NIRVANA
LIVE AT THE CASBAH, SAN DIEGO, CA
AUGUST 19, 1990
THIS ENTRY WILL BREAK FROM THE MATERIAL TYPICALLY POSTED HERE, IN THAT ITS SUBJECT MATTER IS A MAJOR MAINSTREAM ACT. IT IS PROBABLE THAT THIS WILL CAUSE SOME PEOPLE TO GROAN AND/OR ROLL THEIR EYES, BUT SO FAR, THIS BLOG SEES VERY LITTLE TRAFFIC, SO IT PROBABLY DOESN'T MATTER ANYWAY. GENERALLY THE MAIN FOCUS OF THIS BLOG IS BANDS THAT COME OUT OF THE SAN DIEGO MUSIC SCENE. OCCASIONALLY THERE ARE A FEW EXCEPTIONS, NAMELY THE SECOND PLASTIC FACT EATERS COMPILATION CD, WITH BANDS FROM SAN DIEGO AND QUITE A FEW OTHER CITIES, THE NOISE COMPLAINT "FUCK OFF AND THRASH" EP, WHO ARE FROM THE UK (ALTHOUGH VOCALIST TONY IS ORIGINALLY FROM SAN DIEGO AND PREVIOUSLY FRONTED THE BAND CHAOTIC MESS FROM ESCONDIDO), AS WELL AS A FEW OTHER POSTS HERE AND THERE. DESPITE THE SUBJECT OF THIS ENTRY BEING A MAINSTREAM ACT, IT STILL HAS A NOTABLE SAN DIEGO CONNECTION. WHEN RUMMAGING AROUND THE INTERNET SEEKING INFORMATION ON THE SAN DIEGO HARDCORE PUNK BAND THE NEIGHBORS (WHICH WAS THE SUBJECT OF THE PREVIOUS ENTRY), AN ARTICLE STOOD OUT FROM THE COUNTLESS WRITE-UPS ABOUT THE SAN DIEGO SCENE. THE ARTICLE WAS FROM THE ONLINE MEDIA SITE THRILLIST.COM, TITLED HOW THE CASBAH IS KEEPING THE PUNK ROCK ETHOS ALIVE IN SAN DIEGO, WRITTEN BY ROB PURSELL, PUBLISHED ON DECEMBER 10, 2019. IT DETAILS THE ORIGINS OF THE CASBAH, CO-OWNER TIM MAYS'S EXTENSIVE PROMOTION CONNECTIONS AND CAREER, INCLUDING HIS WORK PRIOR TO THE FOUNDING OF THE VENUE, AS WELL AS THE OVERALL LONG TERM IMPACT THE VENUE HAS HAD ON THE LOCAL MUSIC AND ARTS CULTURE IN SAN DIEGO. IT IS A DECENT ARTICLE AND WORTH THE READ. ONE THING THAT REALLY STUCK OUT AND SEEMED VERY NOTEWORTHY, WAS THE PART OF THE ARTICLE ABOUT THE TIME NIRVANA PLAYED THE VENUE IN AUGUST, 1990.
(THERE WERE A LOT OF RESERVATIONS ABOUT EVEN MAKING THIS ENTRY, DUE TO MANY PEOPLE'S DIVIDED OPINIONS ON NIRVANA AS A BAND, WHETHER OR NOT THEY SHOULD BE CONSIDERED PUNK, AND WHETHER OR NOT PEOPLE THINK THEY WERE EVEN GOOD, OR JUST OVERRATED AND HYPED, AND AT THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME. EXTREMELY DIVIDED OPINIONS ARE SEEMINGLY MORE COMMON NOW THAN THEY HAVE EVER BEEN, AND THE CHOICE IS ULTIMATELY UP TO THE AUTHOR OF A BLOG TO INCLUDE OR EXCLUDE MATERIAL, AND ESPECIALLY DEALING IN SUBJECT MATTER LIKE PUNK ROCK, THE READER CAN BASICALLY FUCK OFF IF THEY DON'T LIKE IT, BECAUSE, IN TURN, THE CHOICE TO READ SOMETHING OR NOT IS ULTIMATELY UP TO THE READER, RIGHT?) NIRVANA WERE A CATALYST FOR A RAPID, INDUSRTY-ALTERING SHIFT IN POP CULTURE AT THE TIME THAT NEVERMIND EXPLODED ON THE CHARTS. THE SCALES TIPPED AWAY FROM CORPORATE-BACKED FORMULATED, INSTANT HITS, TOWARD A FLOOD OF DIVERSE, INDEPENDENT, FRESH NEW SOUNDS AND IDEAS, WHICH HAD BEEN TAKING PLACE ALL ALONG BENEATH THE SURFACE, BUT NOW WERE BUBBLING UP INTO THE AWARENESS OF MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF AVERAGE CONSUMERS. (IT SEEMS WE NOW FIND OURSELVES IN A SIMILAR HOMOGENOUS ATMOSPHERE ON A MAINSTREAM CULTURAL LEVEL OF ELECTRONICALLY OVER-PRODUCED POP, "HIP HOP," AND COUNTRY MUSIC, SONGS THAT CONSTANTLY UTILIZE LITERALLY IDENTICAL CHORD PROGRESSIONS, TO THE POINT WHERE DIFFERENT MUSICAL GENRES ARE INDISTINGUISHABLE.) NIRVANA'S IMPACT ON CULTURE IS UNDENIABLE. WHETHER THEY ARE YOUR CUP OF TEA OR NOT IS SUBJECTIVE.
DESPITE THE DENIAL OF MANY PEOPLE IN THE WORLD OF PUNK WHO FALL UNDER A CERTAIN AGE RANGE, ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, IF IT WEREN'T FOR NIRVANA, THEY WOULD PROBABLY NOT BE INTERESTED IN PUNK.
(THE AUTHOR OF THIS BLOG WAS EXPOSED TO A LOT OF MUSIC FROM A YOUNG AGE, MAINLY CLASSIC ROCK AND EARLY HEAVY METAL, THEN INDEPENDENTLY TOOK A LIKING TO TOM PETTY AND THE HEART BREAKERS -FIRST CONCERT AT THE AGE OF NINE-, AND ADMITTEDLY, INITIALLY BECAME AWARE OF THE WORLD OF PUNK DUE TO NIRVANA'S INFLUENCE)
DUE TO THEIR WORLD-WIDE FAME, NIRVANA BECAME ONE OF THOSE BANDS THAT DEVELOPED A CULTURE OF MUSIC COLLECTORS WHO SOUGHT OUT EVERY POSSIBLE LIVE RECORDING IN EXISTENCE, SIMILAR TO BANDS LIKE THE GRATEFUL DEAD, LED ZEPPELIN OR THE BEATLES. IN THE 1990'S IT WAS NOT UNCOMMON TO SEE COUNTLESS NIRVANA BOOTLEG CDS ON SALE IN YOUR LOCAL RECORD STORE, OFTEN TIMES FOR UPWARDS OF $20. THESE DAYS, THERE ARE WEBSITES DEDICATED TO CATALOGING EVERY SINGLE SHOW NIRVANA EVER PLAYED, AS WELL AS EVERY KNOWN LIVE RECORDING, OFTEN WITH MULTIPLE SOURCE RECORDINGS OF THE SAME PERFORMANCE LISTED, DOWN TO WHAT TYPE OF EQUIPMENT WAS USED TO RECORD IT. EVERYTHING WHICH HAS NOT YET ESCAPED THE HEAVILY GUARDED VAULTS OF NIRVANA AND THE COBAIN ESTATE (NO DOUBT THERE ARE STILL SOME GEMS BEING SAVED IN THERE) IS AVAILABLE IN ONE FORM OR ANOTHER ONLINE.
SHOWS SUCH AS THE ONE AT THE CASBAH IN AUGUST, 1990 WERE SPECIAL BECAUSE IT WAS AT A POINT IN THE COURSE OF NIRVANA'S CAREER WHERE THEY WERE STILL AMONG THE INDEPENDENT, WORKING-CLASS BANDS, CONNECTING WITH FRIENDS, AND DELIVERING INTIMATE, RAW PERFORMANCES IN SMALL SPACES, NOT YET IN ARENAS ON GIANT STAGES IN FRONT OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE. IN THE ARTICLE ON THRILLIST.COM, NEAR THE DESCRIPTION OF THE SHOW, THERE IS AN EMBEDDED YOUTUBE VIDEO OF A RECORDING OF THE CASBAH SHOW. AS A NATIVE SAN DIEGAN WHO WAS GREATLY INFLUENCED MUSICALLY BY NIRVANA, AND AS A COLLECTOR OF BOOTLEG RECORDINGS (ALONG WITH HAVING PERSONAL ACQUAINTANCES WHO WERE ACTUALLY AT THIS SHOW AND HAVE RELAYED STORIES OF HANGING OUT WITH THE BAND), COMING ACROSS THIS RECORDING IS A HUGE DEAL. SOME PEOPLE ARE NERDS THAT WAY. GUILTY AS CHARGED.
THIS AUDIO WAS RIPPED FROM THE YOUTUBE VIDEO, THE COVER ART IS THE FLYER FOR THE SHOW. DALE CROVER IS APPARENTLY PLAYING DRUMS. THEY PLAYED A LOT OF STUFF OFF OF BLEACH, OBVIOUSLY, A FEW SONGS THAT ENDED UP ON INCESTICIDE, SOME MATERIAL THAT WOULD END UP ON NEVERMIND (INCLUDING "PAY TO PLAY," THE EARLY VERSION OF "STAY AWAY"), PLUS A COUPLE SONGS THAT DIDN'T MAKE IT ON TO ANY OF THE INITIAL FOUR ALBUMS. ON THE ORIGINAL SOURCE AUDIO, "DIVE" CUTS OUT PART WAY THROUGH THE FIRST VERSE AND PICKS BACK UP NEARLY HALFWAY THROUGH THE SONG, SO TIME AND CARE WAS TAKEN TO USE SOME TECHNOLOGICAL WIZARDRY TO PIECE IT BACK TOGETHER, AND IT'S AS THOUGH THE ENTIRE TRACK NEVER HAD ANY MISSING AUDIO AT ALL. THE SOUND QUALITY IS RATED AT 8.5 ON LIVENIRVANA.COM. AFTER "SCHOOL," DALE CROVER BEGINS JAMMING THE DRUMS TO "TV EYE" BY IGGY POP FOR A LITTLE BIT. "LITHIUM" FALLS APART TOWARD THE END, AS WELL AS "BEEN A SON." AFTER (OR MAYBE DURING) "BLEW," KRIST BEGINS JAMMING "EYES FLYS" BY THE MELVINS. THE BAND ENDS THE SET WITH "VERSE, CHORUS, VERSE."
THE AUDIENCE IS QUITE LIVELY AND EXCITED, AND SEEM TO BE HAVING A LOT OF FUN. THERE ARE THREE OTHER UNCIRCULATED AUDIO SOURCES RUMOURED TO EXISTENCE. APPARENTLY THIS ONE SURFACED IN 2003 ("AUD No. 1a"). THE EQUIPMENT USED TO RECORD THIS SOURCE IS UNKNOWN, BUT IT WAS SURFACED ON A SONY WM-D6 CASSETTE AND TRANSFERRED TO FLAC FORMAT. THE SECOND CIRCULATED SOURCE, "AUD No 1b," IS ALSO FROM THIS CASSETTE, BUT WAS TRANSFERRED TO A CD-R, AND HAS A QUALITY GRADE OF 8, VERSES THE FLAC'S GRADE OF 8.5. SOURCE "AUD No 1b" IS MISSING EVERYTHING AFTER "BEEN A SON," BUT APPARENTLY DOES NOT HAVE THE AUDIO CUT OUT DURING "DIVE" THAT SOURCE "AUD No. 1a" HAS. THE DOORMAN CLAIMS THAT ALL SHOWS OF THIS ERA WERE RECORDED USING A VIDEO CAMERA SET UP TOWARD THE BACK OF THE ROOM WITH A FRONTAL VIEW OF THE FULL BAND, BUT THE VIDEOS HAVE APPARENTLY NEVER BEEN COPIED. DOORS OPENED AT 8 PM. OPENERS WERE CHEMICAL PEOPLE AND GRANFALOON BUS.
IF YOU READ THIS FAR, THANKS FOR POWERING THROUGH THIS INDULGEMENT. IF YOU'RE PISSED OFF ABOUT NIRVANA BEING ON A DIY PUNK ROCK AND THRASH BLOG, FUCK OFF, YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO READ IT, AND YOU CAN GO START YOUR OWN BLOG. NO DISRESPECT OR ANYTHING, THOUGH. FOR THOSE INDIFFERENT, IT'S WHATEVER. FOR THOSE WHO ARE STOKED TO HEAR THIS SHIT, HOW FUCKING COOL, RIGHT? IT'S ALL A MATTER OF PERSONAL PREFERENCE AT THE END OF THE DAY.
ENJOY, OR DON'T. "IT'S YOUR CROSSWORD PUZZLE..."
TRACKLIST:
1. IN BLOOM
2. FLOYD THE BARBER
3. LOVE BUZZ
4. DIVE
5. SCHOOL
6. BIG CHEESE
7. ABOUT A GIRL
8. PAY TO PLAY (STAY AWAY)
9. LITHIUM
10. SCOFF
11. SPANK THRU
12. BEEN A SON
13. STAIN
14. NEGATIVE CREEP
15. BLEW
16. VERSE, CHORUS, VERSE
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