"He was 26 years old, and for 10 incredible years he was our best friend and artistic soulmate."
The guitarist of lauded Australian metalcore band Polaris, Ryan Siew, has died aged 26.
Shocked and heartbroken, the Sydney band confirmed his death via social media this week. Siew’s bandmates – vocalist Jamie Hails, bassist/clean vocalist Jake Steinhauser, drummer Daniel Furnari and fellow guitarist Rick Schneider – revealed in a heartbreaking Instagram post that he had died on Monday, June 19.
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“It is with shattered hearts and the deepest sorrow that we tell you our dear brother and bandmate Ryan Siew passed away on the morning of Monday June 19. He was 26 years old, and for 10 incredible years, he was our best friend and artistic soulmate,” the band’s post read.
“Those years will never be enough. He was kindhearted and clever, he was funny and brave and creative, and he was talented beyond all measure. He loved art, and beauty in all its forms. He loved great food in great company. He loved Harry Potter and psych-thrillers and crime documentaries. He loved music, more diversely than you could ever imagine, and spoke its language in ways that only the rarest among us do. And most of all, he loved & adored his family & friends. He was also much admired and beloved by so many.
“Ryan, we will love and miss you for the rest of our days, and we will never fill the hole that you leave in all of our lives.”
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Polaris’ summer tour in Europe has been cancelled upon the tragic news. The band were five dates into the tour, having performed in Belgium the day prior to Siew’s death.
Since forming in 2012, Polaris have firmly established their place as a fixture in the Australian heavy landscape via their first two albums, 2020’s ARIA Award-nominated The Death Of Me and 2017’s The Mortal Coil, which debuted in the Australian Top 10.
The band’s upcoming third studio album, Fatalism, is set to be released on September 1, with the band originally scheduled to tour Australia from September 7-16.
We’re thinking of the whole Polaris family today. Vale Ryan.
