Customer Reviews

Nevermind (180 Gram Vinyl)

5 star:		(1,156)
4 star:		(164)
3 star:		(96)
2 star:		(87)
1 star:		(286)

 

 

.......and "Nevermind" still sounds fresh. How? Nirvana were just that damn good. Dave Grohl's drumming was not only powerful, but lightning-speed fast (my personal pick for the greatest drummer ever). Krist Novoselic's bass skills were amazing, melodic, furious, and catchy. And Kurt Cobain, well, what can't you say about the guy? I can sit here and say all these great (and true) things about Kurt, but I'll leave it at this: there is a reason Kurt is a legend, and this was proven numerous times before his unfortunate passing. All the classics are here, "In Bloom", "Lithium", "Come As You Are" (my personal favorite from the band), and, of course, "Smells Like Teen Spirit". But the album as a whole is amazing. "Drain You" is one of the best Alternative songs ever made. "Breed", "Territorial Pissings", and "Stay Away" are punk rock perfection. "Something In The Way" is haunting (it's far superior on their "Unplugged In New York" album), while "Polly" is a glimpse of Cobain's "softer" side at it's best. Even the worst ones here, "Lounge Act" and "On A Plane", are better than anything Creed will ever do (I guess that isn't saying much, but you get the point, those two songs are still brilliant). Cobain was a brilliant singer-songwriter, he could be filled with rage and self-doubt one second ("Smells Like Teen Spirit" and "Something In The Way") and be funny the next ("Breed" and "Lithium"). From lines like "Here we are now, entertain us" to "I'm so ugly, that's okay, 'cause so are you", not many could even come close to the talent of Kurt Cobain. From start to finish, Nirvana made one of those rare albums that manages to pull everything out of the bare essentials (guitars, bass, drums) and make an absolute classic out of it. Some of these songs sound better on the band's live albums, and even "In Utero" was just as good as "Nevermind" (despite what some say), and even those two albums put together could not equal "Unplugged In New York"; but this still stands as a landmark for not only rock, but music in general. It was talent beyond anything mortal, that's for sure.

Nirvana's Nevermind sounds so cliche and overplayed today because a million and one bands have ripped off their innovative sound that molded grunge and rock music for the better. The musicianship of the album isn't complicated for the mostpart, as "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and "Come As You Are" are typical songs for the early guitarist, but the song writing and arrangements are so well done that the need for anything profound and complex is immediately thrown out. Nirvana was a band who were great at what they did, needing only their honesty and emotion to get them across, not flashy 80's solos and glam attire.

Kurt Cobain's guitar work, as stated, was not complex, but was interesting, new, innovative, creative, and original, as he was one of the first artists to begin using the rhythm guitar to lead the melody without the choppy leads of 80's hair metal. His chord progressions are simple and basic for a large portion of the album, but throughout the entire recording his technique stays true to form, using original flowing riffs to carry the song when he does use his instrument as a lead. Kurt Cobain's guitar style has essentially motivated and shaped how the instrument has been used since 1991 and almost all of rock's song writing processes today. In equal impressiveness alongside his guitar skill are Cobain's lyrics and his vocal stylings, which always have an underwritten sense of urgency and need in them, supporting the hurt heard in his voice. Although he did not possess one of the greatest voices in music, and still does not, he used his singing well with the music, fitting the musicianship and instrumentation perfectly.

Chris Novoselic's bass lines are upbeat, catchy, and just as sincere as Kurt's guitar playing, his instrument carrying a melody all of its own instead of just following the bass drum and staying in the background, once again breaking away from the rock and metal stylings of the previous decade. Truly standout. Alongside him on the rhythm is Dave Grohl, who should've stuck with the drums instead of moving onto fronting the Foo Fighters in later years and taking up guitar duties. His drumming is solid and top notch on Nevermind, showing him at his best on the instrument he shines with.

Standout tracks in addition to the first six, all of which were hit singles, are "On A Plain" and "Something In The Way"'s acoustic strummings. One of the greatest albums of the 90's. You may think Nirvana is getting a bit old now and the sound too cliche, but try to listen from a perspective when all this was new to the scene and you will feel the truly groundbreaking effect on you it was meant to have.

I was 16 when it was released and I loved it then and I love it now. For me this is something I can listen to the whole way through without skipping songs. I think the 12 songs on this CD have aged quite well and fit well in any rock fans collection.

I have read the last 300 reviews and many people don't know what they are talking about. I didn't realize how polarizing this album was.

Music shouldn't be about technical guitar prowess or a 5 octave vocal range or hair spray. People shouldn't be caught up with genre labels like grunge, punk, emo, hair metal, nu-metal, alternative. Reviews of music shouldn't comment on the personal lives of the artist's drug use, death, or bizarre choice of mate. You shouldn't even care about how tastes in fashion and music changed after this (and other "grunge" acts) came onto the scene.

It should be about the songs and how you relate to them personally. If you don't like this that is fine, but the other superfluous [...]shouldn't be relevant in the discussion of the album, please feel free to get a MySpace account and [...]about it there.

Most people reading this already owns this CD anyways, but I'm going to say my bit anyways. This album is notorious for what it did to the music industry within months of its release: it not only helped kill off the stagnant and already-dying 80's metal scene, but it pushed everything prepackaged and inherently processed aside (it started Michael Jackson's sales decline), and for that I absolutely love this album. Plus, if not for Nirvana, I probably wouldn't have discovered Soundgarden or Alice In Chains until much later, and considering my personal life in 1992, I dread to think of what other musical choices I had to listen to back then.

As far as the songs on this CD, if it only had "Smells Like Teen Spirit" recorded twelve times, it would still be a great album. Luckily, there are a few more, and they're all quite good. As far as Nirvana's best album, that title would go to _In Utero_, but by then they were already established and people bought _In Utero_ out of habit. _Bleach_ is another one that everyone should own, since the songs are much more raw and loose than on _Nevermind_, but the drumming kinda sucks, since Dave Grohl wasn't part of the band yet.

I stopped listening to Nirvana abruptly after Cobain chose to leave the industry, but after a few years of listening to all the newer bands imitate the style, it was very refreshing to go back and listen to _Nevermind_ as if it were my first time. And for killing off hair metal, I will forever love this album...

To all the one star reviewers: Let's remember folks who Nirvana and "their ilk" deposed literally overnight. Bands like Warrant, Bad English, Lita Ford, Poison, Motley Crue, Skid Row, Def Leppard, Cinderella, Slaughter, Whitesnake, Twisted Sister, Tesla, and everybody's favorite glam hairband with one hit on MTV: Great White. They all bitched in early 1992 that they couldn't get a gig to get their hair done. Sure some of these bands have hung around to play the local bar, I heard Motley Crue is playing big concerts again and Def Leppard is selling out state fairs. Wow. I digress. The point is this: popular music at that time sucked. Yes we all know Nirvana isn't god and the album is not something to be worshiped. But it was different.

I bought the remastered edition unlike most of these reviewers. (How does a 10 year old review help if the CD came out yesterday)? Packaging is almost identical as the original. The waves of color are in slightly different shapes. Really the only thing is the copyright date and a clear jewel case tray.

The sound is hotter than the original, on average about 4-6db louder. I know this because I measured. The limiting is used extensively. Not the best remaster I've heard as it gets shrill in the mid range and looses definition all over the place. The U2 remasters are the best I've heard on CD.) It's a toss up, I'm afraid, the original with it's faults or the remaster with new additional faults. It's not a loudness issue people. It's a clarity issue. I don't listen to music through 1/16th inch speakers in my living room. I own a stereo with a volume control on it. I know, it's an amazing feature. So let me turn up the music.

Is there any doubt that this is the landmark album of the 1990's? Some might say this distinction belongs to Dr. Dre's THE CHRONIC, Beck's ODELAY, Pearl Jam's TEN, or even Radiohead's OK COMPUTER, but NEVERMIND has to be the choice. The entire genre of rock throughout the 90's was based on this record with every band trying to recapture its memorable sound and market appeal. Of course "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was the anthem that started the alternative revolution, but there's quality in many other songs here besides just this. I'm not sure why, but "Something In The Way" has always stood out to me with its gentle, yet sad mood. The haunting "Come As You Are" will always remain an emotional track because of the circumstances that would follow a few years later. The true punk roots of Nirvana are shown well in "Territorial Pissings," which is possibly the most brutal and emotional song I've ever heard. "In Bloom" and "Lithium" became MTV and radio staples for good reason since they displayed with a vengenace that NEVERMIND had much more depth beyond its well-known first hit. My final favorite, among many, would be "Polly" because of its mid-tempo pace and hummable chorus that isn't buried amongst the guitars. It's a shame to see about ten copies of this CD in every used record store I walk into because it should be a part of any fan's collection who has absoluely the slightest interest at all in rock, metal, punk, or power-pop music.

The original CD release sounds A LOT better than the remastered version (more dynamic) .
The remastered CD is over-compressed to the point where there's clipping all over the place.
Dave Grohl's drums sound flat and lifeless now. It's a shame that such a legendary album
gets such a terrible treatment.
Google "Loudness War" to find out more about the technical details.

After reading everyone's opinions and I have to admit some of the people that hated it brought up some rudimentary points I felt the need to comentate. A good rock album (to me) is one that can spark up heavy emotion and perspective. I'm only 15 and missed out on the grunge scene when "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was overplayed but I remember being 10 and first hearing Teen Spirit and the chord changes hooked me. Later on in life I bought the album and clocked in many hours of air guitar playing before I snapped and begged my parents to buy me a guitar. I remember being mad on several occasion and playing a rendition of "Territorial Pissings" on my guitar and screaming as loud as Kurt."Gotta find a way, a better way" The songs in this album are excellent examples of what good music is, which is an artist putting his own twist on his influences and you can hear echoes of The Who or a hard rock Beatles (Helter Skelter) on "Come As You Are" and "Drain You" Krist Novoselic even admitted that Tenn Spirit sounded like a Pixies rip-off. And Kurt even added strings to "Something in The Way" even the hidden track "Endless Nameless" is a result of Kurt's listening to feedback records. Kurt is not the greatest guitarist in the world but in "Endless Nameless" and later in In Utero Kurt shows his skills in noisemaking he made his guitar drone out endless amounts of feedback cacophony which to me is pure bliss. No one except for Thurston Moore can make anti-solos like Kurt could and as for the rest of the album he blended punk rock and hard rock into these 12 songs which are excellent sonic blasts and through all of the distortion and the spitfire drums are some thoughtful, cynical lyrics. "In Bloom" for example attacks the macho man who listens to their songs and dosen't know what they mean "Come As You Are" is like a challenging invitation, to go into sociey "doused in mud" or "as I want you to be" and will be forever haunting becuse Cobain swears he dosen't have a gun. "Polly" is about a raping in Seattle a haunting tale of how a 14 year old girl was raped by what Cobain called "a waste of sperm and eggs" However all of the songs revealed to the world how a fragile soul in all of his pain and his hidden genius turn a melody into an artform. Let all the speculation fall away becuse while boy/girl groups and shallow rap rock dominate the airwaves, I will turn to Nevermind and all of the other great rock albums as an influence for my own band and we'll hopefully change music around as Cobain did for us 9 years ago. This is (and I know Kurt would hate the praise)the best alt-rock album of the 90's and it will live in the hearts of Generation X'ers forever those who don't understand it are either too old to care to young and ignorant or unfortunatly too shallow to know good music when they hear it

A few things to clear up:

1. To the reviewer 'Anya' - what statistics are you getting your info from?! 'Nevermind' sold thousands more copies worldwide than 'Ten' ever did; dont make up facts yourself just because you dislike Nirvana. (Although I do think 'Ten' is a better album.)

2. Nirvana didnt influence any 'nu-metal.' Nirvana influenced the crappy neo-grunge bands like Creed and Puddle of mudd. Nu-metal has rapping, turntables, highly distorted guitars (of no substance) and barely intelligible baselines. None of the songs on 'Nevermind' are applicable to these attributes. Nu-metal was mainly influenced by bands such as Helmet and the downfall of other acts like Korn.

3. To the people whining about kids idolising Nirvana because they think they can relate to Kurt Kobain. So what?! If kids want to idolise people let them, why do you care so much? Let them idolise Celine Dion as well while they're at it.

4. It seems it's a fashion to bash this album as much as possible now because it makes you a 'true metalhead.' Hmm, and you call people who buy popular chart music fickle...

Anyway, MY OPINION on the album, and not the popular underground opinion is that yes, i believe it's highly overrated, perhaps justly, perhaps not. It is NOT a bad album however. It wipes the floor with anything that Nickleback and the like have produced (which isnt hard) but it still falls short when you put it up against classics such as Badmotorfinger. The music is highly simplistic and catchy, which if that is what you look for in music then fair enough, thats your bag. Just because it isnt yours doesnt give you any right to plague these pages with your idiotic reviews giving your opinions of Kurt Kobain and not of the actual album. Free speech requires a certain amount of substance.

If you enjoy catchy music with a hard edge, this is the album for you. Its an important album more for its impact, not for its content. If you want more technical and groundbreaking modern music; the underground music scene is your only real hope.

I look at the reviews, and a lot of people say that this album sucks and that they hate it and it's boring and not at all musical. I, however, disagree. This album made me who I am. It brought out everything inside me which was hidden. It is the epitome of teenage angst albums. Some of you may like Smashing Pumpkins or Pearl Jam or Metallica, and I do too, but this album offers something special: 12 absolutely perfect songs which could not sound better in a million years.

Track 2: In Bloom Good guitar, good bass, insightful lyrics which discuss doing things because they're popular when you don't understand them.

Track 3: Come as you Are Amazing bass line, lyrics are about a paranoid individual who wants people to remove their social "masks" and talk to him openly.

Track 4: Breed Raw power.

Track 5: Lithium Lyrically ingenious, Cobain sees inside the mind of a manic depressant (or just a depressed teenager) and shows the world. A good bass help this song mature into a classic. Lyrics can make you cry.

Track 6: Polly A depressing song (with amazing guitar) about a girl who was raped and killed.

Track 7: Territorial Pissings More raw power, with an awesome guitar line and lyrics about being alienated from the world.

Track 8: Drain You Can you say brilliant? A love and lust song with a medical twist -- Drain You truly grasps the heart of a young lover who wants his girlfriend and holds it forever.

Track 9: Lounge Act Musically, the beginning is wonderful. A song about being boring to other people.

Track 10: Stay Away Begins with an extraordinary drum solo. As the title suggests, this song is about wanting to be left alone, but once you are alone, you begin to feel unloved.

Track 11: On a Plain The worst song on the album, and still extraordinary. Insightful lyrics coupled with a good guitar.

Track 12: Something in the Way A song about never getting what you need because there are obstacles in your way which you can never pass. Beautiful guitar and vocals. This song always, ALWAYS changes your mood.

Trakc 1: Smells Like Teen Spirit The most amazing song of all time. Yes, people say Cobain himself didn't like this song. And many hardcore Nirvana fans don't like this song. But I believe that it captures my heart in a way no other song can do. The opening guitar which continues through the song never fails to amaze me when I hear it. The lyrics seem like they are from my own heart, and encompass everything which I ever feel. This song never fails to cheer me up when I hear it. It is truly my anthem.