Knife Party fans received some bad news when one-half of the trend-setting duo Rob Swire announced on Twitter yesterday that he has suddenly gone completely deaf in his left year. He posted the news saying he was headed to the doctor to try to get the situation fixed but we have not received another update from Swire since yesterday about his hearing.
I have randomly become completely deaf in the left ear. Super lame. Gonna go see a doctor :/
— Rob Swire (@rob_swire) July 5, 2015
We hope that this is only a temporary problem since as a musician; his career would be in serious jeopardy if he were unable to hear out of both ears. Hearing problems have been an issue that has plagued musicians, notably those that perform live shows. Last year Zedd had a scare where he lost the ability to hear in one ear temporarily. It sorted itself out after a few trips to the doctor, but the scare left an indelible impact on the man. Recently Chicago house DJ, Lil Louis suffered from serious hearing damage after being subject to deafening noise from a CO2 cannon during soundcheck before a gig in Manchester.
The list of musicians who have suffered from hearing loss and/or tinnitus is long with artists like Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, Neil Young and Brian Wilson among those who have all suffered from the problem. However, the most noted musician with hearing loss is probably Beethoven who suffered from complete deafness and still managed to write some of the best classical pieces ever.
Swire has been known for ability to spot trends with his ears and either eschew them or comically imitate them. Tracks like "EDM Trend Machine" capture that satirical tone. Let's hope this is only a temporary issue and it is worth reminding all musicians and fans to protect your ears when seeing live music. Don't be the deaf grandparent.
