Nirvana - In Utero

DGC

September 21st, 1993.

After the explosion of the band two years prior with the release of the game-changing and industry shifting 'Nevermind', the band set their sights on album number three. Albini produced - inherently meaning that In Utero was always going to be what it would become - the material that the studio sessions churned out brought with it an untamed quality; loose and rather out of control. The band pushed the sound further in to animalistic territory - feral, ferocious, fucking wild.

About as raw an album of it's size and scale has ever been - on a popularity level, nothing has been this widespread and simultaneously downright filthy. The unhinged feel of the material comes through in raucous guitar tones, distorted vocals and drums that are nothing short of explosive.

Not many bands of Nirvana's size can live up to the reputation - both on a sonic and aesthetic level and also on the level of popularity, innovation and musicality. The industry was caught in their tailwind and there were no signs of the band easing off the throttle. It was full steams ahead with little to no care for outcome. In Utero is the sound of a band in contention with its ties - pushing the limits of what's capable; being taken over by something from the other half of one's psyche. A deeper, darker side is in conflict. Coming to the surface it spills in to the cracks that line the soul - gluing it shut with oozing bile. Shut off from the world it festers and infects. Invisible to the naked eye, though the signs were always there.

Nirvana's 'MTV Unplugged', recorded two months after In Utero's release, is essential listening for anyone looking to gain a greater perspective as to why Cobain is regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all-time. These songs change in the context of an acoustic setting. The person is pulled out of the wreck.