You Say Party! We Say Die! drummer dies after on-stage collapse

Tragedy has struck Vancouver’s You Say Party! We Say Die!

At a Friday night concert at the Rickshaw Theatre the band’s set was cut short a few songs in when drummer Devon Clifford collapsed behind his kit. Paramedics were called and Clifford was rushed to the hospital. He died Sunday morning.

No details on what caused his collapse have been released. You Say Party! We Say Die!’s label, Paper Bag Records, did however release this statement on Sunday morning: “It is with absolute sadness to report that our dear friend Devon Clifford passed away just hours ago in a Vancouver hospital surrounded by his family and friends. He will be deeply missed by everyone who knew him. I request that we respect the family’s privacy during this incredibly difficult time.”

You Say Party! We Say Die! was scheduled to kick off a tour of Europe later this month.

Fellow You Say Party! We Say Die! members and Rickshaw Theatre staff scramble to help drummer Devon Clifford after he collapsed at a show on in Vancouver on Apirl 16. Joshua Grafstein/theFUTURISTS.ca photo.

Update: Devon Clifford's family released a statement through the band's publicist Sunday evening. The statement reads as follows: "YSPWSD’s Devon Clifford experienced a massive brain hemorrhage resulting from congenital defects while on stage in Vancouver on Friday night and fell into a coma. A surgery was performed but sadly doctors were unable to save his life. He was 30.”

Devon Clifford was an extremely gifted drummer and determined character. He loved his family, loved his band, loved traveling, loved being on stage and loved meeting people around the world. He was smart, witty, passionate, and music meant everything to him. He was also incredibly generous with his love and respected everybody he came into contact with. This was underlined by his work with the under privileged at the Portland Hotel Society.”

The Clifford family would like to take this opportunity to remind young people to have the courage to follow their dreams like Devon did.

The family would also like to take this opportunity to thank everybody around the world for their kind words and stories about how Devon impacted their lives."

For Mike Usinger's October 2009 Georgia Straight cover feature on the band, go here.