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Nirvana popularized punk, post-punk and indie-rock, unintentionally bringing it into the American mainstream like no other band before it. While its sound was equal parts Black Sabbath and Cheap Trick, Nirvana's aesthetics were strictly indie-rock. They covered Vaselines songs, they revived New Wave cuts by Devo, and leader Kurt Cobain relentlessly pushed his favorite bands - whether it was art-punk of the Raincoats or the country-fried hardcore of the Meat Puppets - as if his favorite records were always more important than his own music. While Nirvana's ideology was indie-rock and their melodies were pop, the sonic rush of their records and live shows merged the post-industrial white noise with heavy metal grind. And that's what made the group an unprecedented multi-platinum sensation.
Cobain married Courtney Love, the leader of the indie-rock/foxcore band Hole, in February of 1992. Contoversy arose over heroin use during pregnancy, but France Bean Cobain was born a healthy baby, on August 18, 1992.
Jane's Addiction and Soundgarden may have proven to the vast American heavy metal audience that alternative could rock, and the Pixies may have merged pop sensibilities with indie-rock white noise, but Nirvana pulled at all together, creating a sound that was both fiery and melodic. Since Nirvana was rooted in the indie aesthetic, but loved pop music, they fought their stardom while courting it, becoming some of the most notorious anti-rock stars in history. The fate of the band and Kurt Cobain had been sealed. Suffering from drug addiction and manic depression, Cobain had become destructive and suicidal, though his management and label were able to hide the extent of his problems from the public until April 8, 1994, when he was found dead of a self-inflicted shotgun wound. Cobain may not have been able to weather Nirvana's success, but the band's legacy stands as one of the most influential in rock & roll history...
Following Cobain's death, Grohl formed the Foo Fighters, who released their debut album in the summer of 1995. Novoselic formed the trio Sweet 75, who released their debut in the spring of 1997.
from All-Music Guide bio by Stephen Thomas Erlewine |
