Had he chosen not to take his own life in spring 1994, Kurt Cobain would have turned 45 years old today.
Instead, all we’re left with is the music he made in his short career. Yes, Nirvana probably would have ended soon had he not died, as insurmountable tensions were mounting and Cobain couldn’t really handle the pressure anymore, but his suicide ripped a hole in the heart of rock ‘n’ roll and the early 1990s scene he and his band helped cultivate.
Cobain remains a mythic figure, another tragic entry into the 27 Club of musicians who died well before their time. He was deeply conflicted, at times content with fame and at other times unhealthily anxious about the whole thing.
In his absence, we are left with his music, which is iconic and reflective of a long-departed era of alternative music.
R.I.P. Kurt, wherever you are, the rock world misses you.
On a related note, if you haven’t yet, check out our new interview with Paul Brannigan, author of This Is A Call: The Life and Times of Dave Grohl, a great new biography of Grohl, who of course was in Nirvana before forming the Foo Fighters.
