Michael Griffen, my longtime friend and also companion in Noggin passed away January 7, 2008. It has been hard for me to come to post anything that would sum up his life, and I also felt like this e-world wasn’t real to him and wasn’t really a good place to speak about this. But, after much thought, I decided that this is how people are getting their info these days, so below is by no means all I have to say, but it is the best I can do for now:

Michael Griffen was perhaps best known as the violinist in the 90’s hardcore band Behead the Prophet NLSL and also in the noise duo of Noggin. He was also in Artie Smudges Trio, Weehuggum, and too many other bands to mention. He was a musician much of his life –starting his journey playing in country bands in Whatcom County, WA while in high school and college in the 1950’s. He was a visual artist through the mid-late sixties and into the eighties. In the late 80’s, he moved more towards music as a way to connect with others rather than being isolated painting. Music was a social activity, and he enjoyed meeting people through playing music. He opened his living room to bands as a practice pad, which is how he met many people who were deeply touched by him. Free-improvisation and noise attracted him musically the most as it readily allowed him to get to know others through music. While the sounds that he generated in many of his projects could be considered ’avant-garde’ he considered himself more of a folk musician. He wasn’t trying to elevate himself and become a rock star, he mostly wanted to connect with people and perhaps his highest goal was to help others find their path through art. Many people who had little or no musical ability would play with him, at his house, or while he was on tour, and come away realizing ’oh, I guess I can play music.’

He had a love for almost every imaginable discipline in the arts. In addition to music, he also was active in theater, film, dance, visual arts and literature. Over the last year or so of his life, he worked on a novel Me, Jane. He also worked on writing a stage play with Danielle Morgan that she will be turning into a screenplay and producing a feature-length film of in the coming years.

He is survived by his children Adam, Aral, Christopher, Shaun and his life friend and companion Terry Newberg.