Super producer Butch Vig, who many may also know as a member of Garbage, has slagged off Nirvana front man Kurt Cobain on the eve of the 20th anniversary of their seminal album Nevermind (In the nicest possible way of course).
In a lengthy interview with Rolling Stone to mark the anniversary of the release, Vig has revealed that they began the demos for what would eventually become Nevermind at his Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin in April 1990. Driving 1,900 miles from Seattle, Vig recalls “They rolled up in a van, and they probably hadn’t taken a bath or shower in three or four days.”
Naturally the band’s money ran out after five days, but those demos were enough to get them a major label deal with Geffen Records.
Vig concedes that Kurt was no angel to deal with then, even as a poverty stricken indie artist. “Kurt was charming and witty, but he would go through these mood swings,” acknowledges Vig. “He would be totally engaged, then all of a sudden a light switch would go off and he’d go sit in the corner and completely disappear into himself. I didn’t really know how to deal with that.”
He 20th anniversary edition of the album contains many outtakes, demo versions and rehearsal boom box recordings of what would become iconic songs, although Vig says that the recording sessions were fraught at times. “I’d be balancing the drums and the guitars,” says Vig, “and Kurt would come and say, ‘Turn all the treble off. I want it to sound more like Black Sabbath.’ It was kind of a pain in the ass.”
