The GOD MACHINE’s bassist, Jimmy Fernandez, has died. He was 28.
Fernandez was admitted to the Royal Free Hospital in
Hampstead, London, on May 20 after complaining of a
severe migraine. He quickly slipped into a coma, and
died on May 23.
An autopsy revealed the cause of death to be a cancerous
brain tumour. The surviving members of The God Machine,
Robin Proper-Sheppard and Ronald Austin, last week expressed
their reaction to the tragedy in the following poignant
statement: "To try and sum up one person’s life, especially
someone so beautiful , in a few lines seems impossible to
us. We are also sure that, even in time, we will never
quite be able to put into words exactly how special he
was or how much he really meant to us. He always seemed to
know what you where thinking and feeling, just as now we
are sure he is standing over us saying "Guys, don’t make
life so hard on yourselves." That was the kind of person
Jimmy was with everyone.
"Jimmy absolutely loved life, and had such a positive
attitude that made everyone around him so happy to be a
part of his life. He believed that no matter what tragedy
should befall one, or what pain lies beneath the surface,
you are never alone. This love of everyone and everything
is how we think that Jimmy would have wanted to have been
remembered. If there is anything we think he would have
wanted us to do in his memory, it would be to slow down and
just enjoy the beauty around us, to stare into the clouds and
recognise all the familiar faces, to sing along with the
birds as you walk in the rain with no umbrella, and most
importantly just to be happy to be alive."
A spokesperson for the band’s label Fiction Records,
added: "Fiction Records would like to join all of Jimmy’s
friends and colleagues in giving their heartfelt sympathies
to his family. We have lost a special person; one who was
so easy to love."
Fernandez was born in San Diego, California, on September
30, 1965. He, Proper-Sheppard and Austin were childhood
friends. They formed the God Machine in the late Eighties,
and moved to London in 1990. They signed to Fiction in
December 1991, released three EP’s, before their debut
album, "Scenes From The Second Storey", came out in January
1993. The band had just completed their second album, which
will be released later this year.