I remember reading this interview with Kurt Cobain the week it came out. I was in eighth grade, and was well aware of all the controversy surrounding my favorite musician’s troubled life. At the time, 26 years old seemed old as hell to me — it was twice my age — and reading about the Nirvana front man’s roller coaster existence was both fascinating and troubling. Unfortunately, I took the subhead of the article to heart, especially the part that said “he’s never been happier in his life,” and his death two months later would become all that more surprising, and unsettling.

Jesus, I’m nearly 31 and I’m re-reading this for the first time since I was 13. At the time, it sounded like the words of a worldly old man resolutely rebounding from a lifetime of hardship. Now, with the benefit of age and hindsight, it just reads like the words of a bummed out kid, desperately attempting to reconcile his lot in life, for better or for worse — basically, the same thing everybody everywhere does everyday, only with a million scrutinizing eyes fixed upon him.

It’s worth a second read; check it out here.