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Taxman · 01-04-2014, 03:11 PM

TAXMAN'S FAVORITE ALBUMS FROM THE NINETIES

PART III

Okay, don't blame me for that one. I know it is kinda predictable choice and it is over hyped. Overrated also. It's influence has not been pretty good. It has been named as the most important nineties record by many, but on the other, because of it's status and popularity, it has became popular to put it down. Even many people who are fans of that band that make it do it. It's their opinion and they have a right to do so.
It is a record that "made alternative mainstream". It was called grunge, punk and nearly whatever, but I have always thought it as damn good punk pop record. Or who cares about genres anyway? It's filled "children songs with distortion". Yeah, I warn you. If you get my drift, this is not gonna be a great text. So many people have wrote about this one that I can't say anything new but you pretend you are interested? Good.

NEVERMIND

Released: 1991
By whom: Nirvana
About the band: Led by a talented songwriter but not very talented human being Kurt Cobain. (If my review includes too much praise for him, let me make this clear: I love his music, but I don't idolize him as a person, I don't analyze his lyrics like some people and I DON'T think him as a some kind of prophet. He was very troubled, but also very talented human being, not anything else.)
You may know that band cos their drummer later founded The Foo Fighters.
The funniest and best thing about Nirvana has always been how they were basically a pop band. Right from the start there were pop elements in their songs. Every song has even one hook. Melodies are simple, songs are repetive and not very diverse. Guitar solos amateurish.
What I like about that record: I love melodies. I have always thought Kurt as a pop songwriter who tried not to be pop. He tried so hard to be edgy (and never really succeeded) that it is kinda funny. It's a paradox. He did not really even sell out the underground. Those bands that were part of so called MTV grunge movement sucked anyway.
Kurt was a big fan of bands like Beatles, ABBA and Vaselines. He was very passionate about his idols, always talking about them and spreading the words, just like they were more important than his own music.
I love that combination of energy and tunefulness. I like all of their albums but I like Nevermind best cos I think Kurt was better when he wrote catchy pop punk ot whatever songs like Smells Like A Teen Spirit (yeah, I even like it...) than when he tried to be so edgy and inaccessible and wrote tunes like Tourettes. I like them too, of course.
Some of their fans (they have a lot of them and some are kinda dull) think that Nevermind is a sell out and if you like it the best you are not a real fan or whatever. That kind of strange things happen when a band becomes big enough. And Kurt never wanted to be and never was able to be his generation's spokesman so forget it. Those lyrics are not even particularly good.
And after his suicide some people have thought that Nirvana was particularly depressing band. It's not true. Right from the start humor was an important part of their music. Nevermind ain't a depressive record. It's pretty funny actually.

What I don't like about this record? Those arrangements would be a bit more diverse. Now it sounds the same from the start to the end. But maybe it would have been too much selling out then. Dunno.

Best songs: I like everything really, but Breed is mind blowing, and Lithium is catchy as hell. No weak moment here, really.

Final Words: It may not be a life-changing album, it may not be the best album from the nineties, it certainly ain't the best album ever, but it is a damn good record that combines pop catchiness with punk energy. I can understand if someone don't like it but if anyone puts it down as a sell-out, I get angry.

And I guess I don't have to post any links this time? Every song is a radio standard anyway?

And sorry for writing that text. I know I have a bad taste. But wait, the most awful examples of my awful mainstream music taste are yet to come. Stay tuned.

01-04-2014, 03:11 PM	#41 (permalink)
Taxman watching the wheels Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Finland Posts: 470	TAXMAN'S FAVORITE ALBUMS FROM THE NINETIES PART III Okay, don't blame me for that one. I know it is kinda predictable choice and it is over hyped. Overrated also. It's influence has not been pretty good. It has been named as the most important nineties record by many, but on the other, because of it's status and popularity, it has became popular to put it down. Even many people who are fans of that band that make it do it. It's their opinion and they have a right to do so. It is a record that "made alternative mainstream". It was called grunge, punk and nearly whatever, but I have always thought it as damn good punk pop record. Or who cares about genres anyway? It's filled "children songs with distortion". Yeah, I warn you. If you get my drift, this is not gonna be a great text. So many people have wrote about this one that I can't say anything new but you pretend you are interested? Good. NEVERMIND Released: 1991 By whom: Nirvana About the band: Led by a talented songwriter but not very talented human being Kurt Cobain. (If my review includes too much praise for him, let me make this clear: I love his music, but I don't idolize him as a person, I don't analyze his lyrics like some people and I DON'T think him as a some kind of prophet. He was very troubled, but also very talented human being, not anything else.) You may know that band cos their drummer later founded The Foo Fighters. The funniest and best thing about Nirvana has always been how they were basically a pop band. Right from the start there were pop elements in their songs. Every song has even one hook. Melodies are simple, songs are repetive and not very diverse. Guitar solos amateurish. What I like about that record: I love melodies. I have always thought Kurt as a pop songwriter who tried not to be pop. He tried so hard to be edgy (and never really succeeded) that it is kinda funny. It's a paradox. He did not really even sell out the underground. Those bands that were part of so called MTV grunge movement sucked anyway. Kurt was a big fan of bands like Beatles, ABBA and Vaselines. He was very passionate about his idols, always talking about them and spreading the words, just like they were more important than his own music. I love that combination of energy and tunefulness. I like all of their albums but I like Nevermind best cos I think Kurt was better when he wrote catchy pop punk ot whatever songs like Smells Like A Teen Spirit (yeah, I even like it...) than when he tried to be so edgy and inaccessible and wrote tunes like Tourettes. I like them too, of course. Some of their fans (they have a lot of them and some are kinda dull) think that Nevermind is a sell out and if you like it the best you are not a real fan or whatever. That kind of strange things happen when a band becomes big enough. And Kurt never wanted to be and never was able to be his generation's spokesman so forget it. Those lyrics are not even particularly good. And after his suicide some people have thought that Nirvana was particularly depressing band. It's not true. Right from the start humor was an important part of their music. Nevermind ain't a depressive record. It's pretty funny actually. What I don't like about this record? Those arrangements would be a bit more diverse. Now it sounds the same from the start to the end. But maybe it would have been too much selling out then. Dunno. Best songs: I like everything really, but Breed is mind blowing, and Lithium is catchy as hell. No weak moment here, really. Final Words: It may not be a life-changing album, it may not be the best album from the nineties, it certainly ain't the best album ever, but it is a damn good record that combines pop catchiness with punk energy. I can understand if someone don't like it but if anyone puts it down as a sell-out, I get angry. And I guess I don't have to post any links this time? Every song is a radio standard anyway? And sorry for writing that text. I know I have a bad taste. But wait, the most awful examples of my awful mainstream music taste are yet to come. Stay tuned. __________________ ...