Black Midi’s founding guitarist Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin has died at 26. The news lands like a crack of thunder, sudden and sharp. His cause of death has not been shared. What is clear, right now, is his impact. He helped shape one of the most daring rock bands of the last decade, then stepped back, leaving a sound that still carries his spark.
The Architect of Their Early Shockwave
When Black Midi burst out of London in 2017, Matt’s guitar was the blade in the blur. On the band’s 2019 debut, Schlagenheim, he helped build a sound that felt unstable on purpose. Songs snapped from whisper to riot. Riffs twisted and bucked. It was punk energy with jazz-level nerve. The album was up for the Mercury Prize, a rare nod for a group so raw and new.
His interplay with Geordie Greep was a thrill, two guitars arguing and agreeing in quick turns. Morgan Simpson’s drums pushed the chaos forward. Cameron Picton’s bass and vocals grounded it. Matt’s parts felt like sparks on live wire. He built tension. He found strange beauty in the noise.
Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin, Black Midi founding guitarist and key voice on Schlagenheim, has died at 26.
A Quiet Exit, A Lasting Echo
In 2020, Matt stepped away to focus on his mental health. He did not join tours or the next records. The band respected the space. The move was human, and it mattered. Black Midi continued, and they did not stall. Cavalcade arrived in 2021. Hellfire followed in 2022. Both records stretched the group into show-tune dares, jazz sprints, and razor-sharp theater.
Even as the band evolved, Matt’s touch was still in the DNA. You can hear it in the sudden left turns. In the way a melody gets cut by a hard rhythm, then returns with more force. The early chemistry set the standard. It gave the band permission to never play it safe.
His decision to step back for mental health was brave. That choice can save lives.
Fans, Peers, and a Scene in Mourning
The London scene that watched Black Midi pack the Windmill is grieving today. Fans are sharing first-show memories, bootleg gig tales, and the shock of seeing the group for the first time. Many remember how Matt stood a little off to the side, focused, then ripped open a riff that changed the whole room. Musicians who came up alongside the band are saluting a guitarist who chased risk and made it sound alive.
This is not just the loss of a player. It is the loss of a compass for a new wave of experimental rock. For many, Matt proved that chaos could be tuned like an instrument, that fearlessness could be a craft, not a stunt.
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How He Changed the Sound of Now
Matt’s guitar voice was sharp, agile, and curious. He favored jagged patterns, sudden stops, and sly hooks that surfaced at the last second. He could turn dissonance into a door, and melody into a trap that snapped shut in a grin. In a time when rock often felt safe, his work burned away the edges.
If you want to feel his hand on the band’s rise, begin here:
- The snapping build and release across Schlagenheim
- Early live cuts where guitars tangle, then click into focus
- Moments of quiet that explode without warning
Start with Schlagenheim front to back. Then watch early live sessions. You will hear the blueprint.
What Comes Next
Black Midi will carry on with the bond they have earned. They have shown they can grow, shift, and surprise. Grief will run beside that work for a while. Fans will gather, sing loud, and let the noise lift him. Tributes will come from stages that learned from him. The community he helped ignite will keep his fire moving forward.
This is a painful goodbye to a young artist who pushed sound into strange light. Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin did not just play guitar. He showed what it can do when you refuse to color inside the lines. His work set Black Midi on a fearless path. His courage offstage reminds us to take care of each other. The music will keep asking big questions. The silence he leaves behind will do the same.
