Or some sort of weird midi-version of real music. Anyway, I still have no idea why this guy wouldn’t just go buy a real guitar and learn how to play, but whatever. Maybe it’s just easier to “play” Nirvana’s “Teen Spirit” with 15 notes.
The best is the last line though, where the guy admits he wasn’t geeky enough for Beauty and the Geek. So you know the dudes on that show are truly hopeless.
One of the things I love about concert bootlegs is the rare chance to hear bands before they became swirled in a cloud of mythology, hype and overexposure.
It’s hard to think of Kurt Cobain nowadays as anything other than the tormented lead singer of Nirvana. Hard to imagine him as some punk kid playing guitar for the love of it, playing music because that’s what brought him solace in his life and ultimately derailed him. But look at that picture of him in 1988, chilling in the back of a van. He looks content, like he’d never want to be anywhere else, playing and singing as Nirvana’s frontman, with Chris Novoselic on bass and Dave Foster on drums (he predated Chad Channing who predated Dave Grohl).
This particular show is only Nirvana’s fifth live performance ever. They played two shows in 1987 and then two shows in January of 1988.
The only way to describe this show is heavy, raw and loud. You really don’t get the sense that this band would be the defining musical act of the upcoming decade. But that’s exactly the band they transformed into and that’s exactly what’s so great about concert bootlegs — the opportunity to hear the promise of a band.
The trio ripped through 16 songs during the show, including several Bleach cuts: “Love Buzz,” “Paper Cuts,” “Floyd the Barber,” “Big Cheese,” and “Blew.” Also, they rocked a great CCR cover “Bad Moon Rising” to close the show and even attempted Led Zeppelin’s “Moby Dick” (though I don’t have that track on my bootleg).
Highlight of the show is without a doubt the rendition of “Spank Thru.” One only wonders what Kurt Cobain’s life would have been like if he was born 10 years later. Would the band have even been popular? There’s no doubt they would have found a loyal fanbase and been a touring animal, but would the pressures of a generation and celebrity weighed so heavily upon Kurt’s shoulders? No one can say for sure, but it’s unfortunate to think the one thing Cobain truly loved ended up destroying him.
Sigh. Worst. Band. Ever. Yup. Really what can you say that won’t already be said when you watch the video below. No mercy killing from the audience, no smiting from God, no gong and even no hook. But honestly, if you can make it through the entire video then all the power to you. We could out of morbid curiosity, it’s like watching some kind of gross gonzo porn. You know you don’t want to be watching, but you keep watching just to see how bad things end up. And it ends up badly. Got to love high school talent shows.
Still here? Okay, well we’ll give you some actual Nirvana to wash that taste of disgust outta your mouth. What’s the over under on how much smack Kurt has in him?
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