Stewart Lupton, frontman of cult New York indie rock band Jonathan Fire*Eater, has died aged 43.
No official cause of death has been given, but his cousin, Sarah Lupton, confirmed the news in an Instagram post. She described him as “an inspiration through the ages”, adding: “Your overwhelming, gut-wrenching genius even you don’t understand.”
The band formed in the early 90s in Washington DC, initially as the Ignobles, before a move to New York where their lineup and name changed, with Lupton taking on vocals. They released their self-titled debut in 1995, and moved to a major label for Wolf Songs for Lambs (1997), though internal friction led to them breaking up a year later. Three members of the band would go on to form the Walkmen.
While Jonathan Fire*Eater was short-lived, their sound – a ragged kind of psychedelic garage rock – was a key influence for the wave of hip early-00s New York bands that included Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Interpol. Lupton later formed the band Child Ballads, and studied poetry at George Washington University.
He had struggles with heroin use, and entered rehab in his early 20s, something he claimed not to be proud of. “I would cringe in my heart to think I somehow suggested that kind of physical and spiritual decadence is glamorous,” he once said.
