The Cure won their first-ever Grammys at the 68th annual ceremony. However, the band was not on hand to accept the award.

The rockers were instead at their bandmate, Perry Bamonte’s, private funeral, according to People. The guitarist and keyboardist, who died on Christmas Eve, was 65.

An online tribute revealed that Bamonte died after a short illness.

Bamonte was remembered as the “cherished husband of Donna, much loved son of Pete and Joy, loving brother of Daryl, Carla and the late Karen, adored uncle and great uncle, beloved son in law, brother in law, nephew and cousin.”

“Sadly missed, remembered with love by all his family, friends and fans across the world,” the tribute read, before revealing that a private funeral service would be held on Jan. 30, just two days before the Grammys.

The Cure Reacts to Their First Grammy Wins

While the members of The Cure were mourning, the band won the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album for their 2024 LP, Songs of a Lost World. Their song, “Alone,” also won the award for Best Alternative Music Performance.

In a statement posted to Instagram, frontman Robert Smith expressed his gratitude for the recognition on behalf of himself and his bandmates. The band is made up of Smith, Simon Gallup, Roger O’Donnell, Jason Cooper, and Reeves Gabrels.

“Simon, Jason, Roger, Reeves and I would like to thank the Grammy’s for this wonderful award,” Smith wrote. “We are very honoured to receive it.”

Smith continued his statement by thanking “everyone who helped in the creation of our Songs of a Lost World album, particularly co-producer Paul Corkett; everyone in the Universal Music Group who worked so hard to get our lost world found; everyone in our mostly indefatigable Cure Crew, including all those at Primary and CAA.”

“Most importantly,” though, Smith shouted out “all The Cure fans around this world who came to our Lost World shows and enjoyed our lost world music.”

“Without you, none of this would be possible,” he concluded. “Thank you.”

While the recent ceremony marked the band’s first wins, it was not the first time they were nominated. They earned their first nod at the 1993 ceremony for their album, Wish. The Cure’s second nomination—this one for Bloodflowers—came eight years later.

A quarter century later, the band was nominated again, finally walking away with two Grammys.

Photo by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images