Sound Tribe Sector 9, or STS9 for short, announced the somewhat sudden departure of bassist David Murphy, who had been with the Livetronica acts since co-founding the band in 1988. The announcement came via a message posted to the STS9’s website.
In life, the only constant is change. We try to embrace this in our music and in our lives and its in this spirit that we announce STS9 and bassist David Murphy are parting ways. We are postponing our upcoming winter tour dates through February. We’ll miss David and wish him the best on his journey ahead.
To our fans, we can’t thank you enough for your understanding and continuous support. We are thrilled for the future of STS9 and can’t wait to share it with you.
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!
-Hunter, Jeffree, Phipps & Zach
The break may signal the end for one of the trailblazing live electronic bands. A precursor to the major EDM movement and acts like Lotus, Big Gigantic and Disco Biscuits, STS9 is still widely regarded the pinnacle of the “livetronica” sub-genre that blends elements of jam bands with live electronic production. The band postponed a slew of Winter tour dates through February and it will be interesting to see where things go from here. For his part, Murphy also got his two cents in via his own website on over the weekend after performing a DJ set in Denver on Saturday.
It is with a very sad and heavy heart that I announce I am parting ways with STS9. While we have had an amazing experience together, our paths are taking us in different directions creatively and personally. My deepest apologies go out to all of our fans who have supported us through thick and thin. I will never be able to fully express my gratitude for everything y’all have given me. I wish STS9 the best and hope to see y’all down the road…I LOVE Y’all