Eric Gerald Farr was born on January 19, 1968, in Santa Monica, California, to Eric and Sylvia (Phillips) Farr. His father, a business consultant and entrepreneur, changed the Swedish family name from Froberg to Farr years before his son was born; Mr. Froberg used the ancestral surname professionally, although he sometimes signed his artwork “Rick Farr” or “Rick Fork.”
His parents divorced shortly after his birth, and he had no relation to his mother, who was born in 1992. His father married Lynne Walker, sales training manager at Hooked on Phonics, in 1973. The family lived in Glendale and Playa del Rey before moving to Carlsbad when Mr. Froberg was eight years old. He lived primarily in the North County area of San Diego until he moved to Brooklyn.
He married Amelia Halverson in 2003. They divorced in 2015. In addition to Mrs. Neubacher, he is survived by his father, stepmother, and three younger siblings, Christopher, Justin, and Gregory.
In 1999 Mr. Reese formed a new band, Hot Snakes. Unhappy with his singing, he sends a cassette tape to Mr. Froberg, who agrees to join even though they live on different coasts. In contrast to the Drive Like Jehu distortion, the Hot Snakes favored a clean guitar sound and short, efficient beats that, as Mr. Reis puts it, “allow Rick’s voice and attack from the pickaxe to carry the power.”
Mr. Froberg also sang and played guitar from 2006 to 2015 in the Brooklyn band Obits, who have released three albums on Sub Pop. Commenting on ageism in music, Sohrab Habibiyoun, the other guitarist for Obits, said the name was Mr. Froberg’s idea.
Painters, photographers, and filmmakers can age,” Mr. Habibion said, “and jazz musicians and classical players are allowed to keep their teeth for a long time. But rock and roll is stuck in this youthful culture, so we wanted to put a piece of it in and say middle-aged people can A rock composition that is relevant and energetic and deserves to be part of the cultural conversation.”