10 Best Posthumous Rock Music Releases
Even from beyond the grave, these artists still put out amazing music.
For as much joy as it brings people around the world, music can be a cruel business. The pressures of fame and fortune, combined with inadequate support from those in power, can take its toll on an artist. Throw in an historical culture of hard drinking and drug-taking, and a performing career can lead to catastrophic results.
Premature deaths, self-inflicted or otherwise, happen far too often in the industry. Even artists who die of natural causes can do so at very inopportune times.
Sometimes musicians die right as they're about to release new material. More often that not, this music will be put out posthumously as a tribute to them. Equally, record companies like money. Make of that what you will.
The following ten albums and songs from the world of rock were all released after one of their contributors had passed away. Some were released immediately, whilst others took a little time to come out. All of them make for very interesting footnotes in the stories of some of rock's most tragic figures.
Trigger warning: this article will obviously be discussing elements of death, which some of you may find disturbing.
10. In The End - The Cranberries
The music world was shocked and saddened by the sudden death of Cranberries lead singer Dolores O'Riordan in early 2018.
The Irish performer had been a huge part of the band's rise to prominence; her angelic voice serving as the key part of great songs like Zombie and Linger. Prior to her death, O'Riordan and guitarist Noel Hogan had been working on material for a new Cranberries album. In fact, O'Riordan had been emailing Hogan about the project mere hours before she passed away.
The rest of the band eventually went to work on the late singer's final vocal takes with the permission of her family. In April 2019, over a year after her death, O'Riordan appeared posthumously on the excellent album In the End.
As was typical of The Cranberries, the music was tinged with sadness and O'Riordan's bittersweet longing for a better world. Strangely, this was actually a good thing, as it gave anyone who listened an appropriate outlet to grieve a lost icon.
The Cranberries announced that this would be the final album released under that name, ending O'Riordan's musical legacy on a high.