To celebrate the 20th anniversary re-release of Nirvana’s third and final studio album, In Utero, surviving members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic sat down with NPR to shed new light on the mood within the band prior to the album’s release, as well as playing previously unheard tracks.
In the interview (below), the pair delved deep into the recording process, which took place in a studio during the bone-chilling cold of Minneapolis in February. Despite the hostile conditions outside, Grohl said the band experienced total unity as they made the most of their isolation:
“If you’ve ever seen pictures of the studio or the house, I’m sure it’s a beautiful place to hang out in in the summertime. Unfortunately, we were there in February. It’s outside of Minneapolis. It was, like, subzero arctic temperature. But that room where we recorded the stuff, the room sounded great and it was a comfortable place to be. And I remember sitting at my drums and Kurt was to my left and Krist was to my right, and we had proper isolation and we would track live together.”
The lads also provided a small sample of what fans can expect from the 20th Anniversay release of In Utero, which is populated by odds and ends release as well as rarities and unheard renditions. The pair previewed tracks such as a rough-as-guts All Apologies demo, the original mix of Heart-Shaped Box from producer Steve Albini and the never-before-heard track Forgotten Tune.
On Forgotten Tune, Novoselic said:
“We found it and were like, ‘What is this song?’ And I don’t really remember… ‘What do you want to call it?’ And I’m like, ‘I don’t want to give it a name, so let’s just call it ‘Forgotten Tune’ and let people make up their own minds what it is.
“But I remember the main riff in that tune was, like, from 1988 or something. Just trying to, like, bring back a riff. ‘All Apologies’ was from 1990, and ‘Dumb’ was a pre-Nevermind song. ‘Pennyroyal Tea,’ [Dave] and Kurt were getting crazy some night down in that apartment with a multi-track cassette recorder, and ‘Pennyroyal Tea’ came out of that. It’s just kind of, like, there were new songs we were trying to revisit, old ideas … ‘Forgotten Tune’ just represents that idea. ‘Let’s see if we can make something out of this.’”
The anniversary album is expected to hit shelves on or around Tuesday, 24th September and will be available in a range of options including the 3CD/1DVD Super Deluxe set which includes all of the below goodies.
Listen: Dave Grohl & Krist Novoselic talk Nirvana’s In Utero 20th Anniversary edition
[npr id=220657501 m=220657790]
In Utero: 20th Anniversary Tracklist:
Disc one – Original album remastered plus all B-sides & bonus tracks recorded at Pachyderm
01. “Serve The Servants” (Albini mix/original release) – 3:39
02. “Scentless Apprentice” (Albini mix/original release) – 3:47
03. “Heart-Shaped Box” (Litt mix/original release) – 4:41
04. “Rape Me” (Albini mix/original release) – 2:51
05. “Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle” (Albini mix/original release) – 4:09
06. “Dumb” (Albini mix/original release) – 2:32
07. “Very Ape” (Albini mix/original release) – 1:55
08. “Milk It” (Albini mix/original release) – 3:54
09. “Pennyroyal Tea” (Albini mix/original release) – 3:37
10. “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter” (Albini mix/original release) – 4:51
11. “tourette’s” (Albini mix/original release) – 1:35
12. “All Apologies” (Litt mix/original release) – 3:55
13. “Gallons Of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through The Strip” (ex-U.S. bonus track) – 7:35
14. “Marigold” (B-side; “Heart Shaped Box) – 2:34
15. “Moist Vagina” (B-side; “All Apologies”) – 3:33
16. “Sappy” – 3:28
17. “I Hate Myself And Want To Die” – 2:59
18. “Pennyroyal Tea” (Litt mix) – 3:36
19. “Heart-Shaped Box” (Albini mix/unreleased) – 4:42
20. “All Apologies” (Albini mix/unreleased) – 3:58
Disc two– 2013 album mix plus pre-album demos
01. “Serve The Servants” (2013 mix) – 3:36
02. “Scentless Apprentice” (2013 mix) – 3:49
03. “Heart-Shaped Box” (2013 mix) – 4:41
04. “Rape Me” (2013 mix) – 2:49
05. “Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle” (2013 mix) – 4:12
06. “Dumb” (2013 mix) – 2:32
07. “Very Ape” (2013 mix) – 1:57
08. “Milk It” (2013 mix) – 3:56
09. “Pennyroyal Tea” (2013 mix) – 3:32
10. “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter” (2013 mix) – 4:51
11. “tourette’s” (2013 mix) – 1:35
12. “All Apologies (2013 mix) – 3:55
13. “Scentless Apprentice” (Rio demo) – 3:54
14. “Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle” (Laundry Room demo) – 4:33
15. “Dumb” (Word Of Mouth demo) – 2:39
16. “Very Ape” (Rio demo) — 2:21
17. “Pennyroyal Tea” (Word Of Mouth demo) – 3:31
18. “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter” (Word Of Mouth demo) – 2:40
19. “tourette’s” (Word Of Mouth demo) – 2:14
20. “Marigold” (Upland Studios demo) – 3:25
21. “All Apologies” (Music Source demo) – 4:25
22. “Forgotten Tune” (Rehearsal) – 2:04
23. “Jam” (Word Of Mouth demo) – 5:44
Disc three – Live & Loud: Live at Pier 48, Seattle, WA – 12/13/93
01. “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter”
02. “Drain You”
03. “Breed”
04. “Serve The Servants”
05. “Rape Me”
06. “Sliver”
07. “Pennyroyal Tea”
08. “Scentless Apprentice”
09. “All Apologies”
10. “Heart-Shaped Box”
11. “Blew”
12. “The Man Who Sold The World”
13. “School”
14. “Come As You Are”
15. “Lithium”
16. “About a Girl”
17. “Endless, Nameless”
DVD – Live & Loud: Live at Pier 48, Seattle, WA – 12/13/93>
01. “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter”
02. “Drain You”
03. “Breed”
04. “Serve The Servants”
05. “Rape Me”
06. “Sliver”
07. “Pennyroyal Tea”
08. “Scentless Apprentice”
09. “All Apologies”
10. “Heart-Shaped Box”
11. “Blew”
12. “The Man Who Sold The World”
13. “School”
14. “Come As You Are”
15. “Lithium”
16. “About a Girl”
17. “Endless, Nameless”
Bonus:
18. “Very Ape” (Live & Loud Rehearsal)
19. “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter” (Live & Loud Rehearsal)
20. “Rape Me” (Live & Loud Rehearsal)
21. “Pennyroyal Tea” (Live & Loud Rehearsal)
22. “Heart-Shaped Box” (Original Music Video + Director’s Cut)
23. “Rape Me” (Live on “Nulle Part Ailleurs” – Paris, France)
24. “Pennyroyal Tea” (Live on “Nulle Part Ailleurs” – Paris, France)
25. “Drain You” (Live on “Nulle Part Ailleurs” – Paris, France)
26. “Serve The Servants” (Live on “Tunnel” – Rome, Italy)
27. “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter” (Live in Munich, Germany)
28. “My Best Friend’s Girl” (Live in Munich, Germany)
29. “Drain You” (Live in Munich, Germany)
(Via CoS)
