Dear Friends,
Friday came and went. I interviewed Dave Mustaine of Megadeth. That happened. It was awesome, too. Look for a New Times cover story in the near future.
I also spent some time brushing up on a few songs that will be played at the Yucca Tap Room on August 2nd. That might be a vague thing, but if you know what is going on at the Yucca that night, you can probably figure it out. It is fun to dust those songs off.
I went to the dump. It was the first time that I left stuff in the “Rangeley Walmart” and didn’t bring anything home. There were no books I felt I couldn’t live without or anything else that was super cool. I might not make it back there before I head home, so if that was the last dump run for a while, so be it. I love going out there, though. It’s a nice drive, too.
Beyond that, I watched Rhondi work the tractor and I got the mower out and did a big section of the yard that the tractor can’t get to very easily. It felt good to get out there and do some work.
*****
Today is a mystery. I’m not sure what it will bring, but hopefully something good. There is a lot of things I’d like to see and do before heading home. I haven’t gone on any real hikes yet, so that could be the order of the day. We might also go to a pond and get our swim on.
We shall see, though, what we shall see.
****
It’s weird when a lot of your favorite music happened well before you knew it existed. I feel like I’ve been playing catch up for most of my life when it comes to the bands I like and the music I love. For probably half of the music I have written about so far, the anticipation of a new album by said band was not something I experienced in the moment.
Nirvana, though, happened in my lifetime, under my watch, and it was fun to be there from almost the beginning.
There was a lot of anticipation when In Utero came out in 1993. It was the first real follow-up to Nevermind and I was very interested to see if they were going to be able to keep the party going. They did.
“Serve the Servants” is the perfect first song. It starts off with this really sour sounding chord progression. It probably turned off millions of listeners right away. This probably pleased the late Kurt Cobain to no end.
It’s not a great song, really, so I won’t waste any platitudes here. I do like that it was kind of a “fuck you” to the ‘average’ listener, though. Nirvana was kind of saying, “We dare you to stick with this. Those that do shall be rewarded.”
I remember thinking, “Fuck, yes” when I heard it and then was even happier with “Scentless Apprentice.” This one reminded me a bit of the power of the songs on Bleach. I was hoping the third LP would be more like the first. What we got was a band that was going to do its own thing.
“Heart Shaped Box” is such a lovely song. It’s batting third here and that’s usually where your best hitter hits in the lineup. It’s easily the most memorable song on In Utero. In retrospect, I’m guessing this is the song most of Cobain’s true fans get the most emotional when they hear it. “Heart Shaped Box” sounds like a man who is contemplating bigger thoughts.
Of course, “Rape Me” is a rocker and it has a message, so it’s the heavy hitter of the first half of the record. I remember wondering if it would be on the album after seeing them play it live a few times before this came out. Great song.
“Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle” is another great song. It’s another one where you listen to the record and think about how 1994 played out. I guess I really do tie this record to Cobain’s suicide a lot. That was a day that hit me hard.
I was so excited about Nirvana at the time. As I really think about it, the main reason that I have not really listened to this record much in the last couple of decades is that it bums me out. I wanted to see what they would come up with next. “I miss the comfort in being sad” speaks volumes.
“Dumb” – same. I love it, but it makes me sad, too. What a wonderful yet melancholy melody. The guy could certainly write the ear worms.
“Very Ape” is the real message to Seatle here. It’s a bit of a love letter to the bands from Seattle who were doing cool stuff in Nirvana’s shadow. At least that is what I choose to believe.
I like “Milk It” a lot. It’s another one that reminds me that Nirvana was so much more than just this band capable of big, anthemic grunge riffs. They really balanced the anthems and the noisy, post-punk stuff nicely on In Utero.
“Pennyroyal Tea” is so good. I fell in love with it right off the bat. Now, of course, it makes me sad knowing that Cobain suffered from significant stomach issues. How much of that was from using drugs, no one will really ever know, but it doesn’t matter. It’s a good song. Kids will discover it for decades to come.
“Radio Friendly Unit Shifter” and “Tourette’s” are great just the way they are. Nirvana poking fun at the establishment was expected and natural for them. They could’ve written a book on it, but instead we just got some great songs. Again, I have to believe there were more of these gems in Cobain.
With the last song being “All Apologies,” it just kind is what it is. It’s a great song. I can’t listen to it without being wistful, but for a of us, this record is always going feel like someone saying goodbye when we really don’t want them to say goodbye.
“In the sun, I feel as one.”
I will always miss seeing Nirvana play live. Always. They were so damn good.
*****
See you tomorrow.
In the sun, AI feels as one.
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