SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT Hard to believe it’s been 17 years since Kurt Cobain died. Or that this September marks the 20th anniversary of Nevermind. It’s hands-down my favorite album of all time, and more importantly, Nirvana was and to this day, is still the greatest band to me. Kurt, as an artist, had a profound influence on me growing up. He wasn’t about the money or the fame, and he consistently challenged the corporations and the consumers, his own fans. It’s easy to see why a lot of people call him the voice of Generation X. While I can’t exactly say I can relate to certain things about Kurt (i.e., the drug use), he does represent what it means to be a musician, and on a broader sense, an artist, in the purest form. In the years following his death and the older I got, the more and more I started to understand what he was about and what he stood for. And I realized I shared the same views. He was outspoken and did things that he wanted and refused to conform. I maintain that MTV did not make Nirvana. Nirvana made MTV. And if anyone disagrees, his stunt at the 1992 MTV Music Awards is the proof you need. The man had MTV by the balls. Nirvana and Kurt brought about the end of an era in music, and ushered in a new one. Rock music in the 80s had become corporate, excessive, corrupt and with one song Nirvana killed that paradigm. Nirvana opened people’s ears to a burgeoning underground scene and a plethora of great musicians and artists no one in the mainstream audience knew existed because they weren’t listening. Kurt brought us alternative rock and since then, rock music expanded exponentially. I truly do believe Nirvana was the prototype, not for alt. rock or post-grunge, but for indie rock. His ethics and criticism of fame is something that many indie bands stand by today. It’s all about the music when all is said and done; not record sales or certifications or Billboard charts. Kurt picked the word “nirvana” because it was about being able to express himself as a musician and an artist, free from pain and suffering that was ironically brought upon him by the same mainstream recognition his music achieved. If anything, Nirvana and what ultimately happened to Kurt, should serve as a reminder of what corporations, capitalism, and the consumers can do to you as an artist. I have become a very indie-minded artist over the course of three years, and have had my perceptions shattered because of college and the “real world”. Because of that, Kurt Cobain is a major influence on me. He was an ordinary person, flaws and all, who got thrust into an extraordinary situation, and struggled to cope with it. But through his art, he stood out as opposed to what everyone wants to do, which is fit in. It’s a shame we lost someone like Kurt; it’s even more of a shame to wonder what could have possibly happened had he and Nirvana were still around. The good always die young. And on that note, today, 17 years after his death, I close with a quote from Kurt: “Thank you for the tragedy. I need it for my art.” RIP Kurt Cobain Here we are now, entertain us -“Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana

SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT

Hard to believe it’s been 17 years since Kurt Cobain died. Or that this September marks the 20th anniversary of Nevermind. It’s hands-down my favorite album of all time, and more importantly, Nirvana was and to this day, is still the greatest band to me. Kurt, as an artist, had a profound influence on me growing up. He wasn’t about the money or the fame, and he consistently challenged the corporations and the consumers, his own fans. It’s easy to see why a lot of people call him the voice of Generation X. While I can’t exactly say I can relate to certain things about Kurt (i.e., the drug use), he does represent what it means to be a musician, and on a broader sense, an artist, in the purest form.

In the years following his death and the older I got, the more and more I started to understand what he was about and what he stood for. And I realized I shared the same views. He was outspoken and did things that he wanted and refused to conform. I maintain that MTV did not make Nirvana. Nirvana made MTV. And if anyone disagrees, his stunt at the 1992 MTV Music Awards is the proof you need. The man had MTV by the balls. Nirvana and Kurt brought about the end of an era in music, and ushered in a new one.

Rock music in the 80s had become corporate, excessive, corrupt and with one song Nirvana killed that paradigm. Nirvana opened people’s ears to a burgeoning underground scene and a plethora of great musicians and artists no one in the mainstream audience knew existed because they weren’t listening. Kurt brought us alternative rock and since then, rock music expanded exponentially. I truly do believe Nirvana was the prototype, not for alt. rock or post-grunge, but for indie rock. His ethics and criticism of fame is something that many indie bands stand by today. It’s all about the music when all is said and done; not record sales or certifications or Billboard charts. Kurt picked the word “nirvana” because it was about being able to express himself as a musician and an artist, free from pain and suffering that was ironically brought upon him by the same mainstream recognition his music achieved. If anything, Nirvana and what ultimately happened to Kurt, should serve as a reminder of what corporations, capitalism, and the consumers can do to you as an artist.

I have become a very indie-minded artist over the course of three years, and have had my perceptions shattered because of college and the “real world”. Because of that, Kurt Cobain is a major influence on me. He was an ordinary person, flaws and all, who got thrust into an extraordinary situation, and struggled to cope with it. But through his art, he stood out as opposed to what everyone wants to do, which is fit in. It’s a shame we lost someone like Kurt; it’s even more of a shame to wonder what could have possibly happened had he and Nirvana were still around. The good always die young. And on that note, today, 17 years after his death, I close with a quote from Kurt:

“Thank you for the tragedy. I need it for my art.”

RIP Kurt Cobain

Here we are now, entertain us

-“Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana

  • 04.05.11