Nirvana’s In Utero exudes nightmarish beauty

In 1993, Nirvana was king of the grunge world. Two years earlier, they released their breakthrough album, Nevermind, which garnered incredibly commercial success. Butch Vig produced that album, and he produced it very well; a little too well for the band’s liking.  (Butch would often trick Kurt into recording multiple guitar layers by telling Kurt he wanted to hear different takes of the same part.) When they began recording their third full-length LP in February of 1993, Nirvana decided it would return to its messy roots. They recorded for exactly two weeks, and later that same year, In Utero was unleashed onto the public.

The band was thorough in its search for a producer that would deliver the sonic landscape it was trying to achieve. Steve Albini was their man. Albini’s production work on In Utero has sometimes been criticized and even tinkered with, but I don’t think there’s any doubt that Albini made this record exactly how it was supposed to be made.

To start, Dave Grohl’s drums sound way heavier than they do on Nevermind. And the type of reverb Albini applies on the drums gives them a distinct sound that I’ve never heard reproduced. It does justice to Grohl’s relentless and deliberate drumming style. It also allows the drums to contrast nicely with the vocals and guitar, which are often left dry. All in all, listening to In Utero makes you feel like you’re in a garage with Nirvana as they play.

Though the record captures Nirvana’s shift to a much rawer sound, Cobain’s songwriting still possesses pop sensibilities. In Utero is a great example of the magic that happens when those sensibilities are mixed with the stripped-down anger of punk. Even songs like “Milk It” — a loud, rambling, abrasive piece of work — contain vocal melodies you can’t help but sing along to (just don’t destroy your throat). Make no mistake, Nirvana is not a pop band and In Utero is nowhere near being a pop album. In fact, the label was worried that the album had no commercial appeal. (They were wrong.)

As always, Cobain’s lyrics are not particularly happy; but they are still often amusing. The very first line of the very first song (“Serve the Servants”) is, “Teenage angst has paid off well, now I’m bored and old.” With this lyric and others Cobain shows how self-aware he is without being too pretentious about it. You always get a sense that, even during his most depressing lines, he’s being tongue-in-cheek.

Cobain also delivers an incredible vocal performance. Technically, it’s a nightmare, but In Utero certainly makes no effort to display a high level of technical prowess. I say it’s a nightmare because Kurt is constantly distorting his voice. And it sounds freaking amazing. His wailing on “Pennyroyal Tea,” his exclaimed “heys” in “Heart-Shaped Box,” even his incoherent yelling on “Tourette’s” gives In Utero the very last ingredient for a classic Nirvana album.

The one complaint I have about this album is that Krist Novoselic’s bass is sort of muddy and drowned out, so the audience misses out on his beautiful melodic bass lines. But whatever — this is still Nirvana’s best album.