Wednesday, August 24th 2011
News: Nirvana
Butch Vig Shocks The World: Kurt Cobain Was A “Pain In The Ass”
It may be hard to believe, but in a little over a month, Nirvana’s landmark album Nevermind will turn 20 years old. To celebrate the occasion, a super-deluxe-mega-fuck-you edition of the album is being released on September 27th complete with rarities, b-sides, alternate takes, live cuts, previously unreleased material and a DVD of an entire Nirvana concert.
Butch Vig, the producer of Nevermind, is making the rounds giving interviews to promote the release. In a recent Rolling Stone interview, he stated that Kurt Cobain wasn’t the easiest guy to work with. “I’d be balancing the drums and the guitar and Kurt would come and say ‘Turn all the treble off. I want it to sound more like Black Sabbath.’ It was kind of a pain in the ass.”
Vig also indicated that Cobain may not have been the chipper, hunky-dory, ain’t-life-grand kind of guy everyone thought him to be (still waiting on that sarcasm font, world). “Kurt was charming and witty, but he would go through these mood swings. He would be totally engaged, then all of a sudden a light switch would go off and he’d go sit in the corner and completely disappear into himself. I didn’t really know how to deal with that.”
Now, the temptation here is to say, “Hey, fuck you, Butch Vig! Who are you to tell a genius like Kurt Cobain how to record an album?!” Well, he was the producer of that album and it was his job to tell Kurt how it should be recorded. We’ve all listened Nevermind many, many times at this point. Everyone knows that while the songs are rooted in punk, they still have a pop sensibility to them.
Would Nevermind have been the album that it was if Cobain had gotten his wish and the album sounded like it was recorded with towels covering the mics? Arguably not. But let’s not forget that Nevermind was only Nirvana’s second album; Cobain wasn’t a seasoned recording vet. He knew how to write good songs, but that doesn’t mean he knew how to make them sound good.
Having said that, it still feels disingenuous to talk shit about a dead guy who, even though he had his flaws, was a musical genius who changed the musical landscape with 12 songs. What’s to be gained by saying that Cobain was, at times, a pain in the ass to work with?
This is not to say that Cobain should be completely idolized and remembered as having no flaws; after all, he made the conscious decision to marry Courtney Love.
While we’re mentioning flaws there’s also that whole “Shotgun in the mouth” thing.
+ 1000 for you.
ouch…that was a low blow there. Very true but a low blow nevertheless.
He’s not demonizing the guy. He’s being honest, and not disrespectful at all, about how Kurt made it harder for him to do his job when making that album. Kyle, no reasonable human being is going to think this is unfair. This article might be better suited to a Kurt fansite, or maybe livejournal.
Whoa does LJ still exist? Thought that shit perished in the great war.
“was a musical genius who changed the musical landscape with 12 songs.” That’s a bold statement; I have a hard time buying him as a musical genius when most of his songs were basic barre chord thrashings. And I hardly think he changed the musical landscape, especially since the Pixies were doing the same thing years before; Nirvana simply benefitted from David Geffen’s influence (see Guns N Roses), MTV and rock radio.
uhhh..huh?
If you were old enough to grasp the shift when Smells Like Teen Spirit hit, you’re able to understand his impact. That one song smashed everything.
AMEN Mr. Firecloud….I was there and it REALLY changed everything…from the flannel+onestars/doc martens trend to the death of glam rock and bringing down the “king of pop” from the top of the lists….good times until the shotgun kiss episode….
Indeed. What a good time it was. So glad to be part of the last great genre in rock music, since the energy is pretty much gone.
Here Here!!! ((Starts slow clap)) into ((Louder clapping))
so what if he played barre chords? all the extended unaccompanied solos in the world weren’t going to save glam rock and hair metal
Is Kyle Kurt’s niece or something? Why is he so oversensitive and saying that Butch is talking shit? The guy is telling the truth in describing the situation. And really, what part of what we all know about Kurt Cobain makes you think he would be anything but a pain in the ass?
I think ‘Smells like teen spirit’ did change the landscape, but musical genius? Really?
Also: “It was kind of a pain in the ass” is a lot different to BUTCH VIG SHOCKS THE WORLD: KURT COBAIN WAS A “PAIN IN THE ASS”
Like I said, we could really use a sarcasm font.
sarcastica
how exactly did Vig “talk shit” about Cobain?
also, Nirvana is one of the most overrated bands ever. they were a very good/great band, but they are given way too much credit for both their music and their impact. it was the collective efforts of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, AIC, RHCP, etc that made the difference.
Speaking of wives, Courtney Love or Yoko Ono?
Hey revtimmyt, do you work at Guitar Center?He took the same chords everyone else knows and plays and made them special. If you want technical virtuosity then keep wanking to your Dream Theater records.
Oh, come on! Kurt Cobain is just one of those “sacred cows” of rock. He had a massive influence indeed, I was there and I worshiped the guy for a few years, but what the fuck? If he was a pain in the ass, then he was a pain on the ass. That doesn’t make his music better or worse.
Good album? YES
Cobain a genius? Hahahahahaha n
No