Coinciding with the 18th anniversary of Kurt Cobain's death on Wednesday, former Hole guitarist and songwriter Eric Erlandson has a new book out this week reflecting on the loss of the Nirvana front man and the turmoil that followed. Letters to Kurt includes 52 pieces by Erlandson and is blurbed by Thurston Moore, who describes the collection as "a poetic elegy" to Cobain and who refers to Erlandson, with whom Cobain was friends, as "the spirit boy in the Nirvana-Hole dynamic." In an interview with the Times in February, Erlandson said he hadn't discussed the book with Courtney Love. He is, however, appearing with former Hole bandmates Melissa Auf Du Maur and drummer Patty Schemel at a few upcoming book dates. Auf Du Maur will join Erlandson at Barnes & Noble Union Square for a performance April 5th and both Auf Du Maur and Schemel will be with Erlandson at Basilica in Hudson, NY April 8th for performances and a screening of the excellent-looking documentary about Schemel, Hit So Hard. The film chronicles Schemel's struggles with growing up gay in a small town, substance abuse and the losses of Hole bandmate Kristen Pfaff as well as Cobain.
Also opening April 5th at Morrison Hotel Gallery is an exhibit featuring Jesse Frohman's portraits of Cobain, taken shortly before his death, featuring him in his big, Jackie-O-esque sunglasses and a leopard fur coat. The show opens April 5th and runs through the 22nd. (See more images at Flavorwire)
Here's a full list of Erlandson's reading dates:
April 5 - New York, NY / Barnes & Noble Union Square (33 East 17th St.) Upstairs at the Square presents a conversation with Eric Erlandson, with musical performances by Eric & Melissa Auf der Maur, 7pm
April 8 - Hudson, NY / Basilica (110 Front St.) Featuring a reading by Eric Erlandson, musical performances with Eric, Melissa Auf der Maur and Patty Schemel, and a screening of Hit So Hard, 6pm
April 10 - Providence, RI / Books on the Square (471 Angell St.), 7pm
April 11 - Clinton, NJ / Clinton Book Shop (12 E. Main St.), 7pm
April 13 - New York, NY / Cinema Village (22 E. 12th St.) Hit So Hard premiere with performance by Eric and Patty Schemel, and special guests.
April 16 - Boston, MA / Newbury Comics (36 JFK St.), 6pm
April 19 - Los Angeles, CA / Vista Theater-Los Feliz (1822 N. Vermont Ave.) Hit So Hard premiere with performance by Eric and Patty Schemel, and special guests.
April 21 - Los Angeles, CA / LA Times Festival of Books (USC), 11:30am and 4pm
April 23 - Los Angeles, CA / Largo at the Coronet (366 North La Cienega) An evening of music/performance art and conversation with Eric (special guest tba), 8pm
April 25 - Berkeley, CA / Moe's (2476 Telegraph Rd.), 7:30pm
April 26 - San Francisco, CA / City Lights, 261 (Columbus Ave.), 7pm
April 27 - San Francisco, CA / Roxie Theater (3117 16th St.) Hit So Hard premiere with Eric and Patty Schemel