Scott Hutchison
Scott Hutchison (20 November 1981 – 10 May 2018) was a Scottish singer who was known for being the lead singer of Frightened Rabbit. He was also a member of The Fruit Tree Foundation, and released an album through a solo project with the name Owl John. His final project was Mastersystem, a super-group consisting of himself, his brother Grant Hutchison and members of Editors and Minor Victories.
In 2003, Scott began performing under the name Frightened Rabbit. When speaking to Spin, he said:
When I first started playing, I was a solo act and, unfortunately, Scott Hutchison is not a catchy band name at all. I thought of Frightened Rabbit because it was a nickname given to me by my mum when I was younger. I was incredibly shy as a child, almost chronically so. My parents would take me to their friends’ houses and I’d be expected to play with their kids—I guess the idea was to socialize me—but I had no interest. These kids weren’t my friends. Why did I have to play with them? I’d end up just sitting silently by myself.
So out of that, my mum called me her frightened rabbit. When I started to play with the other guys in the band, we didn’t bother finding a new name.
In 2014, Scott released his solo record, aptly named Owl John. Regarding his decision to release a solo project, Scott said to Sputnik Music:
It was approximately 10 years ago that I started a band called Frightened Rabbit. In that time I’ve dedicated so much of my life to that good wee band with a stupid name, I felt it was time to indulge [Owl] John.
However, on 9th May 2018, Scott was reported missing, and had last been seen leaving a hotel in South Queensferry. His last two tweets before his disappearance were:
On Frightened Rabbit’s Twitter page, there was an offer directed at Scott for help:
Tragically, there was a body found at 8:30pm on 10th May near South Queensferry, and the next day it was confirmed to be that of Scott’s.
Some celebrities mourned his death, including Stuart Murdoch and Hayley Williams. Rest in peace Scott Hutchison.