Producer: Butch Vig and Nirvana
Singles: “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” “Come as You Are,” “Lithium,” “In Bloom”
Fave album track: “On a Plain”
Release date: 24 September 1991
Label: David Geffen Co. (DGC)
CD catalog#: DGCD 24425
The Skinny
1991 is purportedly “the year punk broke,” which makes this record an historical document at this point. Nevermind was #1 with a vengeance, is now certified diamond for sales of over 10 million units, and features four completely bankable singles. As a collector, I look for recordings in the format for which they were originally intended. I believe fervently that this particular recording should be experienced on CD, in all its original 16 bit, 44.1 kHz over-sampled glory.
Sounds like
Pixies, Black Flag, Descendants, Soundgarden, Black Sabbath, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Husker Du, Sonic Youth, Circle Jerks, Replacements, Soul Asylum, Meat Puppets
Deeper thoughts
I remember when “Smells Like Teen Spirit” began to catch fire. I thought to myself, “Is this a thing?” Nobody was quite sure. But Cobain definitely exposed all the creepy little thoughts in my head, and he was clearly listening to the same records I was. “Breed” is a direct descendant of the Descendants. “Lithium” takes the soft/loud of the Pixies to another level, with a lyric charmingly on the verge of reassurance. But it’s the album tracks that didn’t get crammed up our collective asses that make this record special. “Territorial Pissings” sounds like it’s riding side saddle on the engine block of Black Flag’s tour bus, while “Drain You” delivers Dave Grohl’s most punishing drum-kit sledgehammer. Tracks like “Lounge Act” (along with songs like Soul Asylum’s “Somebody to Shove”) helped to mainstream the notion of punk rock. Grohl and Krist Novoselic relentlessly propel the manic “Stay Away,” while Kurt bellows the suburban generation’s rage. “On a Plain” coaxes the spirit of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers out of the walls of Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, CA (dig the backing vocal). And thank God for “Something in the Way” to get me back on my meds.
The Sonics
On CD it’s a mass-produced disc from the ’90s and an early example of the “loudness wars.” The heavily-compressed sound was as much the sensation as the material. Punchy, brutal lows. Frantic, swirling mids. Exploding highs. A truly thrilling and overwhelming recording. Just about any CD renders it adequately in the glorious, aforementioned 16 bit, 44.1 kHz over-sampled resolution. I might just try and collect as many of these things as possible – God knows they pressed a shit load of them. Oh well, whatever.
