Tremor label single, Gutless Radio. A hard hitting look at the state of the mainstream media of the day, Gutless Radio became one of the premier rallying cries of the so-called punk/new wave movement that rescued rock and roll from a protracted aesthetic slump. 

In 2026, Cinecyde will celebrate the half century mark as a band. Since that initial triumph, the band has sustained its momentum magnificently with such duly inspired singles as Tough Girls and Burn The Crack House Down, as well as such acclaimed albums as I Left My Heart In Detroit City and 2021's magnificent Vegetable Or Thing.

In anticipation of their forthcoming milestone, Cinecyde closed out 2025 with the release of a new Tremor label single, Everyday / I'm Gonna Look. True to form, the band challenged itself to surpass its own high standards and has succeeded magnficently in that respect.

"Everyday is about my regrets about not doing enough for friends in my life", said band co-founder, front man and principal visionary, Gary Reichel.

"People who got off track, and then things got much worse. I wish I could have stepped in more".

Sadly, Reichel drew from first hand observation in this case.

"I think of our late bass player, Chris Girard", he said.

"A slo-mo train wreck".

Girard's passing in July 2019 marked the band's first change in personnel. Reichel recalled those difficult moments in a September 2021 interview in Blitz Magazine.

"Chris Girard was appreciated, loved and a great player", he said at the time.

"His health took a huge turn downward and we lost him".

True to his altruistic nature, Reichel drew inspiration from that tragic turn of events and paid it forward accordingly.

"I'm currently helping a homeless friend", he said.

"He's now in subsidized housing. But if I could have guided more several years ago, he wouldn't be in this mess. 

"I know that ultimately it's his own responsibility. But my wife and I have watched this slow motion train wreck for years".

Not surprisingly, continuing to create hard hitting and thought provoking original music has proven to be therapeutic, as evidenced by their current single. Cinecyde's current line up (which includes Reichel and founding guitarist Jim Olenski, along with bassist and Flirt co-founder Skid Marx and drummer Diane Schroeder) has done much to sustain the band's front runner status in the present decade. 

"We have a nice group of songs recorded and mostly completed", said Reichel.

"I'm Gonna Look. I appreciate it as a good rockin' song with garage influences. I also wanted to be a bit politically incorrect, because that's just the way I am!

"The recording engineer said it reminded him of the Cramps. Jim's lead at the end has echoes of (the Stooges' late guitarist) Ron Asheton."

However, in recent weeks, health concerns once again threatened to sideline (if not derail) the band's momentum.

"Things sure can be difficult", said Reichel.

"Skid has some issues he is dealing with. We have a show scheduled for January at Bowlero with the Flipsters. Skid is confident he will be back in action".

That Royal Oak, Michigan venue has hosted a wealth of front running artists throughout the current decade, from the supergroup the Rearrangements to Dream Syndicate co-founder and front man, Steve Wynn. Cinecyde's repeat performances there have long been a top draw, inspiring the band to challenge itself to even greater heights in spite of the aforementioned day to day concerns.

"(Our) next release will probably be Nutzology!", Reichel noted, with tongue in cheek.

But if a near half century of first rate creative vision is any indication, Cinecyde's legacy is certain to be a continuation of an observation the band made in 2007: Today The World Will Rock!"