Death Set Drummer Beau Velasco Dies

The Death Set drummer Beau Velasco passed away Sunday in Brooklyn, N.Y. Although details are still scarce, the band's label and management confirmed the news originally made public by frontman Johnny Siera late Sunday via Twitter and Facebook.

"R.I.P. my dear brother, friend and bandmate Beau Velasco," Siera wrote this morning. "We are all so devastated that I will keep this short. We love you and you will be missed. You affected us all so much in the most positive ways. Our lives would not be as is if not for you. We love you. For all those who wish to pay their respects we will let the details known soon."

"At the moment, there are not many details available about the circumstances of his passing," Jonathan Shedletzky, the band's manager, told Spinner of Velasco's untimely death. "His friends and bandmates are currently gathered together in Brooklyn remembering Beau. As soon as there is more information, including on services to be held, we will definitely make them known."

Praised for their intense live shows, the Death Set formed on Australia's Gold Coast in 2005 when Siera befriended Velasco at a gig by his the latter's band, Black Panda. After relocating to the US by early 2006, the band's genre-bending punk style incorporated elements of electronica and hip-hop, with Siera and Velasco sharing vocal, guitar and songwriting responsibilities.

Named the best live band of 2007 by the Baltimore City Paper, the Death Set put out a string of EPs and singles before their acclaimed debut full-length, 'Worldwide,' was released in July 2008.