Liquid star Eamon Downes has died: Tributes pour in

Rave pioneer Eamon Downes has died following a five year battle with cancer, close friends confirmed on Monday. 

The talented producer, who was also known as Ame, enjoyed enormous success as one half of pioneering dance act Liquid in the early 1990s. 

Born in the east London borough of Tower Hamlets, Downes had spent his final years living in Italy with wife Stella and daughter Bea, the couple’s only child.

It’s understood that Downes had been battling a brain tumour before his passing.

On Tuesday morning, friends and family members travelled to Rome for a private service in his memory, during which the DJ’s wife read an emotional speech in Italian and English.

Mourners said their farewells while legendary dance anthem Sweet Harmony – a number 15 hit for Liquid in 1992 – ended the service. 

Confirming his death on social media, life-long friend and fellow DJ Billy Daniel Bunter wrote: ‘It’s with heartbreaking sadness that I’m letting the world know we’ve lost Eamon Downes, devoted husband to Stella, proud dad to Bea, and one of my closest friends ever. 

‘We started out in a record shop in ’89, before I was DJing. Before “Sweet Harmony.” From curry and chips in Stepney, to Labrynth, to him dropping me at Kings Cross chewing my lips off, some of the best memories of my life with Eamon.’

Signed to XL Recordings – the label responsible for launching The Prodigy – Downes and band-mate Shane Heneghan scored one of the biggest club hits of the ’90s with Sweet Harmony. 

With heavy sampling of CeCe Rogers’ 1987 single Someday – notably its euphoric piano motif and gospel melodies – the iconic track quickly became a dance-floor staple in clubs across the United Kingdom following an initial, independent pressing of just 500 copies in 1991. 

‘I still remember him playing me “Sweet Harmony” down the phone before it got cut, recalled Bunter on Tuesday. 

‘When XL signed it, he was buzzing. Sending dubplates by bike to Pete Tong and then straight to me at Labrynth, he loved that side of things.

‘Even when he was topping charts, our friendship run deep. “Liquid is Liquid” came from our shared love of Balearic and dub, and him wanting to make music that could be played at Labrynth at 530am.

‘We spoke every day. Even when he moved to Italy, 5, 10, 20 times a day. The laughs, the wind-ups, the mugs, the posters, the stupid quotes he turned into gifts. I’ll miss that so much.’ 

Bunter revealed the legendary DJ had ‘fought until the end’ after being diagnosed with cancer. 

‘He fought so hard the last five years. I’m thankful me and Sonya got to visit, to laugh, to sit with him, to just be together. I’m thankful he got our message before he passed, his family said he waited for it.

‘Every time I play a tune from ’89–’92, he’s with me. Every time I look at Bea or speak to Stella, he’s with me. Every rave, every radio show, every moment.

‘I miss you already, Eamon. I love you always.’ 

Following an early pressing of Sweet Harmony on the group’s Liquid EP, the song gained commercial traction the following year when XL released it as a single, with the track climbing to number 15 on the UK Top 40. 

The early commerical success of Liquid served to bolster XL – originally established as an independent record label in the late 1980s –  and would help them grow into one of the biggest labels of the decade. 

Further releases from XL included The Prodigy’s 1994 album Music For A Jilted Generation and its 1997 follow up, The Fat Of Land – both enormous commerical hits across the United Kingdom and mainland Europe. 

Liquid followed their initial chart success with the release of The Future Music EP – which featured the hit Liquid Is Liquid – before the group stopped producing music as a duo. 

Working alone, Downes continued to release music under the Liquid moniker across the ensuing three decades, with final album Atmospheric Rave released in 2023. 

Tributes have since flooded in for the club legend, with fellow DJ Post Human writing: Absolutely gutted to hear the news this morning of the passing of Eamon Downes, aka Liquid.

‘We met at a few shows during my time with Altern8 and hit it off immediately – out of that whole oldskool rave crowd he was the person I ended up clicking with the most. 

‘Our last show together was just a few months before Covid, then throughout lockdown and the ensuing years we stayed in touch, through his brain surgery and the following years. 

‘He kept sending me new music, we talked about doing some record releases but mostly we just took the p*ss out of ridiculous people, he was a funny f**ker with a scathing take on things always delivered sweetly.’ 

He added: ‘I really wasn’t expecting to hear this news today and it feels like a kick in the stomach. I’ll miss you mate, a proper good egg and a talented artist. rest in peace pal.’

Elsewhere legendary DJ Goldie shared a photo of Downes, with the accompanying caption: ‘Rest in power king.’ 

XL Recordings, the label responsible for giving Liquid a commercial platform, added: ‘Long live Eamon Downes of Liquid. XL has had the great pleasure of releasing Eamon’s music and working with him across different decades. 

‘With eternal classics like ‘Sweet Harmony’ and ‘Liquid is Liquid’, Eamon helped define the sound of 90s rave and beyond. 

‘Our thoughts are with his family, friends, and everyone touched by his music.’