We followed the story, despite having never been previously exposed to Chestnutt's music. We read about his discovery in the 1980s by REM's Michael Stipe, and his recent performances backed by members of Fugazi, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and A Silver Mt. Zion. We read about a car accident that left him in a wheelchair since age 18.

And then, about an hour ago, we read his friend Kristin Hersh's words: "He's gone� So much to go away in a moment." Chestnutt was 45. We didn't know him, but sifting through the body of work he left behind, we wish we had. - more including a moving live video