‘Nevermind‘ producer Butch Vig has admitted he found working with Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain difficult at times during the recording of the legendary album.
Vig told Rolling Stone that he would find some of Cobain’s antics in the studio quite demanding while laying down tracks which would feature on the 1991 release.
“I’d be balancing the drums and the guitar and Kurt would come and say ‘Turn all the treble off, I want it to sound more like Black Sabbath‘,” Vig commented. “It was kind of a pain in the ass.”
Vig also alluded to Cobain’s much documented mental health issues of the time, recalling intense mood swings which would cause Cobain to ‘completely disappear into himself’.
“Kurt was charming and witty, but he would go through these mood swings,” he continued. “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.”
Nirvana’s landmark second album is being celebrated next month when it reaches its 20th year. Various events have already been announced, including a new super-deluxe edition of the record, and a planned live performance in Seattle by the band’s former bass player Krist Novoselic.
Kurt changed my life with his insightful and surreal music and lyrics. I only wished he could have stuck around to make more to listen to for future generations. I was compelled to compose a portrait of him In Memoriam recently on the anniversary of his death on my artist’s blog at http://dregstudiosart.blogspot.com/2011/04/in-memoriam-kurt-cobain-and-lane-staley.html Drop in and tell me your memories of his music and how it’s affected you.