Nirvana

Bleach through Nevermind

The early formation of Nirvana began when Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic met in 1985. The pair had similar tastes in music and decided to form a band. They worked with several drummers and went through a host of names before settling with Nirvana in 1988. The name is a Sanskrit term used to signify enlightenment and freedom from desire. Just one year later Nirvana's first album, Bleach, was released by Sub Pop Records. It was filled with raw and heavy guitar sounds and heavily influenced by 70s rock and The Melvins.

In 1990 the band began working on their first album for a major label, DGC Records. They recorded and mixed for months until Nevermind was finally released later in the year. The album wasn't expected to sell more than 500,000 copies. It reached over three million units in the U.S. in under six months. Smells Like Teen Spirit, the title track from the album, became Nirvana's signature track and received heavy airplay on the radio and MTV. Michael Jackson and other pop artists lost the top slot to Nirvana, symbolizing the re-birth of alternative rock.

Later Years

In February of 1992 Cobain married Courtney Love. That August she gave birth to daughter Frances Bean.

Nirvana's next album, Incesticide, was released in late 1992 and was a collection of B-sides and rarities. Many of their unreleased early recordings and radio sessions were being circulated as illegal bootlegs; Incesticide beat them to it.

One year after Incesticide, Nirvana released In Utero, an album recorded and mixed in just two weeks. Producer Steve Albini was reportedly brought in to give the new album a raw, grungy sound in an attempt to distance Nirvana from their mainstream audience. Some tracks in In Utero feature long periods of distortion and feedback noises. Cobain maintained that Albini's sound was the one he'd always wanted Nirvana to have, untouched by studio sound manipulation tricks and the like.

In Utero also forced Nirvana to deal with corporate censorship. Retailers such as Wal-Mart recused to carry the album due to the cover art and song titles such as Rape Me on the back. The band obliged, reworked the cover art and titled their controversial song Waif Me for special units produced for family-oriented retail stores. Kurt Cobain later told the press he chose to give in to the stores' demands because many of his fans lived in small towns and had no other source for buying music.

The famous MTV Unplugged session was held in 1993 where Nirvana decided to unveil a radical change of direction. Acoustic ballads and Cobain's surprisingly deep songwriting skill were the highlight of the recording session, a stark opposition to their usual blaring guitars and raw sound.

The End of Nirvana

One year after the MTV Unplugged session, Nirvana kicked off a European tour. It was plagued with difficulties and Cobain seemed distracted and bored during most of the shows. He was diagnosed with bronchitis and severe laryngitis in March of that year and several days later was found unconscious by wife Courtney Love. The tour was canceled and doctors told the press the singer had reacted to a combination of alcohol and prescription Rohypnol.

Cobain's heroin addiction resurfaced in the following weeks. The band members convinced him to check into rehab. After only a few days in the clinic, Kurt climbed over the wall and flew back to Seattle. One week later on Friday, April 9, 1994, Cobain's body was discovered in his Seattle home by an electrician. The circumstances surrounding Kurt Cobain's death are questionable, but the official investigation concluded it was suicide. Without Kurt Cobain, Nirvana was dissolved.

Subsequent Nirvana Releases

Several Nirvana albums have been released since the death of Kurt Cobain, including live performances, bootlegs and unreleased studio recordings.

• Unplugged in New York (1994) - The live performance for MTV in New York City featured guests such as the Meat Puppets and an eerie subdued atmosphere.

• From the Muddy Banks of the Wishkah (1996) - A set of live electric material originally intended to be released with Unplugged in New York.

• Nirvana (2002) - A greatest-hits CD featuring the previously unreleased track You Know You're Right, Nirvana's last studio recording.

• With the Lights Out (2004) - A Nirvana box set is finally released after a long legal battle between former Nirvana members and Courtney Love. A large selection of early demos from Kurt, rehearsal recordings and many live tracks were included in the set.

• Sliver: The Best of the Box (2005) - A compilation CD of 19 tracks from the box set, including three previously unreleased tracks.

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