In going through the icons of 90s past I was surprised that I hadn’t mentioned Hole bassist, Kristen Pfaff. While she was only in the band for a short time, she played and sung backup on their most critically acclaimed album, Live Through This. She was a friend of Kurt Cobain and much of the grunge scene.
When she attended college in Minnesota she learned the bass and formed the band Janitor Joe with some friends. The band begun to take off in the early 90s and while on tour in California she caught the attention of Courtney Love and Eric Erlandson of Hole. After much persistence, she became the new bass player for Hole in ’93. She moved to Seattle to work with the band on the most iconic album of their career, Live Through This. During this time in Pacific Northwest it was such a creatively energetic time, enter friendships with Cobain and Erlandson.
The negative side to living in Seattle during this time was the noted heroin problem the city was facing. on June 16th 1994 ( just months after Kurt’s death) she was found in her apartment by a friend. She died of a heroin overdose. There are so many notable figures who we have lost during this musically rich time, but we can never forget them. Kristen Pfaff still holds a place in rock history, and is one of my favorite fallen stars from the grunge era.
images via pinterest
