A SPECIAL tribute gig celebrating the life of Sam Killing will be performed by his fellow Juice bandmates at Birmingham’s Rainbow Venues next Saturday (January 23).
Guitarist Sam, 20, tragically died after he was hit by a train in Droitwich last month and now Matthew Burdon, 20, Davis Armstrong, 25, and Damon Cox, 27 will be taking to the stage in memory of their close friend. Guitarist Payney, 30, will step in to help them on the night.
Bassist Matt spoke to the Standard about the band’s sad loss.
He said: “He was very happy person, ready to have a laugh and always saw the positive side of things – that’s how I’ll always remember him.”
Sam joined the band in October 2015 after Davis met him at a show in Manchester
Matt said: “I’m a fairly quiet-natured person, but Sam was very easy to talk to.
“What really impressed me was his guitar playing. He wasn’t afraid to try new things. His style was incredible.
“The best thing is, we’ve taken the lessons he’s taught us and learnt from them.”
He said: “Sam worked really hard. He was doing night shifts at a petrol station and even if he was working all night, he’d still come straight to band practice.
“It shows his passion and how he dedicated it all to music.”
Matt said he and Davis were travelling on seperate trains when they first heard the tragic news.
“It was such a shock, but it wasn’t until I had to tell someone what happened that it really hit me and I just broke down.
“We all decided to meet and spent the night reminiscing about how he was such a nice guy.
“We were remembering him in the right way by celebrating his life with good friends.”
He added: “It’s easy to focus on, ‘oh what a tragedy’ than remember the great things he’s done.
“I’d rather people remember him as the happy and talented guitar player he was.
“My advice to anyone would be – if you lose someone close to you, it’s a tragedy for sure, but it’s good to remember the happy memories and be thankful for the time you had with them.
Go to www.facebook.com/events/901573546625084 for details of the tribute event.
