Yeah, he's an alternative rock artist with a four-octave vocal range who can sing in falsetto. His music is heavily influenced by folk and hard rock, and he only recorded one studio album, 1994's Grace, before tragically drowning. He did, however, record numerous demos and nearly complete songs for his next album, which became Sketches For: My Sweetheart The Drunk, and numerous live albums and EPs.
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His work has been cited as influential by many younger-generation rock artists, notably including Matthew Bellamy of Muse, who cites him as his biggest singing influence. He has also been recognized by many already influential artists such as paul McCartney and Bob Dylan. I highly recommend any of his music, and I wish he hadn't met such an early end so we might have more to enjoy.
He's good, but drowning really was a good career move in terms of sales and popularity... even more so than it was for Ian Curtis.
Well, yeah, considering that his amazing vocal and songwriting talents, not to mention his dynamic live performances, would have most definitely assured him a lucrative recording career, especially after the critical acclaim of his first album, I'm sure that drowning 2 years after its release is what assured his album's success.
Well dude, all I'm saying is that in a recent program on the ABC (our equivalent of the BBC) aimed at finding "Australia's favourite album" Grace came second based on people's voting. Ahead of OK Computer, ahead of Abbey Road, ahead of Led Zeppelin IV, just behind Dark Side of the Moon. Maybe Australia's just especially fond of sucking the guy's d*ck compared to other countries, but it strikes me that a pleasant album by an admittably very skilled musician and vocalist, where some of the most memorable songs are covers, is getting a bit of a boost from the death-cred-effect.
I guarantee you Grace wouldn't have been in the top 20 if it didnt have the whole "tragic dead genius" aura surrounding it. (Nevermind I'm not sure about) The fact that he's dead tragically before his time is an inescapable part of the experience of listening to the album, and it's this context which earns it at least a portion of its popularity.
He's actually not amazingly well-known in the United States, so maybe that's why our opinions are different. The only place I remember hearing about his songs even coming up is one of them somehow made it onto the soundtrack to The OC.
Oh, and I think that the original songs on the album are every bit as memorable or more as the covers. Then again, it's just my opinion. His cover of "Hallelujah" is generally considered the definiteive version, but it's one of my least favorite songs on the album.