With all of the hype surrounding the first day of Coachella, it was easy to miss some sad news from You Say Party! last Friday. A year after drummer Devon Clifford unexpectedly passed away, its surviving members are going on indefinite hiatus.

“We’re gonna stop for a while, and we’re gonna work on who we are as people,” bassist Stephen O’Shea wrote in a statement. “We know that everyone understands exactly why and where we’re coming from.”

Clifford passed away one year ago today after collapsing onstage and succumbed to a brain hemorrhage. The Vancouver-based dance-rock band, then called You Say Party! We Say Die!, took a break to morn and regroup before re-emerging in late June 2010 with a shortened name and two new members (keyboardist Krista Loewen left the band after Clifford’s death).

In January, You Say Party! was forced to cancel its co-headline tour with Young Galaxy when singer Becky Ninkovic came down with bronchitis. She was also suffered from poor health caused by previous tours (read my 2010 interview with her HERE).

Stephen O’Shea’s complete statement:

Becky, Derek and I are announcing the immediate cease to activity as YSP.

Call it a hiatus.

Call it a break.

Call it whatever you want.

It’s been a hard year for us. Not a bad year. We’ve experience wonderful support from people.

But you gotta listen to your body and your mind when it begins to revolt against what you think it is you have to do.

So we’re gonna stop for a while, and we’re gonna work on who we are as people. We know that everyone understands exactly why and where we’re coming from.

Thanks for the support over the years.

Special thanks to Robert and Al for their commitment over the last year and to the team members we worked with over the last 7 years.

Please enjoy this music video we made in Abbotsford last summer [see below].

Also, please support this Foundation set up in Devon’s name:

http://devonrbclifford.com/

Stephen O’Shea, You Say Party

• Tag: Canada, Coachella, You Say Party!