When I think of Nirvana I think Kurt Cobain. Immediately. The soft spoken lead singer of Nirvana was a fantastic singer, songwriter and a truly troubled endearing intellectual. His tragic death touched many in the music community and all over the world. I remember hearing of his death and seeing the terrifying displays of tears from his beloved fans. His lyrics were incredibly deep and insightful-
"Meat-eating orchids forgive no one just yet
Cut myself angel's hair and baby's breath
Broken hymen of your highness I'm left black
Throw down your umbilical noose so I can climb right back"
-Heart-Shaped Box
Nirvana opened up a new genre of music. Grunge. With all due repsect for Nirvana- they started grunge. Grunge. Grunge brought Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam brought tears to my eyes- not exactly tears of joy, but more along the lines of misery that Pearl Jam became... well Pearl Jam.
But this is not about Hurl Jam. This is about Nirvana. You cannot escape Nirvana. I would put five dollars down that my own mother knows the lyrics to Smells Like Teen Spirit simply from driving me to school and back and the damn radio jockey's unknown obsession with continuously repeating the track over and over. I cannot walk through my college campus without seeing a Nirvana poster displayed right next to the obligatory Scarface poster in 5 out of ten dorm rooms. Tie-dye went out of fashion the minute someone tie-dyed a shirt. But I cannot seem to reason why everyone owns a tie-dyed Nirvana shirt. In normal conversation with your average college stoner, if you speak wrongly of Nirvana, watch out. That kid might just actually open his eyes past a squint and get angry.
Nirvana is over-rated.
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2 comments:
AH Nirvana, they who over shadowed so many great NW bands. Dude I was 16 when Cobain died (meaning you were at the tender age of 8 or so). I was listening to the radio driving myself home from High school in Davis while you attended Patwin Elementary. Stunned as I drove into the garage. Transfixed by history passing.
MTV was a non-stop Nirvana fest for days. And although I have always despised them, I was still transfixed, the way only a sixteen year old girl in the thrall of that delicate music/cause/fashion culture of teenage depression could grab a social deviant such as myself.
It was that year I discovered Pearl Jam(Yes, I love Ten, you can't take that away from me.) NIN Skinny Puppy Sex Pistols and Death in June. The year of my musical awakening, breaking away from the safe familiar strains of Simon and Garfunkel, Genesis and Enya (thank god on the last one, however the first two are musical genius)
An icon died, the way many music icons do. Stupidly. and so transfixed the bands immortality.
They never had the time to burn out.
But have you ever heard of The Gits or Temple of the Dog...Sleeter-Kinney... That's what I want to know...
Yeah, well not exactly know the lyrics, but know what you mean. There are many fragment so of songs from those days. Lots and lots.
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