Mike ‘Beard Guy’ Taylor, founding member and multi-instrumentalist of Walk Off the Earth, has died.
The Canadian indie-pop band confirmed Taylor’s passing in a statement on social media, posted on Sunday night (30th December): “It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved brother and band member, Mike ‘Beard Guy’ Taylor.
“Mike had a love for life that was unmatched and a willingness to give that went beyond ordinary means. He passed peacefully from natural causes last night in his sleep. Our deepest sympathies are with his two children, whom he adored more than anything else in the world. We ask for privacy for his family in this trying time.”
— Walk off the Earth (@WalkOffTheEarth) December 31, 2018
Taylor played vast array of instruments in Walk Off the Earth, including accordion, trumpet, xylophone, piano, organ, vocals, keyboards, melodica, didgeridoo, kazoo, euphonium, and glockenspiel.
It appears that Taylor’s death has been sudden and unexpected.
On Christmas Eve, just days before the statement of his death was issues, he took to social media to post a solo piano rendition of ‘O Holy Night’.
Walk Off the Earth were scheduled to participate in a CBC television special at Niagara Falls for CBC on New Year’s Eve.
A cover of Goyte’s ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’ shot the indie pop five-piece to notoriety.
The video, which features all five members of the band playing one guitar together while singing, went viral and lead to the group’s subsequent signing with Columbia Records.
Since then, they have released two full-length albums: 2013’s R.E.V.O. and 2015’s Sing It All Away.
Photo via Shutterstock/REX.
