Ten Years Gone

I'm never gonna leave you
I never gonna leave
Holdin' on, ten years gone
Ten years gone, holdin' on
Ten years gone
- Led Zeppelin


As you may or may not know, this week marks the 10 year anniversary of Kurt Cobain's death. He died on April 5th (tomorrow) and was found on the 8th. The entertainment media is going into a frenzy about the 10-year anniversary, with countless articles on people who all think they are experts on Kurt Cobain, his life,a and his career. Of course, the biggest of these are institutions like MTV and Rolling Stone, who ironically, Kurt openly despised, although he did appear for them in articles and shows.

Of course, anyone reading this should know that I think the whole suicide theory is very sketchy and I think there is a great deal of credible evidence to support reopening the investigation. But I also don't think the claim of suicide is unfounded. He was certainly tired of all the fame, and never in his life did he ever feel like he fit in. However, while I certainly don't know what was going on in his head during his last few weeks, I think much of the reported events taking place in his life point away from suicide. Not to mention the numerous loopholes and screw-ups in the conduct of the investigation into his death.

But I don't feel like this is the time to lay out my arguments on why Cobain might have been murdered. I know it sounds extremely cliched, but I just feel sad. No, I'm not really in mourning, like all these people they're bound to show on the news, gathering in Seattle and lighting candles together and singing Nirvana songs. I suppose maybe if I lived in Washington I would do the same. But really I just feel sad for that we never got to see more of what he could do, and that such a gaping whole has been left in music. His career only lasted a short five years, so publicly, he's been gone twice as long as he was here when he as famous. I just wonder what more they would have gone on to do. Three studio albums only gives us a very limited insight into what Nirvana was even capable of, or even just Cobain by himself. Sadly there was no chance to really see his music evolve and change over the length of his career (although Unplugged does help show how diverse and adaptable both he and his music could be). And I wonder if music would still be in the same sorry place it's in now if Nirvana, or at least Kurt, had stayed with us. I think it's more than a coincidence that he died in 1994 and rock music has been on a downhill slide since 1994-95 (in my opinion). Now all we're left with is a bunch of sorry imitators and a bunch of would-be worshippers who are ready to jump on the next big music bandwagon that comes along. And then there's Courtney Love, parading around, rallying all the little depressed kiddies into worshipping Kurt so she gets more attention. I can think of few people who sicken and enrage me like she does. Talk of dragging his name and reputation through the mud.

On a side note, the 5th also marks the 2nd anniversary of the death of Layne Staley, lead singer of Alice in Chains (probably the second best Seattle grunge band). In 2002, Staley tragically never overcame his drug addictions and died of an overdose in his home. He is in my opinion one of the more overlooked creative musicians of the past ten years, probably because the media never latched onto AiC like they did with Nirvana. But it makes tomorrow all the more sad.

But now I've gone on and on, and I sound like one of those "Kurt Cobain was a god" people that I've come to dislike so much. Honestly, I think most of the hype about this is starting to annoy me, but that's the way it goes. I guess there's not much left for me to do, but I suppose I'll just spend the listening to my Nirvana CD's and watching their videos (with some Alice in Chains thrown in). Maybe I'll find a good special on TV or something. But otherwise, I think I'd rather avoid all the hype and tributes.

Although I'm not a big fan of Rolling Stone, their website does have a nice collection of articles, pictures, and reviews, so it might be worth a look for some. Also, a good article from the Seattle Post on Kurt. But I suppose that this is it, and I have nothing more to say.



Load up on guns and bring your friends
It's fun to lose and to pretend
She's over bored and self-assured
Oh no, I know a dirty word

Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello

With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto
An albino
A mosquito
My libido
Yay

I'm worse at what I do best
And for this gift I feel blessed
Our little group has always been
And always will until the end

Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello

And I forget just why I taste
Oh yeah, I guess it makes me smile
I found it hard, it was hard to find
Oh well, whatever, nevermind

Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello

With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto
An albino
A mosquito
My libido
A denial