Mark Hollis, frontman of British group Talk Talk, is dead at the age of 64.
Formed in 1981, the band had global success with “It’s My Life” and “Life’s What You Make It” in the ‘80s. Talk Talk released five studio albums before breaking up in 1991.
Hollis recorded one solo album and then stepped away from the music business in 1998.
“Musically he was a genius and it was a honour and a privilege to have been in a band with him,” Talk Talk bassist Paul Webb shared on Instagram. “I have not seen Mark for many years, but like many musicians of our generation I have been profoundly influenced by his trailblazing musical ideas.”
Many are paying tribute to Hollis on social media.
A tweet from Canada’s Broken Social Scene reads: “Mark Hollis captured so many of us with his haunting approach to song and the compelling ways he presented simplistic mountains of sound. He was an educator of emotion and a voice for the blood throat shadows of tomorrow. This is a loss amongst many.”
Montreal-based Stars tweeted: “mark hollis was a genius. nobody made music that sounded like his. please spend time listening to his work. this one hurts. badly.”
Simon LeBon, whose band Duran Duran toured with Talk Talk in 1982, said in a statement that Hollis “was the main songwriter of some truly great songs … His talent will be remembered & his music will live on.”
Hollis lived in London with his wife and two children.