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Entries tagged with 'Kurt Cobain'
Posted Nov. 11, 2009,
Five Questions About "Grunge" for Michael Lavine
By David Hershkovits
There are more photos in this gallery. View them all
David Hershkovits: Does grunge have a legacy or was it purely a moment in time that you captured?
Michael Lavine: For better or worse, grunge has been awarded a place at the table of history. Everybody has a different take on the reference but the movement carries the clear, basic imagery of loud, fuzzy guitars and scruffy looking rockers screaming about rebellion. You know, the kind of classic anti-rock star ideals that powered the whole punk movement. The great thing about the punk kids from the book is that they really personify the authentic nature of the birth of grunge. When you wore a mohawk in 1983 it was a huge 'fuck you' to society and projecting that kind of message was risky and dangerous. Today these symbols are incorporated into our corporate culture and they've lost all of their impact and value. My bank teller has purple hair and a nose ring, it doesn't mean anything, no one even notices, it's just another fashion accessory. Grunge is dead! Long Live grunge!
DH: Thurston Moore has said that of the Seattle bands he didn't expect that it would be Nirvana that broke out. Do you agree?
ML: I think there was the perception at the time that Mudhoney was the band that would achieve the most success, but I always thought Nirvana was a great band and I loved their music. I just was really not prepared for the huge mainstream explosion that hit our comfortable little underground indie rock scene like an H-bomb. I remember playing a bunch of different bands for Iggy Pop during a photo shoot in 1991 and he definitely picked Nirvana out of a whole slew of noisy grunge/punk sounds. Iggy knew! [Bruce] Pavitt [of Subpop] knew! He called me once and said I have this new band "Nirvana." He said, "They are going to be HUGE!" I said, "But you say that about all of your bands."
Posted Sep. 4, 2008,
About Last Night... Jesse Frohman's "In Bloom" Opening at the SoHo Grand
By Johnny Misheff
Last night Jesse Frohman had an opening at the gallery at the SoHo Grand. He shot those epic pictures of the late great Kurt Cobain shortly before his untimely death in 1994. The show is titled, "In Bloom," appropriately enough, and features seven never before seen shots from the epic shoot. You know the pics. They're the ones where Kurt's wearing those funky white-rimmed sunglasses, he's smoking a cigarette in nearly every shot, and there's a cocktail in hand. He's wearing a long, bizarre cardigan with a great pair of tattered jeans. I caught up with Jesse at the party and asked him about the shoot:
These pictures are iconic. I have admired them for years.
This shoot was supposed to be a five hour shoot. We had to do it in 15 minutes. It was crazy.
Well, they're AMAZING. What are these additional beauties?
They're flowers I shot a few years ago.
Well, they tie in nicely with the whole "In Bloom" theme. Thanks for this. Awesome stuff.
Photo of Jesse Frohman by Johnny Misheff; photo of Kurt Cobain by Jesse Frohman
Posted Nov. 28, 2007,
Producer Alex Coletti on Nirvana, Unplugged in New York DVD: "It Feels Right That This Is How Many People Will Remember the Band."
By Blaire Huntley
A highlight of Nirvana’s illustrious, short-lived career took place on November 1993 on MTV's Unplugged in New York, where Kurt Cobain and the gang gave one of their most compelling and raw performances ever; just four months shy of Cobain's unexpected death. The accompanying live album pushed over five million copies, reached #1 The Billboard 200 and won a Grammy for Best Alt Music Album in 1996. Alex Coletti, the executive producer of the landmark performance, chatted with PAPERMAG about the new, unedited, features-galore-filled DVD of the performance that came out last week.
Blaire Huntley: What was it like being part of such a groundbreaking moment in music?
Alex Coletti: At the time, we didn't know it would be as groundbreaking as it
was. The entire series had a huge effect on the music industry and really changed how artists could present themselves to a live audience.
BH: What was up with all the covers? Did the band plan to all the Bowie and Meat Puppet songs or was that a production suggestion? AC: We always suggest that the band do a cover and bring a guest, but I did not specifically suggest a song or artists, that all came from Nirvana.
Posted Apr. 30, 2007,
Courtney Love Kicks Kurt Cobain Out of the House
By David Hershkovits
Sure, its been 13 years since Kurt Cobain left the building, but his pajamas are still keeping Courtney's buns warm at night. No more, says Love. She has decided to auction off his belongings at Christie's. She tells Spinner: "[My house] is like a mausoleum. My daughter [14-year-old Frances Bean] doesn't need to inherit a giant hefty bag full of flannel f***ing shirts ... A sweater, a guitar and the lyrics to 'Teen Spirit' -- that's what my daughter gets. And the rest of it we'll just f***ing sell."
Does this announcement, once again trafficking on the Cobain legacy, have anything to do with the fact that Love has a new record, Nobody's Daughter, about to drop in which she looks back at some of her celebrated affairs with Trent Reznor, Billy Corgan and Ed Norton. I'll leave it for you, dear reader, to decide.
"I still wear his pajamas to bed," she says. "How am I ever going to go form another relationship in my lifetime wearing Kurt's pajamas?"
OK, well maybe there are some other reasons she has not moved on to another relationship besides Kurt's pajamas. Like her personality and destructive habits. Seems like she still hasn't learned to take responsibility for her actions.
Here she is photographed with daughter Francis Bean Cobain.