(Credits: Far Out / YouTube Still)
Tue 17 March 2026 20:30, UK
No one can really prepare themselves for a band like Nirvana when Kurt Cobain first wrote ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’.
The rock and roll scene is constantly in a state of change, and even if people aren’t ready to see their entire musical taste change overnight, all it takes is someone from a nowhere town to remind everyone of the urgency of what rock and roll was supposed to be about in its earliest stages. But even if Cobain claimed to be a great lover of underground music, he did admit that there were some musical bridges that he didn’t really want to cross all that often.
Then again, if it was left off the dial, chances are Cobain would have at least given it a shot. There was no reason for him to believe that Guns N’ Roses were going to make anything of value throughout their history, and even if he liked his fair share of classic rock when he was a kid, it was a lot more normal for him to gravitate towards music reserved for the outsiders of the world, whether that was rocking Daniel Johnston T-shirts or getting back at an entire stadium when they didn’t shot Calamity Jane any respect.
But even if a lot of his taste catered to a lot of underground punk bands, not everyone was looking to be as abrasive as possible. You have to remember that the indie sphere is for all branches of music, and while there were many bands that catered to more niche genres, there were also bands like Pixies and Husker Du that would have genuinely great pop hooks in between their tunes.
And somewhere in between hardcore punk and earnest songwriters stood The Replacements. Paul Westerberg probably understood that he was never going to be the conventional rock star, but even if the band were the saddest sacks of drunks that anyone had ever seen, there was always something endearing about the way they played. Their songs could be equal parts caustic, catchy, and heartbreaking, but Cobain wasn’t that much of a fan of them when he was first exposed to them.
Tim and Let It Be might have been huge releases in the underground scene, but Cobain remembered being a little underwhelmed by what he heard, saying, “I kinda wish they [influenced me], because there’s so many comparisons to us. I have to be honest I really didn’t like The Replacements when I was into punk-rock music. I mean I like the sound of it. I think my appreciation of REM and The Beatles had more to do with it, because I really wasn’t aware of those bands.”
Or maybe that R.E.M. influence was a bit too close to the chest for Cobain. Despite Peter Buck guesting on one of their albums, there was almost a friendly back and forth going on between The Replacements and the Georgia legends, but it’s not like you had to put down your copy of Document or Murmur if you admitted that you liked a song like ‘I Will Dare’ or ‘Kids Don’t Follow’ or anything.
Because when you peel the curtain back, Westerberg did have a lot to do with grunge whether he knew it or not. His music didn’t exactly apply to what Cobain was singing about, but when you hear his pitchy voice over those songs, it actually doesn’t feel out of place next to Pearl Jam and Soundgarden, with probably explains why he fit so well when he started making solo singles to appear on the Singles soundtrack.
There was a lot more to them than Cobain gave credit for, but it’s not like Cobain ever had an outward hatred towards them or anything. He didn’t necessarily enjoy them the same way that he did with Pixies, but even if they weren’t his favourite band, you could see that both of them were on parallel tracks whenever they performed.