Archive for Nirvana

Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme Owes His Fame, in Part, to Heavy-Rock Amigos

Posted in Features, Interviews with tags , , , , , , on 06/11/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

As the only remaining original member of Queens of the Stone Age, Josh Homme is synonymous with the band that boasts substantial critical repute, commercial success, and peer respect. But as QOTSA proceeds deeper into their 30th year, they’re preparing for two of their highest-profile tours yet this summer, with Foo Fighters in the U.S. and System of a Down in Europe, respectively. Since QOTSA’s inception, fans of heavy rock have always regarded Homme as the leader of the group, due to his authorship of the vast majority of its songs and his role as the project’s mainstay member as its cast rotated routinely over the years.

Indeed, Homme’s imposing presence and distinct appearance as a 6’4” red-haired front man adds to his band’s singularly striking presence in the rock universe. But not only are there well-founded doubts that QOTSA may not have lasted as long as it were it not for the other musicians who have membership in the band on their resumes, Homme’s ever-growing list of collaborations with the creme de la creme of mainstream music has boosted his prominence even higher than his often unconventional take on rock music alone would have accomplished.

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‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Could’ve Parodied Lots More Nirvana Songs After Spoofing ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’

Posted in Comedy, Features, Videos with tags , , , on 06/03/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

The Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Queen, The Police, R.E.M. and dozens more artists (except Coolio) were cool with, and sometimes even flattered by, “Weird Al” Yankovic parodying their songs. But perhaps no musician was more delighted by the comical accordion player and singer parodying one of his songs than Kurt Cobain.

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Maneka Marvels Over Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind,’ Polvo’s ‘Exploded Drawing,’ Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’

Posted in Interviews, Lists with tags , , , , , , , , , on 05/27/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

Ever run into a stranger wearing a T-shirt of a band you like, strike up a conversation and realize how much you have in common? That maybe they’re your doppelgänger, even? And then, the deeper you get to know that person, it dawns on you that their taste in music is actually superior to yours? But at that point you’ve already exchanged phone numbers and promised they’ll be your +1 at an upcoming gig you both really wanna see and then you get so nervous about meeting up with them at the show because you know you’ll be distracted from the band’s performance and instead obsess over your inferiority complex to your new amigo to the point that you second-guess whether it was even worth attending said show because it’s induced more anxiety than excitement in the marrow of your bones?

Does that ever happen to you?

We had a hunch Maneka (a.k.a. Devin McKnight of Speedy Ortiz and Grass Is Green) was onto something cool way back in 2017, when we got our mitts on a copy of their debut, Is You Is. Admittedly, we gave it a listen after reading that a description that touted the release as “future-space alien-dream-post punk.” Five years later, Maneka dropped Dark Matters, in which the artist “deftly explored the anxieties of working as a Black man in majority white indie rock spaces,” according to his press materials.

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Dave Grohl’s Hardcore-Punk Bonafides Propelled Him – and Nirvana – to Enormous Mainstream Success

Posted in Essays, Features with tags , , , , , , on 05/08/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

When Nirvana signed to a major label in 1990, they had already established a strong fan base in their hometown of Seattle thanks to the underground success of Bleach, their debut album. But even though the band was just a trio, the consistency of its lineup was tested by a Spinal Tap-esque rotating cast of drummers (the last of which was Dave Grohl). When Nirvana inked a deal with the David Geffen-owned DGC Records, they also faced skepticism from a fan base suspect of artists tied to corporate entities. Whether deliberate or not, Kurt Cobain successfully diffused those concerns while simultaneously strengthening his three-piece by tapping Grohl, a drummer who had already established his punk-rock bona fides by the time he joined the band in his early 20s. Read my full feature on the topic courtesy of Collider.


Happy Birthday, Dave Grohl!

Posted in Comedy with tags , , , , , , , on 01/14/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

“Don’t tell me how to make a record. I was in Nirvana. I was in the greatest rock and roll band of the ’90s. We changed the course of rock music. … Give me a carton of Marlboros. Fuck you, man, I was in Nirvana, you asshole. I’m on RCA, dammit. Don’t you know who I am? I’m a millionaire.”
Dave Grohl of Nirvana (and Foo Fighters, and Queens of the Stone Age, and Them Crooked Vultures, and Mondo Generator, and Sound City Players, and Backbeat Band, and Scream).

Porch Coffin Frontman and Bad Penny Geek Out Over Nirvana, From the Hits to the Rarities

Posted in Interviews, Videos with tags , , on 12/22/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

At a memorial ceremony for Kurt Cobain held April 12, 1994, Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic delivered a brief eulogy that continues to resonate with great potency today.

“No band is special, no player royalty. But if you’ve got a guitar and a lot of soul, just bang something out and mean it. You’re the superstar,” he said. “Heck, use your guitar as a drum, just catch the groove and let it flow out of your heart.”

Not too many years after that, a kid named Evan Blaine in Daytona, Florida, was given his first CD, Nirvana’s In Utero, from his brother. Some of the songs were already familiar to him, as Blaine’s brother and father used a guitar tablature book to learn how to play tunes from Nirvana Unplugged in the family living room.

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The 20 Best ’90s American Grunge Bands of All Time

Posted in Lists, Videos with tags , , , , , , , , , on 12/20/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

Disagree if you dare.

1. Nirvana

2. Melvins

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Nirvana’s 10 Best Videos, Ranked

Posted in Lists, Videos with tags on 09/20/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

1. “Heart-Shaped Box”

2. “In Bloom”

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Labyrinth: The History Of Nirvana

Posted in Fun And Games with tags , , , on 02/24/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

If you enjoyed the Jesus Lizard labyrinth we brought you a few light years ago, crack yer knuckles and get to work on this new puzzle revolving around their fallen friends, Nirvana.

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Nirvana’s ‘In Utero’: The Heart-Shaped Album That Married Mainstream and Indie Rock

Posted in Essays with tags , , , on 11/09/2023 by Kurt Orzeck

With Nirvana’s In Utero celebrating its 30-year anniversary, check out my argument — itself three decades in the making — on why the band’s best record changed rock music forever. Read the treatise, accompanied by Anton Corbijn photos, on FLOOD.