Nirvana Debates Over the Pros and Cons of Pop Music in Revealing 1991 Interview

Nirvana wasn’t shy about sharing their opinions on pop music in the early 90s. In fact, they drew intriguing comparisons between pop and punk rock at the time (to quote Krist Novoselic, “The Clash were a pop band.”) In 1995, NME re-published an interview with the grunge icons—posthumously in Kurt Cobain’s case—that had taken place in 1991.

Then, Nirvana was still up-and-coming, newly signed to Geffen Records, and awaiting the release of Nevermind. Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic dominated the interview, because, apparently, Dave Grohl “spent the entire conversation fast asleep under a table.”

The concept of “punk fundamentalists … sharpening their knives” was brought up when discussing the upcoming album. Like with many commercial breakthroughs, the word “sell-out” would be thrown around