Richard H. Kirk, the founding member of Cabaret Voltaire, has died. He was 65.

Kirk's record label, Mute, confirmed the saddening news by posting two photos of the late musician.

On its Twitter account, the record label informed the band's fans about his death before honoring his legacy through a short caption.

"Richard was a towering creative genius who led a singular & driven path throughout his life & musical career. We will miss him so much. We ask that his family are given space," it wrote.

Richard H. Kirk Cause of Death

The company did not disclose Richard H. Kirk's cause of death, but fans expressed how devastating it is to lose him so early. Some social media users allege he died following a battle with illness. Others say he died as a result of a COVID-19 infection.  The rumors are not validated yet though as of press time

Meanwhile, his colleagues and fans quickly sent heartfelt messages as they tried to cope with the recent loss.

New Order wrote on its Twitter account, "They helped us enormously after Ian passed away when we collaborated with them for the first time in a studio without Ian. Richard will be sorely missed, he left his mark in music innovation and experimentation."

Dave Haslem then described the English musician as a "creative genius indeed and a truly top fella. RIP."

Rest in Power, Richard H. Kirk

Kirk's death ended his decades-old stint as a musician. He began his career with Cabaret Voltaire in 1973. Years thereafter, they welcomed Chris Watson and Stephen Mallinder to the group in 1981 and 1994, respectively.

After going on hiatus in 1994, the group returned 20 years later, but Kirk was the only remaining member at that time.

He performed during the 2014 Berlin's Atonal festival before releasing the band's new album, "Shadow of Fear," last year.

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At that time, the musician hinted that they had already made the album and only waited for the perfect time to perform it live. He also noted that the album's title strangely fits what people are experiencing due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In one of his last interviews, Kirk said that the world crises did not contribute much on his career.

"The current situation didn't have much of an influence on what I was doing - all the vocal content was already in place before the panic set in - but maybe due to my nature of being a bit paranoid there are hints in there about stuff going a bit weird and capturing the current state of affairs," he said, as quoted by NME.

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