W.A.S.P. frontman Blackie Lawless is in mourning following the sudden death of his brother.

The heavy metal band was gearing up for a show in Tilburg, Netherlands on Friday (02Nov12) when Lawless received a phone call from his sister notifying him their sibling Clifford had passed away.

Lawless went ahead with the concert, but the rocker broke down in tears towards the end of the gig when they started playing tracks from the band's fifth studio album Crimson Idol - because Clifford was the inspiration behind many of the songs.

In a post on his blog WASPnation, Lawless writes, "That show was the one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. When we were at the end of the Crimson Idol part of the show... I could not control my emotions any more. I walked to the side of the stage and cried.

"Me being the younger brother, it's natural to see the older brother as your hero. As a writer I've tried to share myself with you all, even the intimate details of my life, to give you a better understanding of who I am so you can better see the man behind the lyrics. When we look at death we measure it in one or more stages of life. The death of a parent is the death of our past. The death of a spouse or mate is the death of the present. The death of a child is the death of the future, in that their future will now never happen. The death of my brother represents both the past and the present for me. Part of my childhood is now gone as well as the present...

"As a kid I admired him more than he would ever know... If there is someone in your life you need to tell that you love them, don't wait."