One year ago, the District lost Clark Sabine, who played in Statehood, The Motorcycle Wars, and Metropolitan, among other collaborations. He died after a long battle with cancer. Anyone who ever saw him perform knows he had a hell of a stage presence, and those who never had the opportunity have got to read Aaron Leitko's eulogy -- which doubles as a brief history of rock and roll in the District. I'm a fan of Statehood's and bought a copy today for my brother -- less to mark the day, really, than to introduce someone else to Sabine's talent. more ›

Word spread through the local music community yesterday that Clark Sabine, singer for the local band Statehood, had finally succumbed to his long battle with cancer. Sabine, 33, died Tuesday night at a hospice facility in Arlington. His bandmates posted this message to their website overnight:

We are deeply saddened to tell you that Clark passed away on Tuesday evening at a hospice in Arlington, VA. He was first diagnosed with melanoma in February of 2008, and after a series of surgeries and treatments, we thought he was in the clear. In the fall the cancer returned and spread to other parts of his body. Experimental treatments were in the works, but we needed chemotherapy to shrink some of the tumors before beginning this treatment. In May, we found out that the chemo was not working and that the condition was terminal. Clark was 33 years old. more ›