Viagra Boys’ Benjamin Vallé Has Died at 47

Benjamin Vallé, who co-founded and played guitar in the Stockholm post-punk band Viagra Boys, has died. His bandmates confirmed the news on Wednesday afternoon (October 27). He was 47. His cause of death has not been revealed.

When reached by Pitchfork, a representative for the band shared the following statement from Viagra Boys:

Benjamin or “Benis” as we knew him, spread laughter and happiness wherever he went and we will cherish the memories we have of touring the world together.

Benjamin, we love you with all of our hearts and Viagra Boys would have been nothing without you. This planet just lost one the good ones.

Vallé co-founded Viagra Boys with Sebastian Murphy, Martin Ehrencron, Oskar Carls, Henrik Höckert, and Tor Sjödén, releasing Street Worms with the group in 2018. He also joined the band on last year’s surprise Common Sense EP and 2021’s Welfare Jazz. He was not, however, an active member of the group at the time of his death, and the band has not shared the circumstances of his departure. Prior to Viagra Boys, Vallé was a member of post-rock outfit Pig Eyes and the metal band Nine.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Benjamin Vallé did not appear on Viagra Boys’ 2021 album Welfare Jazz. Vallé played co-wrote and played guitar on several Welfare Jazz tracks.