Hideto Matsumoto

Hideto Matsumoto died on May 2, 1998. After a night out drinking, he was found hanged with a towel tied to a doorknob in his Tokyo apartment. Three fans died in copycat suicides, of the 50,000 people who attended his funeral in Tsukiji Hongan-ji, nearly 60 were hospitalized and about 200 received medical treatment in first aid tents.[7][8] Later that month, the single "Pink Spider" was released, entering the Oricon charts at number one. The song would also receive that year's MTV Video Music Award in the category "Japan Viewers Choice".[9] Sales were also strong for the follow up single "Ever Free", while those of a single released previous to his death "Rocket Dive" would also see a substantial increase. American Journalist Neil Strauss commented on the trend saying that: "In just a few weeks, pop culture in Japan had gone from mourning Hide's death to consuming it."[7]

While authorities deemed Matsumoto's death a suicide,[7] several of Hide's friends and colleagues stated that they believed it to be an accident, among them X Japan co-founder Yoshiki Hayashi and former X Japan bassist Taiji Sawada. This notion is supported by the fact that no suicide note was left[8] and Sawada theorizes in his autobiography, that at the night of his death, Hide may have been practicing a technique to relieve upper back and neck pains which guitarists can suffer from continuous use of a shoulder strap.[10] The technique involved was practiced by the X Japan members during their touring days and required the use of a towel and a door knob or handle. According to Sawada, Matsumoto may have fallen asleep in his intoxicated state, becoming caught and strangling himself.[11][12]

Zilch bassist Paul Raven commented that Hide was "under a lot of stress", due to recording schedule for the Ja, Zoo album. He went on to question the ultimate degree of Hide's involvement in the finished record, stating that only three songs had been completed before he died.[7] Ja, Zoo was released in November of the same year with the artist listed as not just "hide" but as "hide with Spread Beaver", making it the only original studio album to bear the "Hide with Spread Beaver" handle. The Zilch debut album 3.2.1. was also released and the group continued to perform and record for several years. While they never achieved mainstream success in the United States one of their songs was included on the soundtrack for Heavy Metal 2000.[13]

On May 1, 1999, a tribute album was released, titled Tribute Spirits. It features covers of Hide songs by several bands (such as Buck-Tick, Luna Sea and Oblivion Dust) and solo artists.[14] A Hide museum opened in Yokosuka on July 20, 2000.[15] It remained open, past its original three year plan, for five years before closing its doors on September 25, 2005. [16]