Musician and artist Mikey Welsh, (known as an ex-bassist of Weezer, from 1998 to 2001) unexpectedly died on Saturday at the age of 40.
Under his twiter account you could read ‘I was in Weezer, now I make art’, as he had indeed retired from music to focus on his painting, after having a mental breakdown due to drug use and an undiagnosed mental condition, and attempting suicide.
This is what he said in a 2007 interview with Rock Salt Plum:‘By the time I got to Boston, I was having a complete nervous breakdown. It ended with a severe suicide attempt (an overdose). I was found and rushed to the hospital where I had come to within minutes of my heart completely stopping. I was in a coma for a few days, and woke up in a lock-down psychiatric ward. Uugghh. This is too much. To answer the rest of your question, it usually seems that artists are more likely to suffer from mental illness and addiction, at least the great ones. There is obviously a reason for this. The "tortured" artist really is the oldest cliché, but then again clichés are always based in truth. I'm a romantic, so I eat it all up.’
This is very sad news, and 40 is way too young to die. The cause of death has not been determined yet.