THE BEAST

According to The Pulse Of Radio, Peter Cornell, brother of Chris Cornell, paid tribute to the SOUNDGARDEN singer on Facebook a few days ago, following the death of his sibling earlier this month. Peter wrote: "It's been difficult to put words together. My heart is broken. Chris was always just my brother. We just 'were.' No pretense. No dog and pony show. We didn’t have to get deep all the time. Sometimes we only needed to just be in the same room and just be present. That was enough."

Peter added: "It wasn't until this week, it really hit me how he belonged to the world. That he is an icon and a legend. That being said, I am so sorry to YOU for your loss. Artists, actors, musicians. We rely on these people to lift us up. To inspire us and distract us in times of trouble. Chris protected us when we needed him to. His one-of-a-kind-ness surrounded us like a suit of armor. He was a warrior and a wizard. A howling wolf and a trusted mentor."

Peter continued: "My brother gave freely of his gifts and it was never a struggle. He kept himself from the saturation of celebrity in such a humble way. The power and anger and passion of my brother’s music was always genuine, original and legitimate. He was the powerful, sensitive, fragile, angry, mystical creature that will exist forever in his body of work. And he did it for ALL of us."

Peter concluded by thanking all of Chris's fans for their "kindness and condolences," saying, "I will never wrap my head around his passing."

Chris Cornell died in the early hours of May 18, the victim of an apparent suicide by hanging, shortly after SOUNDGARDEN played a concert in Detroit. Toxicology and autopsy reports are pending and will determine if the anti-anxiety drug Ativan, which Chris was taking, was somehow a factor in his death.

His funeral took place last Friday (May 26) at the Forever Hollywood cemetery in Los Angeles, attended by bandmates, fellow musicians and actors such as Brad Pitt and Josh Brolin that he had befriended.