Following the tragic passing of former Spiritbox bassist Bill Crook last week, the Canadian-bred metal group and a number of friends and former bandmates have paid tribute to the fallen musician online.
As previously reported, Crook’s death was confirmed last Wednesday (August 24th) by Kai Turmann, a former guitarist for Vancouver, B.C.-based mathcore group A Textbook Tragedy, in which Crook had played bass.
Since then, there’s been an outpouring of support and tributes online, with Spiritbox vocalist Courtney LaPlante and guitarist Mike Stringer both taking to Instagram over the weekend to honor Crook, who had performed in the group from 2018 to 2022.
“I’ll miss you. Thank you for being my friend, and my brother,” Stringer wrote in a post that included onstage shots and candid photos of him and Crook, adding: “I love you Bill.”
LaPlanted added in a separate post: “I loved you. I love you. I always will.”
Crook was also celebrated in posts from Comeback Kid guitarist Chase Brenneman, who had played with Crook in melodic punk group Living with Lions. That Vancouver band likewise took to Instagram with a heartfelt message speaking to Crook’s ability to connect with people through music and friendship.
“He was a rare kind of person,” the post reads. “The kind of person that transcended boundaries, barriers and whatever seemingly stood in the way of connecting with others. People loved him almost immediately and he would return that love unconditionally.”
Shortly before his passing, Crook was recording new music in Nashville, Tennessee, with Underoath drummer-vocalist Aaron Gillespie. It’s unclear at present what will become of those sessions, but over the weekend Gillespie spoke of his friend in a comment beneath Crook’s last Instagram post, which highlighted their work together.
“I’ve thought about typing here for days and been too scared, or too confused,” Gillespie wrote. “I love you bill and I’m so forever grateful that I was able to make music with you and call you friend. There’s truly nobody like you. My son has a Pokémon poster in his room you gave him years ago and every time I walk by it I’ll know and remember how wonderful you are, and generous and kind. I’m eternally honored to have made what we made. I love you bubba.”
You’ll find a few of the many tributes to Crook down below.