Polaris have confirmed the death of guitarist Ryan Siew at the age of 26.
The Sydney metalcore band revealed the news in a social media statement. “It is with shattered hearts & 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 message began.
“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.”
Polaris concluded the statement by asking fans to respect Siew’s family at this time. “We know that you will be grieving with us and that we, and our community, will hold each other through this,” they wrote.
Siew joined Polaris in 2013 and played guitar on their two acclaimed albums, 2017’s The Mortal Coil and 2020’s The Death of Me.
Just last week, Polaris announced the cancellation of the remaining dates of their current European tour, citing “a serious personal crisis in our family” as the reason. “This is not something we do lightly and we are truly sorry for any inconvenience or disappointment caused,” they said at the time.
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The band are also due to embark on a national tour in September in support of their upcoming album, Fatalism, but it’s currently unclear how this will be affected by Siew’s passing.
— P O L A R I S (@PolarisAus) June 27, 2023
