Nirvana Milan 1994 Concert Critique

The concert took place in 1994 in Italy. The performance was by the nirvana band which was made up of two members, a singer and a bassist. The drummers of the group kept on changing over the years with the longest being Dave Grohl who joined in 1990.The duo only got to release three albums but is regarded as one of the most excellent bands in history. The show was the second last that the group did. The singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain killed himself 39 days after the concert. Even after the dissolving of the band, the music still has a good following and influences rock and roll culture. Their first album was named Bleach and was released in 1989.They were also signed to a DGC records which were a major label. The song smells like teen spirit from their second album made them a group to watch out for. The song popularized alternative rock. After the death of Cobain in 1994, the band ceased being active. The widow to Cobain, Courtney Love organized small events in honor of the star after his death. Since the debut of the group, it has sold more than 26 million records in the USA only with over 75 million worldwide. The group was inducted into the Rock and roll hall of fame in 2014(Glanville, 112).

The sound of the group is more rocking. The group played the dynamic shifts that went from slow quiet beats to loud and faster beats. The group also made performances and at a point, mixed heavy and pop musical sounds. Cobain style with the rhythm guitar was the main feature of the performance as it relied on power chords, riffs in low notes and a sophisticated left-hand technique. Cobain played song verses on a clean note doubling it with guitars when he repeated the parts. In other performances, the guitar would not be played so that the drums and bass guitar could support Cobains singing. There was also the playing of sparse melodies like the smells like teen spirit which have two note patterns. There were rare guitar solos with most of the solos being blues-based and discordant. Considering the band's lack of music lessons, most of their performances were exemplary. The drumming by Grohl took the performance of a new experience of intensity. The drumming was in sync with the rest of the music instruments and the vocals. When the drums played on their own, one could clearly tell which song they were drumming. The guitars of the band were used to be tuned to E flat but not in this concert. The performance was short because the band would spoil their equipment due to how intense some of the performances would be.

The song lyrics and instruments complemented each other. The instruments supported the vocal of the singer. Most of the songs were written by Cobain who also performed them making him relate to the songs more. The other band members also contributed in regulating the length of the songs. The band was in sync with each other showing that they had done prior practice. The band also has free songs that allow them to navigate with the instruments to the highs and lows (Robinson 12). The songs portray a lot of emotions that made the band connect to the crowd. The crowd could feel the rise and fall of emotions through the different topics the band sang about. The crowd cheered at the end of every song with anticipation for the next. The momentum of the group also remained throughout the one-hour performance with each song being presented as well as the last had been.

I thought the concert was fantastic in the way the band knew how to engage its instruments where necessary. The bass guitar had so much intensity that one felt like jumping up due to the energy the band was generating. There was a proper use of the stage by the group as the members used the space to dance and move around. The band members also maintained the energy throughout the concert making the crowd wilder as the performances took higher notes. They made sure the crowd was eager to hear more of what they had. The only part of the concert that I did not get to enjoy was the inaudible band singing. The instruments sometimes overwhelmed the singer that one could not hear the words he was saying. At some point, he was straining to be heard even though he maintained the energy.

I would attend another of the bands concerts if they had one and would also bring along friends and younger family members that relate to the rock genre of music. The crowd there was mostly young people who are energetic enough to live through the ecstatic performances the band gives. My friends would enjoy every minute of it because they enjoy rock music. Although the band dissolved, it would be nice if another band made history like the Nirvana band

References

Robinson, Suzanne. "Homage to a non-harmonic genius: Glanville-Hicks on Cage." Musicology Australia 29.1 (2007): 1-22.

Glanville-Hicks, P. (1950). Musical Explorers: Six Americans Who Are Changing the Musical Vocabulary.. Vogue, 116(15), 112-13.