Fans gather in Seattle to remember grunge
musicians Layne Staley and Kurt Cobain on
the anniversary of their tragic deaths

Ashley Dixon
Staff Writer

The cool Seattle wind ruffles the leaves of the trees that circle Viretta Park, adding an eerie setting in the dreary park. Despite the shining sun, sadness fills the air as a small handful of fans gather in the park to remember Nirvana front man Kurt Cobain, who tragically passed away in 1994.
Greeting these fans and mourners are Tara Denton and Mitch Holmquist. Denton makes a two-hour drive down from Canada each year on Cobain’s birthday and the anniversary of his death.
Holmquist, who knew Cobain when he was growing up, drives up from Aberdeen, Cobain’s hometown.
“I love hearing from people all over the world and it’s amazing to hear what the music has done for them,” Denton said.
Denton is involved in a project that cleans up Viretta Park, which is located next to Cobain’s prior home. Holmquist, who knew Cobain at a point in time, also comes up every year on both the singer’s birthday and the anniversary of his death.
“I met Kurt back when I was in my teens. I used to hitchhike into town from Raymond and Aberdeen, the biggest town down there, so then I’d meet up with Kurt and his friends,” Holmquist said.
“We weren’t best friends, but I knew him pretty much up until he moved to Olympia, then we kind of lost track of each other,” Holmquist added.
Holmquist works for Cobain’s grandfather, often taking fans on tours of Aberdeen. On the 15th anniversary of the singer’s passing, he put on a tribute show for fans and donated all of the proceeds to the Kurt Cobain Memorial Foundation.
“I think Kurt proved a point that you don’t have to come from money,” Holmquist said.
“People said he was lazy, but he wasn’t. He just invested all of his time into his music, but I don’t think he expected to get as big as they did,” Holmquist said.
“I think he would’ve been happy just to make enough money to get by. He earned everything he ever got, nothing was just given to him,” Holmquist added.
Denton is surprised at the wide diversity of fans that come to the site each year to celebrate the singer’s memory.
“People come who weren’t even alive when he was around and it’s like ‘Wow, that’s cool that they’re into the music’,” Denton said.
Sadly, the world lost yet another original and influential musician from the ‘Grunge Scene’ of Seattle on the same date.
Alice In Chains front man Layne Staley passed away on April 5, 2002 at the age of 34.
“Alice In Chains are so under appreciated, especially now that Layne Staley and Mike Starr are gone; the mark the band made in the grunge scene seems to have faded. It really bothers me,” said a Pierce College student who asked to stay anonymous.
“Layne was just as beautiful as Kurt. Musically they were both gifted, and it’s a shame that they were both taken from us eight years apart,” student added.
This was found to be an unfortunate truth, as there were considerably more mourners present in Seattle for Cobain’s passing. Many didn’t even know that Staley shared the same death date as Cobain.
“I hope that one day April 5 can be a combined celebration among the majority of people, and we can continue to remember both Alice in Chains and Nirvana and the marks they made on the music scene,” the Pierce College student said.
An online memorial was held for Staley through the website www.singforlayne.com. Singforlayne.com is an interactive online chat room where fans could come in and celebrate the memory of the troubled singer.
Later, the website held a live singing timeslot for fans to sing the Alice In Chains song “Would?” collectively in memory of Staley.
To many, April 5 is a designated date that marked the death of the grunge scene in the musical world.
However, many fans disagree and believe that as long as they keep the memory of the two singers alive, the scene will never die.
Denton is one of those kindred spirits. “I think the music is timeless; it sounds like something that could be released today,” Denton said.
“As long as the parents get their kids involved and the fans keep growing, like it has been, it won’t ever be forgotten,” Denton added.