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Peter: I’m looking forward to being done with Nevermind. Don’t tell 15-year-old me.

Tyler: It’s been a journey. We had to take our long, arduous detour through 1994.

Peter: It’s true. It’s been a real Odyssey.

Tyler: Last time we spoke about Nirvana, I think Dave Grohl was still America’s rock sweetheart.

Peter: Really? Wow, that’s crazy. It was a different time. More optimistic. Less jaded.

I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to trust again.

Tyler: Where’s Krist Novoselic to reaffirm the family unit and sanctity of marriage??

Peter: Well, we better get to it. We only got through three songs last time!

There’s a lot of album left!

Tyler: Maybe we can break Nevermind into six parts.

Peter: We’ll finish by April.

Tyler: Well, our next song up is track four, “Breed,” a hook of which—“We don’t have to breed”—Grohl had clearly forgotten when fathering a child outside of his marriage.

Peter: Zing!

Tyler: Here all week!

Peter: Rolling Stone ranked all of Nirvana’s songs, and they put “Breed” at number 4! That seems high to me!

Tyler: Rolling Stone rankings are wack. And I like “Breed!”

Peter: Me too! It’s great! It just doesn’t feel substantial enough to be number 4.

Tyler: I wish I could join this fight against RS, but I can’t speak on Nirvana’s deep cuts.

Peter: I think it’s a good example of Kurt mixing punk rock with pop sensibilities. It’s fast and loud, but it’s also catchy as hell.

But it’s just an album track. It never really stood out to me.

Tyler: I get what you’re saying about the substance of it. It’s not bad or even insignificant, “Breed,” but it’s more of a steady presence than a standout.

Onward to “Lithium!”

Peter: This was a single. There was a video? I don’t remember.

There was! I’m watching it.

This is a big loud/soft/loud song.

Tyler: Very much so. It’s iconic.

Peter: Yeah. It’s still good. I like this one.

Tyler: Any awareness of why it’s titled “Lithium?”

Peter: No idea. It’s about religion. I read that somewhere.

They played this at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards and Novoselic nearly knocked himself out when he threw his bass in the air and hit himself in the head with it.

Tyler: Oh, those MTV awards ceremonies. Always up to the kooky stuff, the MTVers!

Peter: They’re so crazy!

Tyler: If “Lithium” sounds like an example for a dictionary definition of this band, the following track represents a much lower-key affair. “Polly.”

Peter: Yeah, it’s a quieter moment. Acoustic guitars and whatnot. It’s a nice contrast after all the rock. You can only have so much rock, Tyler.

That’s probably not true. What do I know? I’m not a scientist. I’m just a man. A regular man.

This song is actually about a real rape and murder. He didn’t often write about real events, but he did here. So that’s a sad fact I learned about this song.

Tyler: Bracing subject matter.

Peter: And there’s a faster sort of “rock” version of this on Incesticide.

Tyler: Not slow or acoustic: our next song.

“Territorial Pissings” brings the fire.

Peter: They were trying to make very simple, very catchy, punk songs around this time, and this is a great example of that. It’s very loud, but, again, it’s catchy as hell.

Tyler: One can only wonder where the years might’ve taken their sound.

Peter: It’s a good question. That was a real loss. He was special.

Tyler: If “Pissings” is abrasive and immediate, the next song, “Drain You,” makes time for almost a mid-song jam of sorts.

It’s not a screamer, this one.

Peter: Yeah, it’s kind of art rock-y in that middle bit. Kurt really liked this one. He thought it was as good as “Teen Spirit.” I don’t know about all that, but it’s pretty good.

It’s another change of pace. The album is actually quite varied, musically. I remembered it as more of a wall to wall rock kind of affair.

Tyler: Both “Drain You” and its followup, “Lounge Act,” aren’t as LOUD RAWK as a very casual expectation of Nirvana might predict.

Peter: Right. Exactly. Variety. It’s the spice of life. I don’t know if Kurt thought that, but I certainly do.

There’s more yelling on the next one, I think.

Tyler: There is! Lots! “Stay Away” is ferocious.

Peter: This feels like a “gotta get it on the first take” kind of vocal.

But it’s also got that poppy quality that he brings to the table. He was a real tunesmith. I didn’t really care for a lot of the OG grunge bands like Tad and The Melvins. They had the sound and the image and everything, but the tunes just didn’t grab me.

Tyler: How often do you listen to this album?

Peter: It’s funny. I hadn’t really listened to it for many years. This was a weird experience.  Going back in time.

Tyler: Following “Stay Away” is “On A Plain,” which sounds and fits the role of penultimate actual song.

Peter: Another great tune. McCartneyesque?

Too much?

Tyler: I wouldn’t say too much. Haven’t Nirvana been admired for Beatle-esque qualities?

Peter: For sure. I’m not the first to say it.

At the end of the song, you can hear Dave Grohl’s wordless harmony vocals on their own. His harmony vocals are an important part of this record. I just wanted to make sure to mention that. So, shout out to Dave Grohl’s harmony vocals.

It’s a pretty melody with loud guitars. What’s not to like?

Tyler: They were onto something, by gum!

Loud guitars fall away, though, on the final song, the somber “Something In The Way.”

Peter: I’ve always loved this song. It’s very pretty.

Tyler: Such a hypnotic quality.

Peter: For sure.

Tyler: Wait. Have we done it?

Oh. No. “Endless, Nameless.”

Peter: I never listened to this one.

Tyler: It’s no good!

Peter: It was “hidden” after a bunch of silence, I believe? Yeah, let it stay hidden. It’s not good.

Tyler: Now we’ve done it.

Peter: Huzzah!

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