Sunsetter wrote:ya, Kurt wanted Albini because he wanted to alienate his audience and show people that they were not a Pop band.
I got that nugget of information from a Kurt Cobain interview. Right before In-Utero came out he literally said, w/ a smirk "I think we're gonna lose a lot of fans w/ this one." because from other interviews and song lyrics it's known that he hated homophobic, hill-billy, macho type people. He wanted to alienate those people. Or if you read the liner notes to Incesticide this is also clearly stated. So it isn't something I "feel" is truth or a hunch, I'm just stating shit that was said by the dude himself. I have no reason to spout off made up bull-shit about the fucking grunge era, I just happen to follow this stuff. For some reason it interests me.
Also, I'know the Major Label had everything to do w/ pressuring them to re-master because it's also a known fact that Steve Albini is known for his Raw recording style. He records in one take and there's almost zero post production involved. He keeps it seriously old school. He refuses to be credited as a producer instead he insists on being credited as, "recorded by:." He also refuses to be paid royalties from sales instead he charges a flat fee. Anyway, Nirvana knew his style and chose him specifically for that reason. It had nothing to do w/ them "trying to elevate a fellow indie rocker." By the time In-Utero was being made Steve Albini was already huge in his respective scene having "recorded" Pixies albums and from his own bands. He hardly needed to be "elevated" by anyone.
OK how is someone choosing to do something the way they want to do it, (use Albini in this case) and acknowledging that some people will not like this direction, how is that the same as "wanting to alienate his audience etc?" You read the motivation to do something not the popular way as a deliberate attempt to alienate your audience, when it might just be simply a direction you want to go in and a nod to the fact that some people won't like it.
Plenty of bands change their sound and style yet don't get tagged as doing it to get cred etc. Another reason why signing to a major is so annoying for some bands, if he made another Nevermind everyone would have called him a sell out, instead In Utero is somewhere between Nevermind and Bleach. As a guitar player, Albini is a great guitar producer, they sound raw and alive under him, his drums sound like ass though, Butch Vig is a far better drum producer, and his guitars aren't as intense. Makes perfect sense since they both play the instruments they do well producing.
And I read into other peoples motives because I'm a human being and I interact w/ people everyday so it's hard to not think about why people are the way they are. I don't drift through life w/o a single thought. I tend to think quite often.
I AM admitting that I like Pop music. That's my whole point! I don't give a fuck who likes what or why. I don't care about the scene or how popular or how "Punk Rock" they are. If I enjoy their music then I will go on enjoying it no matter what. I was talking about how I see others acting in this regard. I'm not defending anything because I don't have to. If I like a sound then I like a sound. That simple. I don't care if 30 million people like it or if no ones ever heard of it. Who's to say that the poppiest artists on earth don't genuinely feel that what they are making is pure art.
Well you tend to frame your thoughts with this from this perspective that underground artists are all either failed famous musicians or that they're deliberately making bad music to pander to hipsters. I'm not saying there aren't groups that do that, just that the framework for motives is much larger than black and white. Sometimes people just like what they like. I do know that most people don't like the kind of music I do, and it's more like a reminder of how odd my music taste must be that only a few people love the same shit I do, definitely not hip, and not cool in any way. Just to let you know though I do get what you actually mean, when you meet someone who likes some obscure band, and you realize they're doing it as a fashion accessory.
