BLEACH
- THE ALBUM
When nirvana's bleach was first released in 1989, it
made plenty of noise. The trouble is, for all it's scratching and clawing,
the bludgeoning heavy metal and punk rock, barely anyone heard the band's
screams.
In light of
the musical resolution ushered in by Nevermind, just two years later, the
most remarkable aspect of Bleach might seem to be the fact that it was
never reviewed in the first place. That, however, would not do justice
to a debut album, that still holds up a triumph of focused, musical aggression,
even in the post-nevermind universe.
Despite sludgy
production (the whole album only cost $606.17) Bleach kicks and screams,
with remarkable precision, "School" - which ends with Cobain repeatedly
screaming, "No Recess" - is pure anti-social assault, whilst "Negative
creep," a mouthful of bile, that spits out the words "I'm a negative creep,
and I'm stoned," proves, once and for all, that anger can truly be power.
What ultimately
makes Bleach a cut above most albums' ranting, is the glimpse at Cobain's
growing pop genius;. "About A girl," an almost whispered three minutes,
of sing-along heaven, is as pure a songwriting moment as anything that
would follow it in the Cobain canon. Toss in "Love Buzz" - the cover of
a hit by Swedish band 'Shocking Blue,' that was Nirvana's first ever sub-pop
single - and it's immediately clear that the group's later schlock-pop
allegiances, were not simply affections.
Sure, Cobain's
lyric-writing skills were less than fully developed. there is very little
insight to be offered by songs like "Floyd the Barber" or "Blew," but who
cares? Who really knew what the hell he was saying in "Smells Like Teen
Spirit" anyway? With Nirvana, the medium is the message, and Bleach is
a frighteningly wonderful introduction to their world.
HOME PAGE * BAND HISTORY
* MESSAGEBOARD * NEVERMIND-REVIEW * SONG LYRICS