The abrupt death of beloved lead singer, Kurt Cobain,
has many of his devoted fans questioning the police ruled suicide. Cobain and
his band Nirvana were at the peak of their career in April of 1994 when Cobain
supposedly committed suicide (Margaritoff). The popularity of his band brought
even more attention to his death, creating doubt and many theories over the
actual cause of his death. Courtney Love, his wife at the time is the main
suspect for those who believe his death was not a suicide, but murder. Let’s
examine the case and discuss the possibility of murder or if Kurt Cobain really
did commit suicide.
Kurt
Cobain was extremely talented and had an acute ear for music from a very young
age. His little sister, Kim, later described Kurt as a child saying he “was
able to artistically put whatever he thought
onto paper or into music” (Margaritoff). Cobain was able to express his
thoughts and feelings through music and writing which is not common for most
children, or adults, which made him standout to his friends and family. This
unique musical ability would continue as an outlet for Cobain throughout his life
and eventually be used to create songs that would kick off a cultural
revolution. Cobain brought his unique songwriting abilities to his band
Nirvana, where drummer Dave Grohl later confessed that he never wanted to write
songs because he “was in a band with one of the greatest songwriters of our
generation, so [he] didn’t really want to rock the boat” (Edwards). This shows
how much his band members relied on and appreciated Cobain’s talents to create
their music. Cobain’s musical talent was now being acknowledged by his peers
and more people were able to see the potential that he and his band had. By the time Nirvana released Nevermind in
1991, everyone had discovered Cobain’s brilliance and about “two months after release, the album was platinum, and
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" was a bona fide radio and MTV hit”
(“Nirvana”). The band had unexpectedly started a cultural revolution and
suddenly the world had known the name “Kurt Cobain”. Lyrics and melodies that
were nowhere near the popular hip-hop genre in the 90s were now being played on
radios and TV shows, thanks to the musical genius of Kurt Cobain and Nirvana.
The
sudden onset of fame combined with the troubles of his childhood threw Cobain
into a constant depression. Some researchers who studied the life of Kurt
Cobain believe his transition from “proud indie rock rebel to mainstream
superstar” is the “primary cause of
his suicide” (Libby). Cobain never intended Nirvana to become as popular as
they did, especially in that short of a time frame: a culture shock that would
overwhelm anybody. Although this surely contributed to his mental health, it is
not the only reason he was dealing with bipolar disorder, or manic depression
(“Kurt Cobain and Manic Depression”). According to a biography by Mick Ronson,
Cobain had to deal with his parent’s traumatic divorce at the young age of
seven, where he was left feeling unloved and withdrawn (Ronson). In his already
gloomy hometown of Aberdeen, Washington, Kurt must have found it hard to escape
the poor relationship with his family and abrupt separation of his parents.
This is most likely the origin for the painfully honest lyrics of Cobain’s song
such as ‘Sliver’ and ‘Serve the Servants’, which mention the tragedy of his
childhood and the effects of imperfect family dynamics. In an excerpt of one of
his journals, Cobain says he doesn’t “need to be inspired any longer, just
supported” (Cobain). The singer had enough inspirational experiences to write
dozens of songs, but at a certain point in his life he simply needed to be
truly loved and not the kind of love he was receiving from the media. Kurt
Cobain was a perfect example of how fame can be detrimental to already fragile
mental health and the sanity of those in the limelight.
To most people, Kurt Cobain came off
aloof or somewhat withdrawn. According to Marcello Cunsolo, who was at a
musical festival with Nirvana, he found Cobain “was always standing aside, aloof and usually stood with his
eyes closed”, while the rest of his bandmates “would be together and were
joking with each other” (Soulsby). Cobain was extremely shy and to some could
be seen as impersonal. Most Nirvana fanatics attribute his musical genius to
his standoffish personality combined with his natural musical talent because he
was able to write his feelings better than he was able to speak them. This
personality trait seemingly derived from his childhood, particularly after his
parent’s divorce. Kurt “became increasingly
difficult, anti-social and withdrawn” as he grew into his teenage years
(Ronson). This behavior would follow him throughout his entire life and
eventually being withdrawn became his trademark personality trait. For most
people who did not know him on a personal level, this characteristic matched
his sometimes-depressing song lyrics thus creating other perceptions as being
dark. Butch Vig who produced Nevermind later recalled that the first
time he met Kurt he just “walked in and sat down in the
back of the control room and didn’t say anything”, to which bass player Krist
would explain “'Kurt gets like that. He’s fine. He’ll come out of it” (Yarm). As a true
introvert these attributes are not uncommon, but important to note for his
overall personality, nonetheless. His detached behavior is not always a sign of
unhappiness or being socially withdrawn, but simply normal introverted
tendencies.
The
police officially ruled Cobain’s death a suicide, but despite strong
speculation of foul play this ruling is not completely out of the question.
Kurt Cobain was diagnosed with manic depression and struggled with this
disorder since a very young age, which very well could’ve led him to commit
suicide. Having known him personally and the state of his mental health,
“Cobain’s friends, family, and associates had been worried about his depression
and chronic drug use for years” (Strauss). This is compelling evidence, because
it was believed that his depression combined with his addiction to dangerous
drugs ultimately ended his life; it is important to note the people who knew
him the best knew that these were major issues. His struggle with this disorder
is clearly evident and should be considered when questioning the police ruled
suicide. His wife, Courtney Love, had to experience the addictions and mental
instability of her husband on a daily basis. In an interview taken after his death
Love claimed, “he tried to kill himself three times” and that “he OD’d at least
five times” (Kim). If his wife is telling the truth, the idea of suicide was
not an unfamiliar thought for Cobain. Courtney Love was married to Cobain for 2
years before he passed and would most likely be the best person to attest to
his struggling mental health and ongoing drug addictions. Many fans of
Nirvana’s music find some of the lyrics depressing and borderline suicidal.
From Sappy, a song released by Nirvana in 1989, the lyrics read “And if you cut yourself/ You will think you're
happy” (“Nirvana – Sappy”). These lyrics are particularly disturbing when you
know about Cobain’s history with depression and now knowing of his suicide. If
you were simply a fan of his music and did not look any deeper into his
personal life, the police ruled suicide would make perfect sense.
Once you dig past his
gloomy lyrics and struggle with depression, a much more sinister theory about
his cause of his death can be discovered. One of the most popular theories
about his cause of death is that his wife, Courtney Love, was somehow involved in
his murder. According to the film, Soaked in Bleach, the marriage
between Cobain and Love was unraveling to the point where Cobain was allegedly
going to get a divorce, and even take Love out of his will just days before his
death (Statler). If this is accurate information, then Love would have the
perfect motive to kill her husband before he had the chance to take her out of
his will or file divorce papers. Kurt Cobain left Los Angeles just a few days
before he was found dead in his Seattle home. This disappearance caused Love to
phone in a missing person’s report, but she did not call under Courtney Love,
but instead said she was Wendy O’Connor, Kurt’s mother. In this phone call she
stated that Cobain was suicidal and in possession of a shotgun, a statement
later evaluated by private investigator Tom Grant who said this was “a diversion to paint Cobain as suicidal, as he
was being set up to be murdered” (“Tragic Suicide or Something More Sinister”).
This makes Love look guilty, considering she did not even call in the missing
persons report under her own name. Now that we have a motive, lets
discuss the peculiarity of the autopsy report. Kurt Cobain was discovered in
his Seattle home with an extreme amount of heroin in his system and clutching a
shotgun in an oddly inverted position on his chest, many medical experts
believe “It is unlikely the
shotgun spun around as it discharged, as the barrel was tightly gripped in
Cobain’s left hand due to fairly instantaneous rigor mortis” (Lyle). The amount
of heroin in his system would have rendered him incapable of holding a shotgun,
let alone at that bizarre of an angle. The autopsy report doesn’t add up with
the explanation the police gave everyone, creating further speculation about
Kurt Cobain’s actual cause of death.
After researching
Cobain’s death and discovering the 2 main theories, I decided to post a survey
via my social media account to see which theory was most popular among my
peers. My survey had one question, “Do you believe Kurt Cobain committed
suicide?” and the answers were either “yes” or “no”. I received a total of 42
responses and the results were quite interesting-- there were 50% “yes” answers
and 50% “no” answers. These results could either be attributed to the lack of
knowledge about Kurt Cobain among teenagers my age, or to the fact that these
theories are evenly believed and denied. Nevertheless, it is very interesting
to see the responses from another generation on the topic so debatable as the
cause of Cobain’s death.
On
April 5, 1994 the death of pop culture icon, Kurt Cobain, took the entire world
by surprise and made headlines on every newspaper. Many diehard fans could not
make up their minds on his true cause of death and eventually created 2
theories:
1. The
police ruled suicide is an accurate conclusion
2. His
wife played a role in his untimely death
Although
his gloomy lyrics and history of depression back up the suicide theory, many
researchers can’t help but think the circumstances and evidence of the crime
scene reveal something more disturbing: the murder of the beloved grunge icon,
Kurt Cobain.
Cobain, Kurt. Journals. Riverhead Books, 2003.
Edwards, Briony. “Dave Grohl Opens up on Why He Didn't Write Any
Nirvana Songs.” Loudersound, Louder, 9 July 2018, www.loudersound.com/features/dave-grohl-opens-up-on-why-he-didnt-write-any-nirvana-songs.
Kim, Dave. “Courtney Love Says Kurt Cobain Attempted Suicide
Multiple Times.” 97.9 WGRD, 6 Oct. 2011,
wgrd.com/courtney-love-says-kurt-cobain-attempted-suicide-multiple-times/.
“Kurt Cobain and Manic Depression.” Bipolar Lives, 9 Oct.
2019, www.bipolar-lives.com/kurt-cobain-and-manic-depression.html.
Libby, Brian. “Even in His Youth.” Consumer HealthDay, 1
Jan. 2019, consumer.healthday.com/encyclopedia/depression-12/depression-news-176/even-in-his-youth-644949.html.
Lyle, Douglas P. “Kurt Cobain: Assessing a Drug's Effects.” Dummies,
2016,
www.dummies.com/education/science/forensics/kurt-cobain-assessing-a-drugs-effects/.
Margaritoff, Marco. “The True Story Of Kurt Cobain's Suicide -
And Why Some Say It Was Murder.” All That's Interesting, All That's
Interesting, 13 Sept. 2019, allthatsinteresting.com/kurt-cobain-suicide.
“Nirvana – Sappy.” Genius, 23 Nov. 2004,
genius.com/Nirvana-sappy-lyrics.
“Nirvana.” Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Rock & Roll
Hall of Fame, 1 Jan. 1970, www.rockhall.com/inductees/nirvana.
Ronson, Mick. “Kurt Cobain Biography.” Burntout.com - A
Website for Kurt Cobain and Nirvana, www.burntout.com/kurt/biography/.
Soulsby, Nick. “Inside the Final Days of Nirvana.” Esquire, 25 Apr. 2018,
www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a33510/nirvana-kurt-cobain-book-excerpt-i-found-my-friends/.
Statler, Benjamin, director. Soaked in Bleach. Montani
Productions, 2015.
Strauss, Neil. “Kurt Cobain's Downward Spiral and Last Days.” Rolling
Stone, 5 Apr. 2019,
www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/kurt-cobains-downward-spiral-the-last-days-of-nirvanas-leader-99797/.
“Tragic Suicide Or Something More Sinister: Examining The Death
Of Nirvana's Kurt Cobain.” L4LM, 3 June 2019, liveforlivemusic.com/features/kurt-cobain-20th-anniversary-death-l4lm/.
Yarm, Mark. Everybody Loves Our Town: a History of Grunge.
Faber & Faber, 2017.
No comments:
Post a Comment