Scott Weiland had ‘a real sadness to his eyes’ in Toronto, says photographer

TORONTO – Scott Weiland seemed healthy and sober during what turned out to be his final concert with his band the Wildabouts this week in Toronto but “something was off,” says a photographer who shot the show and worked with the band in the past.

“He did not look happy,” Jerry Abramowicz said Friday, hours after news of Weiland’s death broke.

“He had a real sadness to his eyes that shocked me.”

A statement on Weiland’s Facebook page Friday morning said the rocker died in his sleep while he and the band were on a tour stop in Bloomington, Minn. No cause of death was stated. He was 48.

The former lead singer for Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver battled substance abuse problems throughout his career.

But Abramowicz, whose photography can be seen in the liner notes of the band’s latest CD, said Weiland didn’t seem under the influence of anything during the show in Toronto on Tuesday.

“He was great onstage, had a lot of energy, he was just great about everything, he put on a fantastic show, the sound was great,” said Abramowicz, who also shot the band in July 2014 when they performed at Toronto’s Danforth Music Hall, where he’s the house photographer.

“There was nothing really amiss about his show and the energy but you could just see by his eyes, something seemed amiss and I don’t know what it was.

“I just saw sadness in his eyes but it didn’t indicate that he was ill in any which way.”

Weiland was “just a little bit quieter,” added Abramowicz, who chatted briefly with the performer a couple of times offstage and only saw him smile once during the whole concert.

“Throughout the evening he was talking, just doing his thing but he just wasn’t smiling. The crowd was right into it, it was a really great night that way. I think he did a great performance,” said Abramowicz.

“But the smiles, I was hoping for a little bit more smiling and I just didn’t see it.”