Nirvana: Montage of Heck

[Giants Fan 85]

I am a big Nirvana fan. I was in a frat in Arizona, when they broke out, after my getting out of the "punk scene". But I remember teaching my frat bros how to slam dance to Smells Like Teen Spirit. I was in a frat where they were cool with me being a little bit punk. We had Asians, black guys, even homosexuals, it turns out, but we were good people. And I'll be honest, I had Nevermind on cassette and I played the hell outta that tape. I loved Nirvana.

 

Ok, so ... The doc, first, not as good as About a Son. If yer gonna see a film to try and understand what Cobain went through, better film.

 

The paralels, in my life are kinda spooky. Lotta people I know from the old punk days are dead. Heroin, mostly. Live fast, die young, right?

[Giants Fan 85]

Whole thing is on youtube. Better:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjpIw1Vlx_E

 

There's a bigger picture. Bands like Sleater-Kinney that is named for an exit near Seattle and had frontperson Carrie Brownstein of Portlandia fame. Uhhh ... Pearl Jam anyone? Soundgarden? Even Le Tigre ... Lead singer chick was part of that Seattle crowd .... all at the same time.

 

It changed rock and roll forever .... when Nirvana hit. It was like some seismic shift ... Punk rock is now top 40. But that Seattle punk rock thing ... In the late 80's ...and the musicians that came out of that "grunge" period ... are legendary.

 

Kurt made sure of that.

 

For me because, it so represented a period of my young life, I enjoyed Montage of Heck, and will likely watch it again. It was really interesting to me to see s guy like Chris who you knew he was going to lose his hair at like 50 years old ... hardly looks like the same person. And he's ... Ya know, out of the business now. Pretty much just looks like your normal 50 year old dude. Started Nirvana with Kurt Cobain.

 

Recently turned 45 myself, it's just so weird to see some people from back in the day and they just look so, totally different.

 

Fat, bald, grey. Makes me feel old. And glad I never tried heroin.

[Giants Fan 85]

For every Kurt Cobain there are 1000 lawyers that also shoot themselves in the head.

 

My brother was 6 1/2 years older than me, and promised me he was going to be a rock star. He was a pretty good songwriter. I was 9 and he was 16 when my parents got divorced. But I can't stand listening to his music. Still too sad for me. Also, I can sing better than him. He was not a great singer.

 

Recently, my niece in the hospital (still in a coma, but it looks like she is gonna make it) I know that, in a heartbeat ...I can imitate my brother's voice ... like a dog that was alive when my brother was alive and anyone that I care about ... That really knows me ... would prolly listen to these tapes and think it sounds like me talking, or my brother.

 

I've never really been suicidal though. Not afraid of death either after 9/11. When it happens, it happens.

 

As much as I was a young celebrated artist in the same mold as Cobain ... I got turned off from the whole thing. Decided I didn't want to be famous .... was not a good reason to make art ... and a lot of the things I cared about when I was younger could be easier accomplished from within the system. I went underground.

[Giants Fan 85]

I still have this LP in my old punk collection:

 

 

Kids these days ... Think Blink 182 is punk. Listen to some OG punk harmonica, bichez.

[Giants Fan 85]

The NYC scene was pretty tough when I was hanging out at CBGB. Cromags, Agnostic Front.

 

That was football for me, that was my sport when i was 15. Slam dancing at the Sunday Matine at CBGB. Come home limping one day, hurt my knee. Mom complaining. "Why do you do this violent thing? It seems crazy to me." and that's just how I described it, like playing football. I enjoyed it. Prolly safer than football, head injuries are very rare in slam dancing.

[Giants Fan 85]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKqohCwl3xU

 

I was never a fan of their music ... A little too thrash for my tastes ... But if you are slam dancing ... it's perfect.

 

So 1985 ... Like post Sex pistols, post DK, post Ramones ... There was this thrash thing that happened. Bands like Motorhead and Metallica were using hardcore punk, thrash music techniques ... Junkata junkata junk .... Absolute horror!

 

Sid Vicous died, then Darby Crash died and it made possible ... kurt cobain ... Also died.

 

And it's even really arguable if Nirvana really was the first "punk" band to be top 40.

 

After all ...

 

 

Billy Idol's band named the generation. He's still alive. Nobody is talking about him as a punk rock God. Prolly desrves a lot more credit than he gets.

[Giants Fan 85]

Please refer to sections 3-9, punk rock in Britain between 1979 and 1985 becuase England took it and was loike:

 

 

Test on Friday. Know the difference between hardcore and punk, and where it came from, and at what time? This test is all gonna be pre-Nirvana ... bands like the Germs that led to Nirvana. Be able to quote at least one Germs song.

[Giants Fan 85]

Without the Germs, there is no Nirvana.