Kim Shattuck, singer-guitarist for the Muffs, dies at age 56

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The Muffs at the Echoplex (Photo by Carl Pocket)
The Muffs at the Echoplex in January, 2016 (Photo by Carl Pocket)

■ Update: See a remembrance of Kim Shattuck

Kim Shattuck, singer-guitarist for the long-running L.A. punk band the Muffs, has died at age 56. She had been battling Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease) for two years.

Shattuck got her start in the ’80s garage-rock rock band the Pandoras (who played a reunion show in 2015). The Muffs released their first music in the early ’80s — fast-moving and catchy pop-punk songs characterized by Shattuck’s girlish but sneering vocals. Shattuck went on to perform briefly in the Pixies and play in the side projects the Beards and the Coolies. The latter released their first EP this summer, donating the proceeds to the ALS Foundation.

Rolling Stone quoted Kevin Suth, Shattuck’s husband, as saying: “This morning, the love of my life passed peacefully in her sleep after a two-year struggle with ALS. I am the man I am today because of her. She will live with all of us through her music, our shared memories and in her fierce, creative spirit.”

The Muffs have their first album in five years, “No Holiday,” scheduled for release Oct. 18.