Mark Lanegan Dies: Screaming Trees, Queens Of The Stone Age Singer Was 57

Mark Lanegan, the singer for grunge pioneers Screaming Trees and frequent vocalist for the Josh Homme-founded rock band Queens of the Stone Age, died today at his home in Killarney, Ireland. He was 57.

His death was announced on his official Twitter page. A cause of death was not disclosed.

“Our beloved friend Mark Lanegan passed away this morning at his home in Killarney, Ireland,” the statement reads. “A beloved singer, songwriter, author and musician he was 57 and is survived by his wife Shelley. No other information is available at this time.”

Beginning in 1984, Lanegan fronted the Washington state band Screaming Trees, becoming a central figure in the burgeoning grunge scene that would come to include such groups as Mudhoney, the Melvins, Soundgarden and Nirvana. The band broke up in 2000.

As a solo artist, Lanegan became a frequent collaborator for nearly 15 years with Queens of the Stone Age, appearing on the group’s albums “Rated R,” “Songs for the Deaf,” “Lullabies to Paralyze,” “Era Vulgaris,” and “…Like Clockwork.”

Lanegan also collaborated with Kurt Cobain, who performed Lanegan’s arrangement of the Lead Belly classic “In The Pines” (retitled “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”) for Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged concert.

In addition to nearly a dozen solo albums, Lanegan also collaborated with The Afghan Whigs’ Greg Dulli as The Gutter Twins.

In a book published last year, Lanegan, who spoke often about his addiction struggles over the years, wrote about the severe Covid case that left him in a three-week coma. Describing his early vaccine skepticism, Lanegan said in an interview, “I was a bit weary of it, like a lot of people, but a hardcore kick to the balls like I got changed my attitude on it.” He detailed his battle with Covid, which he said left him temporarily deaf, in a 2021 memoir titled Devil in A Coma.

Our beloved friend Mark Lanegan passed away this morning at his home in Killarney, Ireland.  A beloved singer, songwriter, author and musician he was 57 and is survived by his wife Shelley.  No other information is available at this time. We ask Please respect the family privacy

— mark lanegan (@marklanegan) February 22, 2022