UPCOMING UK INDIE BAND VIOLA BEACH & MANAGER DIE IN TRAGIC CAR CRASH

News like this is never easy to swallow, a young talented band with bags of potential taken in a tragic accident so early in their journey to success. Viola Beach a UK based indie band from Warrington were embarking on their first international gig at Swedish music festival ‘Where is the Music?’ last weekend when the incident happened. Following the show the band were due to make a late night journey too Arlanda Airport for their flight back to the UK in order to arrive back in time for their scheduled gig at Guildford, Boileroom on Saturday. The incident happened at a bridge near capital city Stockholm on a junction between the E4 and E20 motorways. The bridge's operations allow boats to pass underneath as the middle section is raised. Red lights and barriers are used to warn oncoming drivers of the boats passing much like Tower Bridge in London but with small differences. Whereas Tower Bridge is lifted and raised from the middle to create a ramp the bridge in Sweden is disconnected and raised from the middle creating an instant descent. A witness statement, released by the police reveals that the rented Nissan Qashqai, they were driving, did not apply it’s brake lights leading up to the crash suggesting they were completely unaware of the impending drop in front of them and simply missed the warning signals. They passed many stationary cars at full speed and plummeted 80ft off the bridge and into the river with police divers later recovering the bodies. We all understand the uncertainty of driving in a foreign country let alone in the 2AM darnkenss, this partnered with the stress and tire that comes with touring are surely contributing factors to the horrific incident. Police spokesmen, Martin Bergholm revealed “It is not impossible that the driver was under the influence of something when you see the sequence of events at the bridge. We will of course take blood samples and check if the driver was under the influence of something, but we don’t know anything about that yet”.

Viola Beach were set to go on tour supporting like-minded up and coming Indie band Blossoms with their first show at the Boileroom in Guildford and several other shows including one at The Bullingdon on the Cowley Road, Oxford on Saturday. The decision was made by event staff at the Boileroom and headliners Blossoms to cancel the show with the following statement made via Instagram “Last night, upon receiving the news the opening band Viola Beach had been involved in an accident, the decision was made by the headline artists Blossoms to cancel the performance. We are saddened and devastated as details have come to light of this tragic accident. Our thoughts are with friends and family.” Since the tragic incident, in the early hours of Saturday morning, tributes have been flooding in on Twitter from many bands and others connected to the music industry, Ross Jarman, from the Cribs: “heart goes out to the Viola Beach guys and their families”. The Coral’s James Skelly posted: “So sorry to hear about viola beach and Craig tarry’s accident so sad, their families must be devastated.” It truly is a shame that we will never see the heights that the band could have reached in coming years but their friends and families can take comfort in the knowledge that they passed doing what they loved best, playing music.

The band were a four piece from Warrington, Chesire, comprised of Kris Leonard (Guitar, Vocals), River Reeves (Guitar), Tomas Lowe (Bass) and Jack Dakin (Drums),formed in May 2015 and releasing their first single ‘Swings & Waterslides’ the same year. They featured many times on BBC introducing as an upcoming talent and even graced the legendary stages of Reading and Leeds festival in 2015. The Lounge in Warrington, a live music bar, is one very close to the hearts of the band with friends saying this is where the band were ‘made’. Three members of the band worked at the bar and it is said this is where they would practice, write material and play friendly local gigs. Many friends of the band gathered at the bar on Sunday to mourn the loss of the band and celebrate their music and lives. The families of Viola Beach and their manager released some touching tributes, Lead Guitarist River Reeves’ family were distraught by “the circumstances which have seen him lose his life alongside the bandmates and manager he adored and loved being with. River had such talent and such humility, such charm and such innocence it seems unfair that he can be taken so cruelly from us like this. We are so proud of him, not only for what he achieved in his short beautiful life, but also what he was clearly destined to achieve. He will live forever in our hearts and we hope the band’s wonderful music lives on.”

A campaign was launched to get their single ‘Swings & Waterslides’ to number one in the UK chart, something we feel all music lovers and fans should support. It would be a fitting tribute to the band if this could be achieved and hopefully instate the importance of small upcoming talent and bands in the UK. We are a country filled with creative young minds that should be celebrated accordingly. If you take anything from this tragic event let it be not too take life for granted and too invest more time into the smaller upcoming musicians out there, our country full of talented young musicians that need your support. We would finally just like to express our sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Viola Beach and their manager our thoughts are with all those affected by this awful tragedy. We should now celebrate Viola Beach by playing their music as loud as we can, whether you knew of them or not, whether you’re a fan of Indie Rock, Metal, Dance or Jazz none of that matters music is music and this tragic event effects all that share an interest in anyway way, shape or form, so show your support.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btSa91diKio