Last night, after nearly two decades, the airy, jazzy popsters of Hull’s The Beautiful South issued a typically wry goodbye statement:

The Beautiful South have split up due to musical similarities. The band would like to thank everyone for their 19 wonderful years in music.

That’s the first time we’ve heard that one. Though they sold over 15 million records, their first single, 1989′s “Song For Whoever,” remains one of their finest, and the vid remains one of the best uses of nonsensical sign language to represent women’s names.

Hey, George Michael!

R.I.P. Beautiful South.