By Nam Nguyen
Not so long ago, everyone was so hyped up about the upcoming release of Nirvana's Unplugged in New York. Every rock and alternative radio station was promoting the album, which was to be available in stores in November. Now that November is past and the album has been in stores for a few weeks, it appears that not many people are aware that the album has finally hit the market. Every time I ask a person who proclaims to be an alternative music listener what they think of the album, I get the same response: "Oh, is it already out?" This unawareness is primarily the result of the music industry's lack of enthusiasm for the Nirvana album. Once in a while, a station would play "About a Girl," the first single from the new album, but never have I heard a DJ stating that the new album has been officially released. Did people all of a sudden lose interest in Nirvana's music? Let's hope not, because, as is evident in Unplugged, Nirvana's music is still what it was; it is the same music that attracted millions of fans.
The album itself concentrates primarily on pre-Nevermind and pre-In Utero songs and covers from smaller alternative bands, such as "The Man Who Sold the World" by David Bowie and "Lake of Fire" by the Meat Puppets. However, the album also includes such hits as "Come As You Are" and "All Apologies." Throughout the album, Kurt Cobain's raspy voice and his scruffy guitar dictate every song, bringing the listener back to the days of Nevermind and In Utero. In addition, the album presents an aspect of Cobain of which not so many people are aware. Through the witty and self-depreciating comments that he made in the album, Cobain showed that he, too, was capable of sedateness. For those who saw the Unplugged event on MTV, Cobain appeared very calm that night. With his somewhat long, messy hair, old sweater and ripped jeans, Cobain sat calmly on a stool, plucking his guitar and singing his heart out. Was this calmness the last stage that Cobain reached before his collision with death?
It is said that people are calmest before they commit suicide. Last year when MTV first aired NirvanaÕs Unplugged session, no one could have expected Cobain's suicide six months later. But when listening to Cobain wail "I'm so tired and I can't sleep" during "Pennyroyal Tea," a new song he had just written, and "Where do folks go when they die, they don't go to Heaven where angels fly, go to a lake of fire and fry," an eerie and uneasy feeling permeates the atmosphere. The sedateness that appeared in Cobain that night is similar to the sedateness of an old man who is on his deathbed.
Even though Kurt Cobain has left this world, he has left his fans his most prized possession--his music; and it is up to his fans to keep his melodies alive.
From pg. 8+ of The Moment, 7 Dec. 1994