Record Label: Sidetrack Films
Genre: Soundtrack
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com link
Right above the tracklisting on the back of this disc is a disclaimer that says “Please note: this soundtrack does not contain the music of Kurt Cobain or Nirvana. It does contain audio excerpts of Kurt Cobain speaking.” When I saw that, I almost immediately assumed this was another cash cow banking on the still impressive legion of followers (read: 14-year-old girls) that still care about Nirvana. However, instead, it’s mostly a compilation of songs that seem to connect in some way or another to Cobain’s life.
Some of the tracks on here seem to fit pretty well; performed by contemporaries or influences to Cobain, the Melvins, Mudhoney, the Vaselines, Bad Brains, and Butthole Surfers, seem to fit really well. The appearance of Lead Belly, Iggy Pop, and David Bowie make sense, especially because Nirvana covered Bowie’s Man Who Sold The World, which is on hear. However, the Lead Belly song chosen isn’t Where Did You Sleep Last Night, which Nirvana covered, but the Bourgeouis Blues. And my biggest question is why aren’t the Meat Puppets, who were one of Cobain’s biggest influences, on here? Perhaps because I haven’t seen the film, there seems to be something missing here that I’m just not getting. Some of the tracks, like an instrumental R.E.M. track, just feel out of place.
One of my favourite things on this album is the overture by Steve Fisk and Ben Gibbard (of Death Cab), a dark, spacious, and moody piece that opens the disc. I was hoping for more of that type of thing, a score for the film, but the rest of the disc seems to be slightly too haphazardly put together that in the end, it really doesn’t warrant continuous relistening or really much more than a curiousity for Cobain fans.
Bottom Line: A sort of mess of different genres and importance on this non-Nirvana but Nirvana-related disc.
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