Hutchence's Death Caused By Hanging

INXS frontman Michael Hutchence, 37, was found dead in a Sydney, Australia hotel room just before noon local time on Nov. 22. Although police have confirmed that Hutchence's death was caused by hanging, they have yet to determine whether it was suicide or accidental death by asphyxiation.

Derrick Hand, the state coroner, told the Sydney Morning Herald that a post-mortem examination had concluded that the singer had in fact hanged himself in his fifth-floor suite of the posh Ritz Carlton hotel with a leather belt.

Hand went on to say that they were still unsure if Hutchence had committed suicide; results of a toxicology report conducted on Monday are not expected for a few weeks. Police have confirmed that no foul play was involved in the death and that no illicit drugs were found in the room. However, Hutchence was found hanging naked in the room with a variety of prescription pills, including the anti-depressant drug Prozac strewn across the floor, the paper reported.

In a statement issued by Mercury Records, members of INXS said they are all in extreme shock at the loss of their dear friend and that their love and sympathy go out to Michael's family.

INXS' tour manager, Martha Troup, said there are no words to express the loss of someone like Michael. "He was an amazingly kind and loving soul, who brought joy to all of us who knew him. We were blessed to have Michael in this world and will forever miss his absence in it."

Hutchence's funeral will be held Thursday afternoon in Sydney.

The band has canceled its reunion tour, which was to have been INXS's first in their homeland in more than three years.

INXS, which formed in Perth in 1977, achieved worldwide recognition when their first major label release, Listen Like Thieves, hit in 1985. That album preceded 1987's Kick, an album that would further propel INXS into the spotlight. During their 20-year career, the band sold more than 20 million albums worldwide.

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Song Stories

“The A Team”

Ed Sheeran | 2011

This debut track from the then-20-year-old British singer-songwriter has a dark story behind it. Sheeran says he culls songwriting inspiration from "viewing other people's situations," which, for the heroine in "The A Team," involves drug addiction and prostitution that began as a teen. Sheeran paints the woman's trials with haunting imagery such as "But lately her face seems/Slowly sinking, wasting/Crumbling like pastries." "I did a gig at a homeless shelter, [and the song] is about one of the women there. It's her story," he said.

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