Modern-day garage rock wunderkind Jay Reatard has just died in his sleep in his home at age 29.
An underground sensation and cult hero in Memphis since his teens, Reatard had just recently begun to get more mainstream attention, as evidenced by a lengthy and fairly silly profile in the New York Times this past summer.
He leaves behind a large body of recordings, as well as a reputation involving excessive drug use, stage antics and violence at shows, and feuds with other artists. If you haven’t heard his abrasive, punk-inspired music, now’s a good time to take a listen…he always lived up to his name.
…
