''In Utero'' is the third and final
studio album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
by American
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
Nirvana
( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
. It was released on September 21, 1993, by
DGC Records
DGC Records (an initialism for the David Geffen Company) was an American record label that operated as a division of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, which is owned by the Universal Music Group.
History
DGC Records was launched in 1990 as a subsi ...
. After breaking into the mainstream with their second album, ''
Nevermind
''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a major label and the first to feature drummer Dave Grohl. Produced by Butch Vig, ''Neve ...
'' (1991), Nirvana hired
Steve Albini
Steve Albini (pronounced ; born July 22, 1962) is an American musician, record producer, audio engineer and music journalist. He was a member of Big Black, Rapeman and Flour, and is a member of Shellac. He is the founder, owner and principal en ...
to record ''In Utero'', seeking a more complex, abrasive sound that was also reminiscent of their debut album,
''Bleach'' (1989). Frontman
Kurt Cobain
Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994) was an American musician who served as the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Through his angst-fueled songwriting and anti-establishment persona ...
took heavy inspiration from his personal struggles for the album's lyrics, many of which express feelings of angst that were common on ''Nevermind''.
The album was recorded over two weeks in February 1993 at
Pachyderm Studio
Pachyderm Recording Studio is a residential music recording studio located in Cannon Falls, Minnesota, United States, 35.8 mi (57.6 km) southeast of Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport. It is located in a secluded old-growth ...
in
Cannon Falls, Minnesota
Cannon Falls is a city in Goodhue County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 4,083 at the 2010 census. Located along U.S. Route 52, southeast of the Twin Cities, Cannon Falls is the home of Pachyderm Studio, where many famous musici ...
. Soon after recording began, rumors circulated that DGC might not release the album due to Albini's abrasive and uncommercial sound. In response, the label hired producer
Scott Litt
Scott Warren Litt (born March 10, 1954) is an American record producer who mostly works with artists in the alternative rock genre and is best known for producing six R.E.M. albums in the late 1980s and early to mid-1990s during the band's most su ...
to remix the singles "
All Apologies
"All Apologies" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It appears as the 12th track on the band's third and final studio album, '' In Utero'', released by DGC Records in September 1993. The song ...
", "
Heart-Shaped Box
"Heart-Shaped Box" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It appears as the third track on the band's third and final studio album, ''In Utero'', released by DGC Records in September 1993 ...
" and "
Pennyroyal Tea
"Pennyroyal Tea" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the ninth track on the band's third and final studio album, ''In Utero'', released in 1993.
The song was due to be released as th ...
", upsetting both Albini and the band.
''In Utero'' was a major commercial and critical success. Critics praised the album’s raw, unconventional sound and Cobain's lyricism. It reached number one on the US
''Billboard'' 200 and
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
; "Heart-Shaped Box" and "All Apologies" reached number one on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Alternative Songs
Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...
chart. The album is certified
five-times platinum in the US and has sold 15 million copies worldwide. It was the final Nirvana album before
Cobain's suicide in 1994. "
Pennyroyal Tea
"Pennyroyal Tea" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the ninth track on the band's third and final studio album, ''In Utero'', released in 1993.
The song was due to be released as th ...
", planned as a single prior to Cobain's death, was released in 2014 and reached number one on the ''Billboard''
Hot 100 Singles Sales chart.
Background
![Shellac ATP 2007-guitariste](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Shellac_ATP_2007-guitariste.jpg)
Nirvana broke into the mainstream with their second album, ''
Nevermind
''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a major label and the first to feature drummer Dave Grohl. Produced by Butch Vig, ''Neve ...
'', in 1991. Despite modest sales estimates, ''Nevermind'' was a major commercial success, popularizing the
grunge
Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of p ...
movement and
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
. Nirvana expressed dissatisfaction with the sound of the album, citing its production as too polished. Early in 1992, songwriter
Kurt Cobain
Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994) was an American musician who served as the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Through his angst-fueled songwriting and anti-establishment persona ...
told ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' that Nirvana's next album would showcase "both of the extremes" of their sound, saying: "It'll be more raw with some songs and more candy pop on some of the others. It won't be as one-dimensional."
The ''Nevermind'' producer,
Butch Vig
Bryan David "Butch" Vig (born August 2, 1955) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the drummer and co-producer of the alternative rock band Garbage and the producer of the diamond-selling Nirvana album ''Neve ...
, said later that Cobain had needed to work with a different producer to "reclaim his punk ethics or cred".
Cobain wanted to start work in mid-1992, but his bandmates lived in different cities, and Cobain and his wife,
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, her career has spanned four decades. She rose to prominence as t ...
, were expecting the birth of their daughter,
Frances Bean. Nirvana's record label,
DGC Records
DGC Records (an initialism for the David Geffen Company) was an American record label that operated as a division of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, which is owned by the Universal Music Group.
History
DGC Records was launched in 1990 as a subsi ...
, had hoped to release a new Nirvana album for the 1992 holiday season; instead, they released the compilation album ''
Incesticide''.
[Gaar, Gillian G. "Verse Chorus Verse: The Recording History of Nirvana". '' Goldmine''. February 14, 1997.]
In a ''
Melody Maker
''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...
'' interview published in July 1992, Cobain said he was interested in recording with
Jack Endino
Jack Endino (born Michael M. Giacondino; 1964) is an American producer and musician based in Seattle, Washington. Long associated with Seattle label Sub Pop and the grunge movement, Endino worked on seminal albums from bands including Mudhon ...
, who had produced Nirvana's 1989 debut album ''
Bleach
Bleach is the generic name for any chemical product that is used industrially or domestically to remove color (whitening) from a fabric or fiber or to clean or to remove stains in a process called bleaching. It often refers specifically, to ...
'', and
Steve Albini
Steve Albini (pronounced ; born July 22, 1962) is an American musician, record producer, audio engineer and music journalist. He was a member of Big Black, Rapeman and Flour, and is a member of Shellac. He is the founder, owner and principal en ...
, former frontman of the
noise rock
Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...
band
Big Black
Big Black was an American punk rock band from Evanston, Illinois, active from 1981 to 1987. Founded by singer and guitarist Steve Albini, the band's initial lineup also included guitarist Santiago Durango and bassist Jeff Pezzati, both of Nake ...
, who had produced various
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
releases. In Seattle in October 1992, Nirvana recorded several demos with Endino, mainly as instrumentals, including songs later rerecorded for ''In Utero''. Endino recalled that the band did not ask him to produce its next record, and that they constantly debated working with Albini. Nirvana recorded another set of demos while on tour in Brazil in January 1993. "Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip" was recorded by
Craig Montgomery
Craig Montgomery is a fictional character on the CBS soap opera ''As the World Turns''. He has been portrayed by Scott Bryce from 1982 to 1991, 1993 to 1994 and 2007 to 2008, Hunt Block from 2000 to 2005, Jeffrey Meek from 2006 to 2007, and Jon ...
at BMG Ariola Ltda in
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, during the three-day demo session. The song was originally titled "I'll Take You Down to the Pavement", a reference to an argument between Cobain and
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...
singer
Axl Rose
W. Axl Rose (born William Bruce Rose Jr.; born February 6, 1962) is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead vocalist and lyricist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, and has been the band's sole constant member since its incep ...
at the
1992 MTV Video Music Awards.
Nirvana ultimately chose Albini to record its third album.
Albini had a reputation in the American independent music scene as being critical of the mainstream music industry and had a strict preference for analog recording than digital.
[DeRogatis, 2003. p. 5–6] He sent a disclaimer to the British music press denying rumors of his involvement with Nirvana, only to receive a call from Nirvana's management a few days later. Albini dismissed Nirvana as "
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the first alternati ...
with a
fuzzbox
Distortion and overdrive are forms of audio signal processing used to alter the sound of amplified electric musical instruments, usually by increasing their gain, producing a "fuzzy", "growling", or "gritty" tone. Distortion is most commonly ...
" and "an unremarkable version of the Seattle sound". However, he accepted the job because he felt sorry for them, perceiving them as "the same sort of people as all the small-fry bands I deal with", at the mercy of their record company.
[Azerrad, 1994. p. 314]
Cobain said he chose Albini because he had produced two of his favorite records, ''
Surfer Rosa
''Surfer Rosa'' is the debut studio album by the American alternative rock band Pixies, released in March 1988 on the British label 4AD. It was produced by Steve Albini. ''Surfer Rosa'' contains many of the elements of Pixies' earlier output, incl ...
'' (1988) by the
Pixies
A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas aro ...
and ''
Pod'' (1990) by
the Breeders
The Breeders are an American alternative rock band based in Dayton, Ohio, consisting of members Kim Deal (rhythm guitar, lead vocals), her twin sister Kelley Deal (lead guitar, vocals), Josephine Wiggs (bass guitar, vocals) and Jim Macpherson ...
. Cobain wanted to use Albini's technique of capturing the natural
ambience of a room via the placement of several microphones, something previous Nirvana producers had been averse to trying.
Before the recording, the band sent Albini a tape of the demos they had made in Brazil. In return, Albini sent Cobain a copy of the
PJ Harvey
Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments.
Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined loca ...
album ''
Rid of Me
''Rid of Me'' is the second studio album by English singer-songwriter and musician PJ Harvey. It was released by Island Records in May 1993, approximately one year after the release of her critically acclaimed debut album '' Dry''. It marked a ...
'' (1993) to give him an idea of the acoustics at the studio where they would record.
Recording
Nirvana and Albini set a two-week deadline for recording. At the suggestion of Albini, who was wary of interference from DGC, Nirvana paid for the sessions with their own money. Studio fees totaled
US$
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
24,000, while Albini took a flat fee of $100,000. Though he stood to earn about $500,000 from royalties, Albini refused to accept them,
[Cameron, Keith. "This Is Pop". ''Mojo''. May 2001.] as he considered taking royalties immoral and "an insult to the artist".
![2009-0528-PachydermStudio-drive](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/2009-0528-PachydermStudio-drive.jpg)
In February 1993, Nirvana traveled to
Pachyderm Studio
Pachyderm Recording Studio is a residential music recording studio located in Cannon Falls, Minnesota, United States, 35.8 mi (57.6 km) southeast of Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport. It is located in a secluded old-growth ...
in
Cannon Falls, Minnesota
Cannon Falls is a city in Goodhue County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 4,083 at the 2010 census. Located along U.S. Route 52, southeast of the Twin Cities, Cannon Falls is the home of Pachyderm Studio, where many famous musici ...
.
[Gaar, 2006. p. 40] Albini did not meet them until the first day of recording, though he had spoken to them beforehand about the type of album they wanted to make; he observed that "they wanted to make precisely the sort of record that I'm comfortable doing". The group stayed in a house on the studio grounds. Novoselic compared the isolated conditions to a
gulag
The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= was the government agency in ...
; he said, "There was snow outside, we couldn't go anywhere. We just worked."
For most of the sessions, only the band, Albini, and technician
Bob Weston
Bob Weston (born 1965) is an American musician, producer, recording engineer, and record mastering engineer. Critic Jason AnkenyAnkeny, Jason. " Bob Weston: Overview from Allmusic.com declares that "Weston's name and fingerprints are all over th ...
were present.
Nirvana made it clear to DGC and their management company Gold Mountain that they wanted no intrusion, and did not play their work in progress for their
A&R representative.
[Azerrad, 1994. p. 315] Albini instituted a policy of ignoring everyone except for the band members; he said that everyone associated with Nirvana were "the biggest pieces of shit I ever met".
Nirvana arrived at Pachyderm Studio without their equipment and spent much of the first three days waiting for it to arrive by mail. Once recording began, on February 13, work moved quickly.
On most days, the group began work around midday, took breaks for lunch and dinner, and worked until midnight.
For most songs, Cobain, Novoselic, and Grohl recorded their basic instrumental tracks together as a band.
For faster songs, such as "Very Ape" and "Tourette's", the drums were recorded separately in a kitchen for its natural
reverb
Reverberation (also known as reverb), in acoustics, is a persistence of sound, after a sound is produced. Reverberation is created when a sound or signal is reflected causing numerous reflections to build up and then decay as the sound is abso ...
. Albini surrounded Grohl's drum kit with about 30 microphones.
Cobain added additional guitar tracks to about half of the songs, then guitar solos, and finally vocals. The band did not discard takes and kept virtually everything they recorded.
Albini saw himself more as an engineer than a producer; despite his personal opinions, he let the band choose takes. He said, "Generally speaking,
obainknows what he thinks is acceptable and what isn't acceptable
.. He can make concrete steps to improve things that he doesn't think are acceptable."
[Azerrad, 1994. p. 317] Cobain reportedly recorded all his vocal tracks in six hours.
[Gaar, 2006. p. 61] Albini said that Cobain, who had struggled with drug addiction, was focused and sober in the studio.
Recording was completed in six days; Cobain had anticipated disagreements with Albini, whom he had heard "was supposedly this sexist jerk", but called the process "the easiest recording we've ever done, hands down".
The only disruption occurred a week into the sessions, when Love arrived because she missed Cobain. Weston's girlfriend, the studio's chef, said that Love created tension by criticizing Cobain's work and was confrontational with everyone present.
The initial
mix of ''In Utero'' took five days.
This was quick by Nirvana's standards, but not for Albini, who was used to mixing albums in a day or two. When work on a mix was not producing desired results, the band and Albini took the rest of the day off to watch nature videos, set things on fire and make prank calls. The sessions were completed on February 26.
Production and mixing dispute
After the recording sessions were completed, Nirvana sent unmastered tapes of the album to several individuals, including Gold Mountain and Ed Rosenblatt, the president of DGC's parent company
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint.
Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and h ...
. When asked about the feedback he received, Cobain told
Michael Azerrad
Michael Azerrad is an American author, music journalist, editor, and musician. A graduate of Columbia University, he has written for publications such as '' Spin'', ''Rolling Stone'', and ''The New York Times''. Azerrad's 1993 biography '' Come ...
, "The grown-ups don't like it." He said he was told his songwriting was "not up to par", the sound was "unlistenable", and that there was uncertainty that mainstream radio would accept Albini's production. Few at Geffen or Gold Mountain had wanted the band to record with Albini, and Cobain felt he was receiving an unstated message to scrap the sessions and start again.
Cobain was upset and said to Azerrad, "I should just re-record this record and do the same thing we did last year because we sold out last year—there's no reason to try and redeem ourselves as artists at this point. I can't help myself—I'm just putting out a record I would like to listen to at home." However, a number of Nirvana's friends liked the album, and by April 1993, Nirvana was intent on releasing ''In Utero'' as it was. According to Cobain, "Of course, they want another ''Nevermind'', but I'd rather die than do that. This is exactly the kind of record I would buy as a fan, that I would enjoy owning."
[Azerrad, 1994. p. 332]
The band began to have doubts about the record. Cobain said, "The first time I played it at home, I knew there was something wrong. The whole first week I wasn't really interested in listening to it at all, and that usually doesn't happen. I got no emotion from it, I was just numb." The group concluded that the bass and lyrics were inaudible and asked Albini to remix the album. He declined; as he recalled, "
obainwanted to make a record that he could slam down on the table and say, 'Listen, I know this is good, and I know your concerns about it are meaningless, so go with it.' And I don't think he felt he had that yet ... My problem was that I feared a slippery slope." The band attempted to address their concerns during the
mastering process with
Bob Ludwig
Robert C. Ludwig (born c. 1945) is an American mastering engineer. He has mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists including Led Zeppelin, Lou Reed, Qu ...
at his studio in
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...
. Novoselic was pleased with the results, but Cobain still did not feel it was perfect.
![BobLudwigGateway](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/BobLudwigGateway.jpg)
Soon afterward, in April 1993, Albini told the ''
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
'' that he doubted Geffen would release the album. Years later, Albini said: "I wasn't there when the band was having their discussions with the record label. All I know is ... we made a record, everybody was happy with it. A few weeks later I hear that it's unreleasable and it's all got to be redone." While Albini's remarks in the article drew no reply from Nirvana or Geffen, ''
Newsweek
''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...
'' ran a similar article soon afterwards that did. Nirvana wrote a letter to ''Newsweek'' denying any pressure to change the album and saying the author had "ridiculed our relationship with our label based on totally erroneous information". The band reprinted the letter in a full-page ad in ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''. Rosenblatt insisted in a press release that Geffen would release anything Nirvana submitted, and label founder
David Geffen
David Lawrence Geffen (born February 21, 1943) is an American business magnate, producer and film studio executive. He co-created Asylum Records in 1971 with Elliot Roberts, Geffen Records in 1980, DGC Records in 1990, and DreamWorks SKG in 199 ...
made the unusual move of calling ''Newsweek'' to complain.
Nirvana considered working with producer
Scott Litt
Scott Warren Litt (born March 10, 1954) is an American record producer who mostly works with artists in the alternative rock genre and is best known for producing six R.E.M. albums in the late 1980s and early to mid-1990s during the band's most su ...
and remixing some tracks with
Andy Wallace, who had mixed ''Nevermind''. Albini vehemently disagreed, and said the band had agreed not to modify the tracks without his involvement. He initially refused to give the
master tapes
Mastering, a form of audio post production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device (the master), the source from which all copies will be produced (via me ...
to Gold Mountain, but relented after a phone call from Novoselic. The band eventually had Litt remix songs intended as singles; "Heart Shaped Box" and "All Apologies" were remixed at Seattle's
Bad Animals Studio
Studio X (formerly known as Bad Animals Studio and Kaye-Smith Studios.) is a music and media recording studio on 4th Avenue in downtown Seattle, Washington, United States. Originally part of thKaye-Smith Enterprisesmedia conglomerate founded by ...
in May 1993.
"
I Hate Myself and Want to Die
I, or i, is the ninth letter and the third vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''i'' (pronounced ), plural ...
" was omitted as Cobain felt the album already contained too many "noise" songs. The rest of the album was left unaltered aside from a remastering. Albini was critical of the final mix; he said, "The record in the stores doesn't sound all that much like the record that was made, though it's still them singing and playing their songs, and the musical quality of it still comes across."
According to Albini, ''In Utero'' made him unpopular with major record labels, and he faced problems finding work in the year following its release.
Music and lyrics
Albini sought to produce a record that sounded nothing like ''Nevermind''.
He felt the sound of ''Nevermind'' was "sort of a standard hack recording that has been turned into a very, very controlled, compressed radio-friendly mix
.. That is not, in my opinion, very flattering to a rock band." Instead, he intended to capture a more natural and visceral sound.
Albini refused to
double-track
A double-track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single-track railway where trains in both directions share the same track.
Overview
In the earliest days of railways in the United Kingdom, most li ...
Cobain's vocals and instead recorded him singing in a resonant room.
He noted the intensity of Cobain's vocals on some tracks; he said, "There's a really dry, really loud voice at the end of 'Milk It' ... that was also done at the end of '
Rape Me
"Rape Me" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the fourth song on the band's third and final studio album, ''In Utero'', released in September 1993.
"Rape Me" was released as the alb ...
', where
obainwanted the sound of him screaming to just overtake the whole band." Albini achieved the sparse drum sound by placing several microphones around Grohl, picking up the natural
reverberation
Reverberation (also known as reverb), in acoustics, is a persistence of sound, after a sound is produced. Reverberation is created when a sound or signal is reflected causing numerous reflections to build up and then decay as the sound is abso ...
of the room. Albini said, "If you take a good drummer and put him in front of a drum kit that sounds good acoustically and just record it, you've done your job."
Azerrad asserted in his 1993 biography ''
Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana'' that ''In Utero'' showcased divergent sensibilities of abrasiveness and accessibility that reflected the upheavals Cobain experienced prior to the album's completion. He wrote, "The
Beatlesque
"Beatlesque" () or "Beatles-esque" describes a musical resemblance to the English rock band the Beatles. The term is loosely defined and has been applied inconsistently to a wide variety of disparate artists.
Definitions
To better explain what t ...
'Dumb' happily coexists beside the all-out frenzied
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
graffiti of 'Milk It,' while 'All Apologies' is worlds away from the apoplectic '
Scentless Apprentice
"Scentless Apprentice" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain, drummer Dave Grohl, and bassist Krist Novoselic. It is the second track on their third and final studio album ''In Utero'', released ...
.' It's as if
obainhas given up trying to meld his punk and pop instincts into one harmonious whole. Forget it. This is war." Cobain believed, however, that ''In Utero'' was not "any harsher or any more emotional" than any of Nirvana's previous records.
[Azerrad, 1994. p. 321] Novoselic agreed that the album leaned more towards the band's "arty, aggressive side"; he said, "There's always been
irvanasongs like '
About a Girl' and there's always been songs like 'Paper Cuts'... ''Nevermind'' came out kind of 'About a Girl'-y and this
lbumcame out more 'Paper Cuts'". Cobain cited "Milk It" as an example of the more experimental and aggressive direction in which the band's music had been moving in the months prior to the sessions at Pachyderm Studio.
[Azerrad, 1994. p. 323] Novoselic viewed the album's singles "
Heart-Shaped Box
"Heart-Shaped Box" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It appears as the third track on the band's third and final studio album, ''In Utero'', released by DGC Records in September 1993 ...
" and "
All Apologies
"All Apologies" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It appears as the 12th track on the band's third and final studio album, '' In Utero'', released by DGC Records in September 1993. The song ...
" as "gateways" to the more abrasive sound of the rest of the album, telling journalist
Jim DeRogatis
James Peter DeRogatis (born September 2, 1964) is an American music critic and co-host of ''Sound Opinions''. DeRogatis has written articles for magazines such as ''Rolling Stone'', '' Spin'', ''Guitar World'' and ''Modern Drummer'', and for 15 ...
that once listeners played the record, they would discover "this aggressive wild sound, a true alternative record".
Several songs on ''In Utero'' were written years prior to recording; some dated to 1990. Cobain favored long song titles, such as "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle", in reaction to contemporary alternative rock bands that used single-word titles. He continued to work on the lyrics while recording. He told
Darcey Steinke in ''
Spin
Spin or spinning most often refers to:
* Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning
* Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis
* Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...
'' in 1993 that, in contrast to ''Bleach'' and ''Nevermind'', the lyrics were "more focused, they're almost built on themes".
[Steinke, Darcey. "Smashing Their Heads on That Punk Rock". ''Spin'': pp. 42–49. October 1993.] Azerrad asserted that the lyrics were less impressionistic and more straightforward than in previous Nirvana songs. Azerrad also noted that "virtually every song contains some image of sickness and disease".
In a number of songs, Cobain made reference to books; "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle" was inspired by ''
Shadowland'', a 1978 biography of actress
Frances Farmer, with whom Cobain had been fascinated ever since he read the book in high school. "Scentless Apprentice" was written about ''
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer'', a historical horror novel about a perfumer's apprentice who attempts to create the ultimate perfume by killing virgin women and taking their scent.
Cobain described ''In Utero'' as "very impersonal". He also told ''
Q'' that the infant and childbirth imagery on the album and his newfound fatherhood were coincidental. However, Azerrad argued that much of the album contains personal themes, noting that Grohl held a similar view. Grohl said, "A lot of what he has to say is related to a lot of the shit he's gone through. And it's not so much teen angst any more. It's a whole different ball game: rock star angst." Cobain downplayed recent events and told Azerrad that he did not want to write a track that explicitly expressed his anger at the media; Azerrad countered that "Rape Me" seemed to deal with that very issue. While Cobain said the song was written long before his addiction problems became public, he agreed that the song could be viewed in that light. "Serve the Servants" comments on Cobain's life. The opening lines "Teenage angst has paid off well / Now I'm bored and old" were a reference to Cobain's state of mind in the wake of Nirvana's success. Cobain dismissed the media attention given to the effect his parents' divorce had on his life with the line "That legendary divorce is such a bore" from the chorus, and directly addressed his father with the lines "I tried hard to have a father / But instead I had a dad / I just want you to know that I don't hate you any more / There is nothing I could say that I haven't thought before". Cobain said he wanted his father to know he did not hate him, but had no desire to talk to him.
According to journalist Gillian G. Gaar, "Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip" was the kind of improvisational jam Nirvana frequently performed in the studio, but had rarely recorded during earlier sessions, when the priority had been to record as quickly as possible.
She wrote that it featured "Cobain alternating between seemingly disconnected singing and spoken-words sections, with Novoselic and Grohl providing a steady background accompaniment, punctuated by bursts of noisy guitar."
Journalist
Everett True
Everett True (born Jeremy Andrew Thackray on 21 April 1961) is an English music journalist and musician. He became interested in rock music after hearing The Residents, and formed a band with school friends. He has written and recorded as The ...
described the song's mood as "playful", with "the instruments engaging in a game of cat and mouse, almost daring each other to explode in fury". Novoselic said it was an example of the band "just fucking around".
Title and packaging
![Transparent Anatomical Manikin (TAM)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Transparent_Anatomical_Manikin_%28TAM%29.jpg)
Cobain originally wanted to name the album ''I Hate Myself and I Want to Die'', a phrase that had originated in his journals in mid-1992. At the time, he used the phrase as a response whenever someone asked him how he was doing. Cobain intended the album title as a joke; he stated he was "tired of taking this band so seriously and everyone else taking it so seriously". Novoselic convinced Cobain to change the title due to fear that it could potentially result in a lawsuit. The band then considered using ''Verse Chorus Verse''—a title taken from its song "Verse Chorus Verse", and an earlier working title of "Sappy"—before eventually settling on ''In Utero''. The final title was taken from a poem written by Courtney Love.
The art director for ''In Utero'' was Robert Fisher, who had designed all of Nirvana's releases on DGC. Most of the ideas for the artwork for the album and related singles came from Cobain. Fisher recalled that "
obainwould just give me some loose odds and ends and say 'Do something with it.'" The cover of the album is an image of a
Transparent Anatomical Manikin
The Transparent Anatomical Manikin (TAM) is a three-dimensional, transparent anatomical model of a human being, created for medical instructional purposes. TAM was created by designer Richard Rush in 1968. It consisted of a see-through reprodu ...
, with angel wings superimposed. Cobain created the collage on the back cover, which he described as "Sex and woman and ''In Utero'' and vaginas and birth and death", that consists of model fetuses, a turtle shell and models of turtles, and body parts lying in a bed of orchids and lilies. The collage had been set up on the floor of Cobain's living room and was photographed by
Charles Peterson after an unexpected call from Cobain. The album's track listing and re-illustrated symbols from
Barbara G. Walker's ''The Woman's Dictionary of Symbols and Sacred Objects'' were then positioned around the edge of the collage.
Mannequins of the angel-winged anatomical figure were used as stage props on Nirvana's concert tour supporting ''In Utero''. One such mannequin later featured at the
Experience Music Project
The Museum of Pop Culture or MoPOP is a nonprofit museum in Seattle, Washington, dedicated to contemporary popular culture. It was founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen in 2000 as the Experience Music Project. Since then MoPOP has organized ...
museum's exhibition "Nirvana: Taking Punk to the Masses", which ran from April 2011 through 2013 and showcased memorabilia celebrating the band's music and history.
Marketing and sales
To avoid over-hyping the album, DGC Records took a low-key approach to promoting ''In Utero''; their head of marketing told ''Billboard'' before the album's release that they were planning a campaign similar to that of ''Nevermind'', and the label would "set things up, duck, and get out of the way". The label aimed its promotion at alternative markets and press, and released the album on
vinyl
Vinyl may refer to:
Chemistry
* Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer
* Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation
* Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry
* Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl m ...
as part of this strategy.
[Rosen, Craig. "Nirvana Set Has Smell of Success". ''Billboard''. September 25, 1993.] In contrast to ''Nevermind'', DGC did not release any of ''In Uteros singles commercially in the United States.
DGC sent promo copies of the album's first single, "Heart-Shaped Box", to American
college
A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...
,
modern rock
Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music.
Radio format
Mod ...
, and
album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM radio format created in the United States in the 1970s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock.
Album-oriente ...
radio stations in early September, but did not target
Top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...
radio.
The band was convinced that ''In Utero'' would not be as successful as ''Nevermind''. Cobain told Jim DeRogatis, "We're certain that we won't sell a quarter as much, and we're totally comfortable with that because we like this record so much."
''In Utero'' was released on September 13, 1993, on vinyl record and
cassette tape
The Compact Cassette or Musicassette (MC), also commonly called the tape cassette, cassette tape, audio cassette, or simply tape or cassette, is an analog magnetic tape recording format for audio recording and playback. Invented by Lou Ottens ...
in the United Kingdom, and on September 14 on vinyl in the United States, with the American vinyl pressing limited to 25,000 copies.
[Gaar, 2006. p. 97] It was issued on CD in the U.K. on September 14, and in other formats on September 21.
European and Australian versions of ''In Utero'' released that same month included "Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip" as a hidden bonus track,
[Borzillo-Vrenna, 2003. p. 188] with a sticker on the cover reading "Exclusive International Bonus Track",
although the booklet referred to the song as a "Devalued American Dollar Purchase Incentive Track". According to Novoselic, DGC did not want the European version to compete with the US version, and so added the extra track.
''In Utero'' debuted at number one on the US
''Billboard'' 200,
[In Numero Uno]
. ''Entertainment Weekly''. October 8, 1993. Retrieved December 1, 2008. Archived fro
on January 16, 2010. selling 180,000 copies.
[Gaar, 2006. p. 98] The retail chain stores
Wal-Mart
Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarter ...
and
Kmart
Kmart Corporation ( , doing business as Kmart and stylized as kmart) is an American retail company that owns a chain of big box department stores. The company is headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States.
The company was inc ...
refused to sell it; according to ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', Wal-Mart said this was due to lack of consumer demand, while Kmart representatives said the album did not fit with their "merchandise mix". In truth, both chains feared that customers would be offended by the artwork on the back cover. DGC issued a new version to the stores in March 1994, with edited album artwork, "Rape Me" retitled "Waif Me", and the Scott Litt remix of "Pennyroyal Tea". A spokesperson for Nirvana explained that the band decided to edit the packaging because they wanted their music available to "kids who don't have the opportunity to go to mom-and-pop stores". ''In Utero'' also debuted at number one in the United Kingdom where according to ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'', "Nirvana confirmed their status as the seminal band of the time".
![Nirvana-Cancelled-April-8-1994](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Nirvana-Cancelled-April-8-1994.png)
In October 1993, Nirvana began their first American tour in two years to promote the album. A second single, a split release that featured "All Apologies" and "Rape Me", was issued in December in the United Kingdom.
The band began a six-week European leg in February 1994, but it was canceled after Cobain suffered a drug overdose in Rome on March 6. Cobain agreed to enter
drug rehabilitation
Drug rehabilitation is the process of medical or psychotherapeutic treatment for dependency on psychoactive substances such as alcohol, prescription drugs, and street drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin or amphetamines. The general inte ...
, but went missing soon afterward. On April 8,
he was found dead in his Seattle home, having shot himself. A third single from ''In Utero'', "
Pennyroyal Tea
"Pennyroyal Tea" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the ninth track on the band's third and final studio album, ''In Utero'', released in 1993.
The song was due to be released as th ...
", was canceled in the wake of Cobain's death and the subsequent dissolution of Nirvana; limited promotional copies were released in Britain.
Three days after Cobain's body was discovered, ''In Utero'' moved from number 72 to number 27 on the ''Billboard'' charts, with a 122% sales increase of 40,000 copies sold compared to 18,000 in the week before.
''In Utero'' has been certified five times platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
for shipments of over five million units,
[Top 100 Albums](_blank)
. RIAA.com. Retrieved November 20, 2008. and has sold 4,258,000 copies in the United States, according to
Nielsen SoundScan
Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...
.
For the album's 20th anniversary, DGC reissued ''In Utero'' in several formats in September 2013.
Critical reception
''In Utero'' received critical acclaim from critics.
''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
''s
Christopher John Farley
Christopher John Farley (born July 28, 1966) is a Jamaican-born American journalist, columnist, and author.
Early life
Farley was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and grew up in New York. He is a graduate of Brockport High School and Harvard Unive ...
stated in his review, "Despite the fears of some alternative-music fans, Nirvana hasn't gone mainstream, though this potent new album may once again force the mainstream to go Nirvana."
[Farley, Christopher John.]
To The End of Grunge
." ''Time''. September 20, 1993. Retrieved July 19, 2011. ''Rolling Stone'' reviewer
David Fricke
David Fricke is an American music journalist who serves as the senior editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, where he writes predominantly about rock music. One of the best known names in rock journalism, his career has spanned over 40 years. I ...
said that the album is "a lot of things – brilliant, corrosive, enraged and thoughtful, most of them all at once. But more than anything, it's a triumph of the will."
''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' reviewer
David Browne commented "Kurt Cobain hates it all", and noted that the sentiment pervades the record. Browne argued, "The music is often mesmerizing, cathartic rock & roll, but it is rock & roll without release, because the band is suspicious of the old-school rock clichés such a release would evoke."
''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' writer John Mulvey had doubts about the record; he concluded, "As a document of a mind in flux – dithering, dissatisfied, unable to come to terms with sanity – Kurt should be proud of
he album
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
As a follow-up to one of the best records of the past ten years it just isn't quite there."
''
Plugged In
Focus on the Family (FOTF or FotF) is a fundamentalist Protestant organization founded in 1977 in Southern California by James Dobson, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The group is one of a number of evangelical parachurch organizations t ...
'' was not enthusiastic; reviewer Bob Waliszewski wrote, "''In Utero'' is noxious noise with no redeeming value." Ben Thompson of ''
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' commented that in spite of the more abrasive songs, "''In Utero'' is beautiful far more often than it is ugly ... Nirvana have wisely neglected to make the unlistenable punk-rock nightmare they threatened us with." ''
Q'' felt that the album showcases Cobain's songwriting abilities and wrote, "If this is how Cobain is going to develop, the future is lighthouse-bright."
Several critics ranked ''In Utero'' one of the best releases of the year; it placed first and second in the album categories of the ''Rolling Stone'' and ''Village Voice''
Pazz & Jop
Pazz & Jop was an annual poll of top musical releases, compiled by American newspaper ''The Village Voice'' and created by music critic Robert Christgau. It published lists of the year's top releases for 1971 and, after Christgau's two-year abse ...
year-end critics' polls.
[Christgau, Robert.]
The 1993 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll
". ''The Village Voice''. March 1, 1994. Retrieved December 13, 2008. ''The New York Times'' included it on its list of the top ten albums of the year. It was nominated for
Best Alternative Music Album
The Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums in the alternative genre at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. H ...
at the
1994 Grammy Awards. The guitar riff from "Very Ape" was
sampled
Sample or samples may refer to:
Base meaning
* Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set
* Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal
* Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of so ...
by British electronic band
the Prodigy
The Prodigy are an English electronic dance music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboard player and songwriter Liam Howlett. The original line-up also featured dancer and singer Keith Flint and dancer and occasional l ...
for their 1994 single "
Voodoo People".
Reappraisal
''In Utero'' has continued to perform commercially and gather critical praise. In a 2003 ''
Guitar World
''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists – and fans of guitar-based music and trends – that has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original art ...
'' article for the album's tenth anniversary, Cobain biographer
Charles R. Cross
Charles R. Cross is a Seattle-based music journalist, author and editor. He is primarily known for his coverage of Bruce Springsteen, Kurt Cobain and Jimi Hendrix.
Career
He was the Editor of '' The Rocket'' in Seattle for fifteen years (1 ...
argued that ''In Utero'' was "a far better record than
'Nevermind''and one that only 10 years later seems to be an influential seed spreader, judging by current bands. If it is possible for an album that sold four million copies to be overlooked, or underappreciated, then ''In Utero'' is that lost pearl." That year,
''Pitchfork'' named ''In Utero'' the 13th best album of the 1990s. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked it number 435 on its list
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...
, and 173 in its 2020 updated list. It also ranked it the seventh best album of the 90s.
In 2004, ''
Blender
A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen appliance, kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsion, emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender ...
'' named ''In Utero'' the 94th greatest American album, and in 2005, ''Spin'' named it the 51st best album of the previous 20 years. In 2005, ''In Utero'' was ranked number 358 in ''Rock Hard's'' book of ''The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time''. In 2013, Diffuser.fm named ''In Utero'' the fourth best album of 1993, while ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' ranked it at number 35 on its list "
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...
". The album was also included in the book ''
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...
''. In May 2017, ''
Loudwire
''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...
'' ranked it at number six on its list "The 30 Best Grunge Albums of All Time". In April 2019, ''Rolling Stone'' placed it at number eight on its 50 Greatest Grunge Albums list.
Track listing
Notes
* Original non-US CD pressings of the album include "Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip" as a hidden track. It is listed on the back cover as track 13, but is heard after approximately 20 minutes of silence on track 12 following "All Apologies", beginning at 24:00.
Personnel
Nirvana
*
Kurt Cobain
Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994) was an American musician who served as the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Through his angst-fueled songwriting and anti-establishment persona ...
– vocals, guitars, art direction, design, photography
*
Krist Novoselic
Krist Anthony Novoselic (; ; born May 16, 1965) is an American musician and activist. He was the bassist and co-founder of the rock band Nirvana.
Novoselic and Kurt Cobain formed the band Nirvana in 1987 along with drummer Aaron Burckhard, wh ...
– bass guitar
*
Dave Grohl
David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969) is an American musician. He is the founder of the rock band Foo Fighters, in which he is the lead singer, guitarist, and principal songwriter. Prior to forming Foo Fighters, he was the drummer of gru ...
– drums, percussion, backing vocals
Other musicians
* Kera Schaley – cello on "
All Apologies
"All Apologies" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It appears as the 12th track on the band's third and final studio album, '' In Utero'', released by DGC Records in September 1993. The song ...
" and "Dumb"
Technical
*
Steve Albini
Steve Albini (pronounced ; born July 22, 1962) is an American musician, record producer, audio engineer and music journalist. He was a member of Big Black, Rapeman and Flour, and is a member of Shellac. He is the founder, owner and principal en ...
–
producer,
engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...
,
mixing
* Robert Fisher –
art direction
Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film and television, the Internet, and video games.
It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the visi ...
, design, photography
*
Alex Grey
Alex Grey (born November 29, 1953) is an American visual artist, author, teacher, and Vajrayana practitioner known for creating spiritual and psychedelic paintings. He works in multiple forms including performance art, process art, installation ...
– illustrations
*
Michael Lavine Michael Lavine (born October 13, 1963, San Francisco) is a portrait photographer based in New York City. He grew up in Denver, and graduated from Denver's South High School in 1981.
After graduating high school, Lavine headed to the Pacific Northw ...
– photography
*
Scott Litt
Scott Warren Litt (born March 10, 1954) is an American record producer who mostly works with artists in the alternative rock genre and is best known for producing six R.E.M. albums in the late 1980s and early to mid-1990s during the band's most su ...
–
mixing on "Heart-Shaped Box" and "All Apologies" on original release plus “Pennyroyal Tea” on deluxe edition
*
Adam Kasper
Adam Kasper is an American, Seattle area record producer and engineer, with platinum and gold awards, working with such bands as Aerosmith, Mudhoney, Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, The Tragically Hip, R.E.M., Soundgarden and ...
– second engineer to Scott Litt
*
Bob Ludwig
Robert C. Ludwig (born c. 1945) is an American mastering engineer. He has mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists including Led Zeppelin, Lou Reed, Qu ...
–
audio mastering
Mastering, a form of audio post production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device (the master), the source from which all copies will be produced (via met ...
* Karen Mason – photography
*
Charles Peterson – photography
* Neil Wallace – photography
*
Bob Weston
Bob Weston (born 1965) is an American musician, producer, recording engineer, and record mastering engineer. Critic Jason AnkenyAnkeny, Jason. " Bob Weston: Overview from Allmusic.com declares that "Weston's name and fingerprints are all over th ...
– technician
Charts
Original release
20th anniversary edition
Year-end charts
Decade-end charts
Certifications
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Live Nirvana Companion to Official Releases – ''In Utero''*
*
{{featured article
1993 albums
Albums produced by Steve Albini
DGC Records albums
Nirvana (band) albums