Twenty years after the grunge band's frontman killed himself, the run-down town in Washington state two hours from Seattle is keen to ensure that the legacy of its most famous son lives on. Photo: AP
While some believe in the conspiracy that somebody killed him, Gaar dismissed the idea, saying: "I've never had any doubt whatsoever that it was a suicide."
"He wasn't from Seattle. It's amazing to me that he was from Aberdeen and he got big and then Seattle embraced him," said Simpson.
A stone in Kurt Cobain Park in Aberdeen, Washington on April 1, 2014, near the house where Cobain lived and committed suicide.
"We were not very impressed. The show was not very good, his material was not that great," the label's co-founder Bruce Pavitt told AFP.
Fans gathered initially in Viretta Park, a leafy area next to Cobain's last house - where some may flock again Saturday to add more scrawl to a bench already covered in adulatory graffiti.
Kurt Cobain Park in Aberdeen, Washington on April 1, 2014, near the house where Cobain lived and committed suicide. The park where Cobain used to hang out and write songs has become a symbol for fans as it was a gathering place after the news of his
His death, when it was announced, sent shockwaves around Seattle and the music world. "The entire city went into mourning," said Pavitt, while adding: "Because he had tried to commit suicide in Rome a month earlier, I was not all that surprised."
An Australian woman has been arrested in Malaysia -- which mandates the death penalty for drug trafficking -- after allegedly being caught with 1.5 kilogrammes (52 oz) of crystal methamphetamine (Photo: AFP)
Strangely, while Seattle's EMP museum is currently hosting a Nirvana exhibition, the bench is the closest thing the city has to a memorial to the charismatic Nirvana front man.
But it was 1991's ‘Nevermind’ with Geffen Records that really catapulted them to stardom. Their third, ‘In Utero’ in 1993, was also a hit. Nirvana's success was accompanied by personal cause for joy for Cobain -- he married singer Courtney Love in
Cobain formed Nirvana in 1987 with bassist Krist Novoselic while at school in Aberdeen. Dave Grohl later joined as drummer after a series of candidates failed to work out. The trio's big break came when they were signed by record label Sub Pop in
Mayor Bill Simpson rejects criticism that it is wrong to celebrate the life of a drug-addict who committed suicide when his daughter was still a toddler.
He had come a long way in a few short years: from the bleak streets of struggling logging town Aberdeen to international fame and fortune, and a luxury house in Seattle's swanky Denny-Blaine neighborhood.
Cobain thus entered the so-called ‘27 Club’ - the grim roster of stars to die of drugs or alcohol abuse at age 27 that includes Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, the Rolling Stones' Brian Jones and, more recently, Amy Winehouse.
His body was found on April 8, 1994. Cobain shot himself in the head. Coroners found large quantities of heroin in his system, and said his body had probably been there for days. They estimated he had died on April 5.
Cobain died at age 27 when Nirvana was at the height of its powers, scoring global hits including "Come as You Are" and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and spawning a generation of bands playing grunge, a mash-up of punk and heavy metal music.
"Everybody says 'Oh, Kurt was a druggy, and Kurt was a nasty man.' But you know, the more I've read, the more I've studied about him, he was a pretty down-to-earth guy, very caring, a very loving individual," Simpson told AFP.
The road sign outside town reads ‘Welcome to Aberdeen. Come As You Are.’ The iconic Nirvana song title greets fans from around the world flocking to pay homage to Kurt Cobain.