I’ll soon become older than my big brother was when he died. It’s a strange feeling. It just shouldn’t happen
Grant, Scott’s younger brother, will this year become older than the Frightened Rabbit frontman was when he died. It is, he admits, a sad, unsettling feeling.
The pair and older brother Neil had always been close, finding a common bond in their shared love of music while still at school.
It was in first year at high school that Scott first started playing guitar, and formed a band called Nixon. With older brother Neil on guitar and youngest sibling Grant learning drums, it certainly made for a noisy house.
“We had a lot of fun growing up,” said Grant, 35. “But we must have driven mum mad because you could hear us playing at the top of the street!”
It won’t be long until Grant is feeling the joy – and pressures – of parenting, with he and wife Jaye expecting a baby girl in March, signalling some good news for the family. But his birthday later in the year will be coloured with sadness as he turns 36 – the age Scott was when he died.
“It will be a really strange feeling, overtaking my older brother,” he said.
“There was every chance I would be at Scott’s funeral at some point in my life, but I hoped that would be in our 70s and 80s. It just shouldn’t have happened this early.”
Grant played alongside his brother in Frightened Rabbit, an indie band, which released five acclaimed records and had a legion of devoted fans before Scott’s death shortly after a tour celebrating the 10th anniversary of The Midnight Organ Fight album.
After his death, the band released a statement: “There are no words to describe the overwhelming sadness and pain that comes with the death of our beloved Scott, but to know he is no longer suffering brings us some comfort. He will be missed by all of us and his absence will always be felt but he leaves a legacy of hope, kindness and colour that will forever be remembered and shared.”
Grant says the toughest part for him has been coping with feelings of guilt.
“I started to really notice Scott’s mental health wasn’t good,” he said.
“He talked a lot about mental illness in his song lyrics.
“The writing, recording and creating of songs is what he loved. But for him, the band was a double-edged sword.
“He didn’t really enjoy touring and that side of things made him quite anxious. After Scott died, I just kept thinking, should I have stepped in and said it was too much for him?
“There are so many moments that I wish I had just made a decision for him.
“Mental illness is different from breaking your leg or losing your voice. But it is an illness and your health should always come first.”