It’s with great sadness that we report the death of School of Seven Bells guitarist Benjamin Curtis.

Curtis was was diagnosed with T-cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma earlier this year, passing away of the disease at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York on Sunday (29 December).

A statement from the band reads as follows:

“Dear friends,

Last night, Dec. 29th 2013, we lost our friend and brother Benjamin Curtis to his fight against cancer.

While we had hoped to delay this announcement until a more suitable time when his friends and family could feel better prepared and settled to greet any correspondences from folks attempting to reach out, unfortunately the news has prematurely leaked. So we felt it would be appropriate to at least offer an official acknowledgement from us, in light of all the fans who loved and supported Benjamin and his music.

We kindly ask that his immediate family, friends & bandmates’ privacy be respected during this time, and that instead, any inquires, well wishes, or notes-of-consolation be sent through School of Seven Bells’ management, where it can be shared with them at the suitable time. They can be sent to a special e-mail address here: sviib@wizk”

The musician formed School of Seven Bells with Alejandra Deheza in 2007. They released three albums, with 2012′s Ghostory the most recent.

[via Pitchfork]