Grunge rock’s most attractive and romantic frontman, Kurt Cobain, had a penchant for the ugly, the obscene, and the poetic. He was sort of a walking dichotomy; he hated the mainstream, and he hated fame, but he also wanted both. As he attained a slice of them, he altered their constitution forevermore.
When Nirvana started touring, Cobain took the initiative and worked diligently to make music his career. He didn’t really have anything else but music. Prior to the band taking off commercially, he had worked as a janitor at his old high school, endured a spell of homelessness, and lived under a bridge for a while. Music kept him going throughout this struggle, so when he rose through the ranks, he was never the sort that took any swipes at his peers.
He simply adored art and the exultancy that it provides. In addition to his music, Cobain also drew and painted pictures; his art frequently incorporated themes of anorexia, death, and mental illness – all of which Cobain flirted with at some point in his life. In his worst times, Cobain was heavily malnourished, and while his height was 5 feet and 9 inches, he weighed around 120 to 130 pounds. Of course, later in his life, Cobain became a known heroin user and struggled on and off with his addiction.
These were all troubles that the enigmatic singer dealt with, and, despite this, he was loved by many and was considered a creative genius by some. Perhaps it was how closely Cobain walked on the edge of complete self-destruction that allowed him to touch upon these themes in his work so convincingly. With sincerity, he effectively built-up a scene around him.
Nirvana were very active in the grunge music scene in Seattle, Washington, spearheading its encirclement of the world. A prominent eventual offshoot soon landed in Glasgow, Scotland, where a softer, sweater form took hold. Cobain grew fond of this strand. So, Nirvana eventually went on tour with one of its leading lights, the band Teenage Fanclub. The two hit the road together during a string of dates across Europe during a time when Nirvana were supporting their Bleach record.
“We did the European leg of Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’ tour in 1992, which was pandemonium and phenomenons like that don’t happen often,” Norman Blake of the Teenage Fanclub said about the band. “We’d known Nirvana from their Bleach period and they remained the same. They were still down-to-earth; maybe overwhelmed by what was happening.”
This was, in part, because during the early phases of their evolution, Europe proved ahead of the curve when it came to Nirvana fandom. Ironically, many see the 1990s in retrospect as showcasing a huge UK-US divide with grunge billowing in the States and Britpop bossing it on the other side of the pond. This somewhat undermines the true transcendence of Nirvana and the revolution that they had kickstarted without barely even knowing it themselves. They hadn’t even brought over enough albums for the hungry market to buy during their first time out in Europe.
During this time, Nirvana slowly became huge, most notably for their smash hit ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’. Blake continued to reminisce: “I’ve great memories of us hanging out in a playpark eating ice cream in Stockholm after a soundcheck. Even though Kurt [Cobain] had some issues, he was generally happy and in a good space then.”
The two bands had a deep mutual respect for one another; Teenage Fanclub would cover Nirvana’s ‘About A Girl’ during the tour. “Kurt was wearing heavy eyeliner and he had a real fan moment, and it was an amazing thing to witness,” Blake remembers fondly. “He had his troubles and issues with drug addiction, but behind all that was a young guy from Aberdeen who loved music, was friendly and enthusiastic and the thing I remember most about him is his lovely smile.”
However, of all the things he uttered, Blake made note of one remark he’s been dining out on ever since. One of the most memorable moments involving both bands is when Cobain claimed that Teenage Fanclub were the “best band in the world”. Quite a statement.
“But we weren’t even his favourite band from Glasgow. That was The Vaselines,” Blake said in response to this with the NME. “People often say, ‘you were Kurt Cobain’s favourite band’,” but Blake always brushes this off. Instead, he chooses to share the spotlight with his buddies in the Vaselines, and points them towards Dying for It, an album which Cobain said contained, “some of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard,” while he listed it among his favourite records of all-time.
