Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
VERSE CHORUS VERSE, 18 Nov 2004
All through time there have been bands that have influenced certain groups of people so much that they become voices of a generation. Nirvana is one of these bands. There is no point in any of you old rockers out there trying to deny it. Nirvana didn't do anything new, but what they did do was done in such a way that they made a whole generation of bored teenagers want to start a band and do it for themselves. For Nirvana, it was all about the timing. If i heard Nevermind now i would think "Yup, that is pretty heavy, but at the same time, pretty cool" but when i heard it when i was 14 years old i just thought "That is the most amazing, cool, angry, fingers up to society thing i have ever heard". It was like hearing my mums Beatles records being played with attitude, and this was something i could totally identify with at the time. The first song i ever heard was "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and i only heard the chorus first time. It blew me away so i went out and bought the single. Back in these days, buying a single or album was the most exciting thing in the world because you just couldn't wait to hear what you had just bought. I remember rushing home and putting single on. What i heard truly blew me away and i had to play it again about 10 times to take it all in. It was the verses i couldn't understand. I was supposed to be into all things angry and heavy at the time yet i totally loved the quite parts of the song as much as the heavy chorus. For me, and i'll bet for millions of other young teenagers at that time, hearing that one song was enough for me to go and buy every Nirvana record i could find, and every time having that weird sense of anticipation before you could get the record to a record player and finally hear another Nirvana masterpiece. Don't get me wrong, while all of Nevermind is truly classic and pretty much invented "Alternative" music, Nirvana did have some bad songs, and even now i am getting into bands that i might even go as far as saying i like more than Nirvana, but at the time of its release Neverming was an absolute classic, powerful, cool and life changing album. People are forgetting the fun to be had in dicovering an album like this and because its so easy to download music these days, the true experience of dicovering a band is fading very fast.
|
|
|
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant, 26 Aug 2007
It doesn't matter that this album became popular. It doesn't matter that Cobain moved away from the underground scene by injecting a bit more melody in his songs on 'Nevermind'. It doesn't matter that the ethos of American indie music or the 'grunge' scene didn't start with Nirvana. The fact is that this is an outstanding record. Why did it sell more copies than anything by The Pixies? Because it's better than The Pixies.
Music doesn't always have mass appeal just because it conforms to the lowest common denominator. Sometimes it really is just that good. And you can make the argument that everything is derivative - all music builds upon something that came before it.
The truth is that there isn't a bad track on this album. Beatle-esque harmonies are interwoven with grinding guitars and bouncy little bass loops. The drums drive everything on with frenetic energy. Cobain's voice cracks and howls throughout, bridging the gap between blues and punk. And the lyrics speak to the angst-ridden teenager in us all. Everything just seems to gel perfectly. And when music is this good, all that other nonsense is meaningless. 'Selling out', in this case, is just a euphemism for 'getting better'.
My favourite track is probably 'Lounge Act' because it shimmies along in a vaguely sleezy kind of way. But 'Drain You' has a great opening; 'On a Plain' has these great, breathy vocal harmonies; 'Stay Away' is a proper shriek-along song; and 'Something in the Way' is creepy and uplifting at the same time - no mean feat. I surely don't need to say much about the 4 singles that were lifted from the album, you will have heard them a zillion times already. But what I will say is that if you like those tracks, you'll be amazed at how the record actually gets better after them (ie. on the vinyl copy I owned originally, the b side is actually better than the a side). Which is saying something when you're talking about 4 of the best songs of the early 90s: 'Smells Like Teen Spirit', 'In Bloom', 'Come As You Are' and 'Lithium'.
Seriously, don't get put off by the opinions of people who want to appear cool by rejecting something just because it was popular, or by pointing out that someone else did something similar before. Quality is quality. Who cares if someone wants to make themselves look clever?
|
|
|
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Nirvana - Nevermind, 20 Feb 2005
By A Customer
If you don't already have this album in your CD collection, I suggest that you purchase it now, because it's an absolute must-have.
It may be over a decade since the band was abruptly halted by singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain's suicide, and yet this is still one of those albums that keeps selling and keeps selling.
Thousands of teens every year get their first taste of Nirvana. More addictive than any narcotic, and there's no horrible come-down. You can just keep listening and keep listening, and the high just gets better and better.
Smells Like Teen Spirit is the band's most famous song, without a doubt. The raw guitar into, the moment where the drums cascade into action and the fuzz peddle is pushed hard to the floor...it's the soundtrack to so many great experiences.
Come As You Are is arguably one of the best songs they ever recorded. With Krist's watery bass into, and the infectious yet simple vocal arragement is truly magic.
But skip straight to number four if you want something to headbang, jump around, scream your lungs out to! Breed is the epitome of all things loud and amazing.
Then Drain You, Lounge Act and On A Plain are the best of the rest, although it broke my heart to have to choose my favourites. This whole album is astoundingly good, and you should buy it immediately, and play it as loud as your stereo will allow you.
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
