Nirvana

Seattle rockers Nirvana became the reluctant poster children for the 1990s grunge revolution, and paid a dear price for it. Founded in the late ‘80s by Aberdeen, Washington high school friends Kurt Cobain (vocals/guitar) and Krist Novoselic, Nirvana steadily honed their craft until signing to Seattle independent record label, Sub Pop. With drummer Chad Channing in tow, the group recorded its debut album, ‘Bleach,’ and released it to modest indie buzz in 1989, eventually landing on the radar of major Geffen Records, which agreed to release their next album. But absolutely no one (least of all Cobain, Novoselic and new drummer Dave Grohl) was prepared for the unprecedented global phenomenon that was 1991’s ‘Nevermind,’ which tipped the pop music world on its head, sold over 30 million copies, and turned the band into stadium-filling headliners. The pressures associated with this incredible success had already taken a toll on Cobain (along with drug abuse and other issues) by the September 1993 release of Nirvana’s third album, ‘In Utero’; but the band nevertheless soldiered out on tour, with their lineup augmented by second guitarist Pat Smear (of the Germs). Then, on March 6, 1994, Cobain suffered a drug overdose in Rome and all subsequent dates were canceled so he could return to America and check into rehab. Barely one month later, on April 8, Cobain was found dead in his Seattle mansion, the victim of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, thus bringing an end to Nirvana. In the aftermath, Novoselic eventually decided to leave music to pursue other interests, while Grohl reinvented himself for continued stardom as the frontman of Foo Fighters.

 

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