NIRVANA | NEVERMIND
One of the most game-changing albums of all time still stands as the single weapon of choice for ushering in an entirely new movement of music. Upon it’s release in 1991 it not only swept Michael Jackson out of the # 1 spot but awakened youth everywhere to a new dirty era of apathy and realism.
From the scratchy opening riff of the album it’s clear the the planet is about to shift. Aping the Pixies quiet-loud-quiet delivery, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” achieves eternal glory in record time by nonchalantly trudging through the angst of Earth’s youth with only four easy chords. Imagine not trying and still landing on the Top Of The Pops? The allure of Nevermind was in being accessible and honest while still carrying the intent to passively deconstruct something. It had bite and realness layered through its sensitivity. Isn’t that what we all want?
While their debut album Bleach was a pop-punk slop show of Cobain’s wide range of influences from Flipper to the Beatles, Nevermind concentrated their pop-punk formula into a leaner injection for mainstream consumption. Producer Butch Vig decided to tap into a more refined recording process to help bring Cobain’s power of force to life without compromising his values. Upon playing the newly recorded cassette for friends at an outdoor party, Vig was shocked to see all jaws dropped and eyes wide. “Play that again, whatever it is, play that s**t again!” The response from his inner circle was one of trance-induced obsession. This was soon to be the same response the world would have.
The albums singles are legendary without even being the greatest moments. “In Bloom”, Come As You Are” and “Lithium” will forever remain sing-a-long anthems in the band’s catalogue, but they serve best when completing the puzzle to a greater story. Even the acoustic lament of “Polly” falls easily in place among the fuzz-driven tunes surrounding it. With polarizing lyrical content about a rape victim being molested to Cobain’s music, it captures the the sentiment of a world being tired of hiding the realism of life and fed up with ignoring the bruises we all have. Nevermind’s addictive personality comes from its deep longing to finally be honest about our hurt, our pain, and disdain. It finally became OK to be angry and sad about life not turning out so great. This is the bleak adolescent discovery that childhood is over and the boringness of adulting is going to suck.
Lyrically the album is it’s most comfortable when being apathetic, something the rock charts lacked before ’91. While hair metal bands and pop music continued to paint a cocaine-laced neon picture of promise, the new self-loathing lyrical sensibility was too visceral to ignore. “Load up on guns…I feel stupid…come doused in mud…sell the kids for food…today I found my friends, they’re in my head” are all snippets from Cobain’s poetry that tell stories of being numb to the sting of life. Nevermind would soon ignite a generation that was tired of trying to pretend big breasted blond models and false yuppie idealism was quenching their thirst for mainstream art. The 90’s exploded in a pity party of anger, angsty, and rawness. Artists like Tori Amos, Trent Reznor, PJ Harvey, Chris Cornell, Billy Corgan, Alice In Chains, and Alanis Morrisette all found an audience channeling their inner realism. But Nirvana was the first to make it super-mainstream.
Hidden gems like “Drain You” and “Lounge Act” allow for massive replayability and rediscovery. “Territorial Pissings” is what it feels like to be punk without committing to the entire culture. While Nevermind ostracized a legion of Def Leopard and Poison fans, the same music lovers would later come to appreciate and relate to Nevermind’s impact as it slowly inched its way into the classic rock cannon. We are all made of the same stuff, and Nirvana was offering raw inner nutrients at their most potent for those ready to drink it. Strangely, it wasn’t global success the band were seeking, but this is what happens when you strike a nerve with people. The band struck more than a nerve however, this was a lighting bolt to the chakra system of humanity.
Not enough can be said about Nevermind’s impact on music and culture. Feeling overwhelmed, Cobain shot himself in the head in 1994. His last album, “In Utero” was an effort in trying to be less mainstream, but of course it sold millions. When you are tapped into the emotional centre of what people are searching for you become a prophet regardless of intention. The real legends carry the special DNA to effect the planet. Nirvana’s combination of accessibility and angst was exactly what people needed as the 90’s rolled in. To this day it carries an impact that is rarely matched and remains one of the most celebrated albums of all time for a very good reason.
This cocktail captures the sting of the album’s punch in the vodka, but mixes the sweeter pop sensibilities in through the liquors and rum. The lemon juice represents Cobain’s acidic take on the world while the soda polishes the punk gloss with some fizz.
