Reviews (page 7 of 14)
Fantastic album and a great anti-mainstream left turn from Nevermind
A few piercing screams but overall some incredible grunge
Hell yea
As an intro to grunge - I think this showed off the extreme and the commercial. Definitely would've moped to this when I was a teen.
Mumble Rock/10
A lot more abrasive than their previous album "Nevermind", but tracks uch as "Heart-Shaped Box" and "Rape Me" hark back to their previous album.
I was a big Nevermind and Bleach kid growing up. I need more time with this one!!!
Man when this one hits, it really hits. But when it doesn't, it really doesn't. I don't think there's been an album I've rated for this project that has higher highs and lower lows on the same album. The all-timers are no doubters and the rest of the tracks range from meh to unlistenable. Still, the good tracks are so good it elevates the whole album.
Finds it's groove after the first two songs, which as hard to listen to
Always found this a tough one to get into, probably not helped by following the masterful Nevermind. I know it was a deliberate attempt to get away from the previous album but I make no apologies for saying it’s still not the easiest listen at times. Not necessarily in a bad way as the songs have something about them individually. It’s just that the whole album gets a little tiring to listen to be the end, waiting for a melody or something to hook you in.
Not as revolutionary as Nevermind, but nearly as important. Some of this album’s legacy feels directly tied to the Unplugged performance which kind of calls into question its lone significance. But either way, this is the sound of my disaffected youth.
Seems like two goals were attempted separately - 1. money train keeps rolling with the radio ready hits (A+ great songs) 2. "I'm not a sell-out even though I sold A LOT" musician ego fed with the f-you feedback screaming rage songs (visceral, I feel it, we are pissed about some shit). Nirvana was a monolith at this point (clearly not the artists' choice) They could have recorded anything and the critics would have said it was the best ever recorded.
Great album. Not much else needs to be said.
This is a solid classic and a part of my music rotations. The pain in Kurt's lyrics cuts through deep. Great story teller and musician.
Nirvana is beeeesssstttt
gritty and cool, i like it
Such a great record. Listening back now I realise how much more commercialised and produced it was. Nonetheless still a great record
solid, really not my genre at first, but the later half of the album was a vibe first solid 4 ive come across thus far
their 2nd best, which isn’t an unpopular opinion—my real hot take is that i think bleach is #1 highlights: serve the servants, heart shaped box, dumb, all apologies (jul 14 2025)
Genre: Grunge Noisy, abrasive, aggressive, and probably the greatest thing Nirvana ever did. Shortly thereafter, Cobain would kill himself, ending Nirvana in a tragic and unsettling way. Their music lives on. In Utero is full of powerful emotion and some of Nirvana’s best songs, like Heart Shaped Box and All Apologies, both amazing tracks. A really great album, and one that will continue to surprise newcomers. 4/5
I used to think all those kids in high school wearing Alice In Chains shirts were tougher and cooler than me but now I know they really just had bad taste rock. Age really has a way of disarming you.
A classic for a reason. Not as transformative as Nevermind or Bleach, but still a great album
I get how it's impossible to listen to this album and not think about Cobain's death, but I think viewing it as some sort of evidence of a tortured soul is a little overblown. It's just a very heavy album, with some noise elements. The kinds of albums Steve Albini produces or The Melvin's make. Hell, even Sonic Youth has tracks as discordant and loud as In Utereo and no one is saying Thurston Moore is spiralling and in need of help. It's art, it's confrontational art in the context of pop music, but I think this is the album Nirvana wanted to make. It's not some unintentional howl of pain, it's a heavy genre of music that all the members of the band dug. Anyway, I liked it.
3.6
Excellent album, I remember listening to it when I was 20-22 years younger and not understanding it well. Today I value it much more and I find it much more complete.
In Utero is fine, but I always liked Nevermind better.
Some absolute gems in this album mixed in with some noisy filler.
Solid classic, not quite Nevermind
Не фанат Нирваны и текстов их песен, но этот альбом звучит неплохо.
Greta album
Was surprised by how many songs on this I recognised. Wouldn’t necessarily be my taste but from the very first chord this album is so unapologetic in its sound I have to respect it
OH MY GOOOD, I'm so happy to see this album here! It's time to relisten it! I was 12 when I listened to it last time and I was sooo excited about this !!grunge!! and something like that. Now I'm 19 and I'm interested does something change? Well, I didn't feel like I went back to those days but it's still good music for me. Nothing special ah
It’s a nirvana album, sounds like a nirvana album, to point nowadays don’t remember which songs are on which of the last 2 albums would have sworn dumb was on nevermind - oh well that’s on me, vaguely remember at the time lot being said about how different, whatever. if you like them, if you don’t etc etc. like the music I started listening to them when got bleach when it came out, as into all the sub pop stuff and thought they were a little Husker du like, but still continue from back in the day to have a personal issue with the obsession with them like they are ground zero for rock, or like some immaculate second coming that sprung from nowhere, yes they had deserved massive crossover hits with great songs so it sounded new n fresh from what was around on mtv, which is their superpower not being the one and only as others had done similar but not successfully, just google why nirvana and not husker du, who I will die saying were a better band did it earlier and better, but nirvana in the end had the best selling album, the tabloid wedding and dayglow suicide to cement their place in rock history. End of the day it’s good raw rock with pop elements, 4 Star
4.9
Some really good songs on this album. I think All Apologies is my favourite by Nirvana. On some of the deeper cuts Kurt's vocals get a little screamy for my liking, but overall great record.
Cannot stress enough how much I was not a Nirvana fan back in the day. More of a hey good for those like-minded guys but holy shit, calm down everyone can’t you see this guy legit needs help? I wasn’t clued in to Bleach, but preferred Trompe le Monde of the albums that came out when Nevermind hit. The whole rollout felt very how do you do fellow kids, which I know they fought against, etc, but still it was like, if you were into alternative, then you had to be a Nirvana fan and the whole thing about being into alternative is not liking being told what to like! Especially as a 14 year-old. I got Nevermind at xmas along with a bunch of Cure and Smiths CDs, which were much more my thing, so Something in the Way fit and the rest...were great, duh, but not my exact deal at the time. Anyhow, In Utero rolled around. In the interim we all got to know too much about Kurt and co and for his health I wish he’d just retired to his house for a decade after getting help, maybe become a Bob Pollard type and just record nonstop and surface in 2003 with a batch of unreleased stuff while Grohl went out and became a Rock Star. But instead, gotta keep the show going... All I could hear when I first played In Utero was someone expressing their deep pain and that just wasn’t something I felt comfortable supporting? Took me maybe 15 years until I could hear it was still 3 guys having a ball making some very incisive rock music. Alongside the whole pain thing. The cynic in me thought Kurt was at times trying too hard to sound like Jesus Lizard and Melvins, but even the clearest attempt at that - Milk It - is still blessed with whatever it is KC had and brought to the world.
This is a good album, but I think I find that I often prefer the MTV Unplugged versions of the tracks more than these versions. That makes it hard for me to justify top marks for this one. I think some of it is just that I prefer the mix where it's easier to hear the vocals. That really brings out a lot from songs like 'Pennyroyal Tea' for me as opposed to the version on here which is drowning in guitar Standouts Heart-Shaped Box Rape Me Dumb 4/5
Really big bangers. My friend look like nirvava
Classic
I like this more than Nevermind, the album is more raw and rocking than their previous effort. The second side is especially nice, with less hits and more grunting raw screaming noise songs like Radio Friendly Unit Shifter. Shame we never got more out of Nirvana, but this is a somewhat fitting end for the band.
4.5 All day
I'm still sad about Kurt Cobain's suicide. He was too pure and sensitive for this harsh world that too often doesn't appreciate artists. That said, I enjoyed the classic Nirvana songs. All Apologies is one of the all-time greats. This is my first time listening to In Utero all the way through. Aside from the classics, I didn't so much enjoy the others. I appreciate his anger, though. Some tracks were not to my taste, so I rate this four stars, while acknowledging Nirvana's immense impact and influence on rock music.
Some banging classic grunge monsters on this album aren't there! Still don't get why they are so revered but they made some decent songs in an angsty sad kind of way.
Great album but I like Bleach and Nevermind better.
It's not a favourite Nirvana album for me, but a few popular songs are excellent!
3.5 stars, I’ve never listened to a full Nirvana album, not totally my style but I get why they’re so notable
I haven’t listened to this album in years, and it’s pretty much as I remember it. It is sonically and lyrically better than Nevermind, although you can tell that the singles were remixed because they have a smoother, more refined sound. I enjoy this album, and I think it shows both pop and punk sensibilities. It’s an above average album, with a bit of bite about it, but overall, I think Nirvana are a bit underwhelming. Come for me!
Nirvana is a band I really enjoyed as a teen/young adult, and have spun this album up many times. It's a great album, although it sounds a bit dated today. All apologies is still a great tune. There's also a few others, heart shaped box, Rape me, pennyroyal tea.
In Utero is a bit of a throwback to Nirvana's debut album, Bleach, with Albini's noisy influence on a few songs. Even though I like "Very Ape" and "Milk It", I'm glad the record label stepped in and toned it down to produce the hits such as "Dumb" and "All Apologies" which def carry the record. Nirvana sired 3 great releases and I am hoping all of them make the list. For birthing this one...3.75 stars.
Honestly a cool album, and you can hear the early basis for Nevermind, but it’s not quite as great
I gotta sit with this one for a little bit. This album is raw and abrasive, and a bit harrowing considering what happened with Kurt right after this. That being said, it doesn’t lose it’s sense of musicality, and the songs are still very well written. A lot of it feels like a direct retaliation to the success of Nevermind, with the band seemingly wanting this to be nowhere near as colossal of a success. It is definitely a less radio friendly album, with harsh feedback, way noisier guitars, and Kurt Cobain ruining his vocal chords throughout, but again, the song structures, hooks, and riffs are all still there. Grohl’s drumming is incredible as always. It’s not a complete rejection of what made them famous (good music), rather it’s a rejection of what made them more famous than they wanted. Good album, I’ll probably come back to it later.
Handful of absolute bangers mixed in with a bit too much angst.
I forget how pop-influenced Nirvana was at this point. Not quite the album Nevermind is, but this one is still an anthem of angst and swimming upstream. Good stuff
Mää melkeinpä sanoisin, että tää on Nirvanan paras levy, parempi kuin Nevermind. Toki sen kuulemisesta on jo aikaa. Kappaleet tuntuu kuitenkin paremmin kirjoitetuilta ja järkevimmiltä. Yleisestikkin soundi on semmoinen mistä pidän. Parhaat: Heart-Shaped Box, Rape Me, All Apologies, Dumb
It's one of those records that I never listened to, because I knew most of the songs already. This was a nice surprise, as a lot of the tracks were new to me, and they are GOOD. Wild, unhinged at times, but always full of energy.
I like the all of the three songs because it has good rythem and beat the intruments were good and had rock and it got softer an louder
Heart Shaped Box <3 Great album
Some of the great hits from a wonderful band
Pretty good stuff- would have liked to have seen where they went next :( FS: Dumb?
Maybe my favorite Nirvana album? I’d have to listen to more but the songs just have that extra something on them
Not their best for my money, but still outstanding!
One of my favorites.
The simplistic childish lyrics from albums past have vanished, replaced by darker themes and more mature subject matter. The urgency is missing giving In Utero an eerie mellow vibe. Not a Nirvana fan, still an excellent album.
Already listened to this, nirvana makes good songs but I always think there albums kinda blend into one. Being a third listen I might be able to understand the individual songs better this time.
This is a raw, heavy, abrasive and quite a dark album. I've heard it's more grungey, punky and darker than 'Nevermind' so it'll be interesting to compare when I get that album. Kurt Cobain sounds great. His screams on 'Tourette's' and 'Scentless Apprentice' sound like he's in pain and he's letting his anger and frustration out. What a great riff on the latter track too by the way! Despite it being less poppy than their previous album, it still has its pop moments. Opener 'Serve The Servants' is a catchy way to start the album and 'Heart Shaped Box' was the only familiar track to me (thanks again, Guitar Hero!) and I used to find it so boring. Listening to it today though, I really enjoyed it. It's one of those tracks that you think a loud and heavy guitar is coming to blow your ears off but it never comes and I like that. A couple of dud tracks here and there and it did every so slightly sound a bit samey at times (need more listens) but this was great, and I'm very much looking forward to more from Nirvana.
86% Best: Heart-Shaped Box; Rape Me; Dumb; Milk It; Radio Friendly Unit Shifter; All Apologies Must-Hear? Sure
Intentionally rawer and and less polished than Nevermind, but also the crop of songs isn't as strong. I'm not Gen X so I don't have that big an emotional attachment to this record, but it still pretty great. Key tracks: Heart-Shaped Box Rape Me Dumb Pennyroyal Tea All Apologies
The 1st 2 tracks really turned me off, much rawer than Nevermind. Then it settled down and I really enjoyed the rest of the Album
Raw
Not my favourite from Nirvana, a bit more avant-garde than I like personally. But there are some obvious hits here and it’s interesting to listen to the whole record front to back.
nunca fui mto fã de nirvana, mas esse eu vou ter que dar a devida moral: poucas coisas me pegam mais do que gritos raivosos e angustiados com uma guitarra distorcida fazendo bagunça
My prime youth here in all it's angsty glory, lol. Great album with some solid tracks and only minimal filler. All Apologies is still my favorite Nirvana track after all these years.
I only know the hits… have never listened to a Nirvana album in full and I was surprised how many “deep cuts” (to me) I liked. Can totally understand how this band changed the game at the time.
The first album generated for me is one I know well from previous years, but haven't listened to in some time. It is a classic and my favorite Nirvana album - it's rawness elevates it above Nevermind, but also means you have to be in the right state of mind to listen to it, and it can on occasions prove too challenging. I will only give 5 stars to albums I genuinely see as some of my favorites of all time, so will limit this album to 4 stars. Standout Tracks - Heart Shaped Box, Rape Me, Dumb, All Apologies. 8/10.
4.5
Ok... As for me half of this album is fucking brilliant. "Heart-Shaped Box", "Rape Me", "Francis Farmer...", "Dumb", "Pennyroyal Tea", and my personal favorite Nirvana song, "All Apologies" are all absolute bangers. Five more songs like that and yes I would call this a five star, hands down. The rest honestly are just too raw and noisy for the sake of being raw and noisy. That usually doesn't sit well with me. But some of those tracks overcome that. Like the opening tracks "Sereve The Servant" and "Scentless Apperentice", which though I'm not as high on as the six I mentioned earlier, really feel fine in the context of the album. Then there is "Milk It" and "Tourette's" which we'll is just a bunch of screaming nonsense to me. Over all this is a great album, but as I've always maintained, doesn't hold a candle to "Nevermind" as far as excellence. I don't care how many Nirvana fans have tried to convince me till they're blue in the face that this is a far better album and that I don't have any ears for not recognizing that. I'm not aiming that at anyone here, but it has historically made me kinda despise the album in retrospect. Every time I listen to it I keep on trying to find what it is that everyone talks about, but I don't hear it. I tried not to listen to it in that context this time around. And yes actually is a very good album. 8.75 ★★★★
An album of similar stature and circumstance to Joy Division’s Closer except not quite as good. You have Scentless Apprentice as pulverising highs, a few other classic not-as-pulverising tracks like All Apologies, Dumb and Heart Shaped Box and below that Pennyroyal tea as bleary mids, Milk It and Tourettes as punishing mids, and Very Poo Ape and Radio Friendly Poo-nit Shifter as poopy lows. On balance though still a pretty great record.
It's just a classic album. Raw and authentic despite having top-flight production value.
7.75/10
An amazing album. Raw, pure and angry.
Actually far better than i remembered
Deeply personal with plenty of both angst and pain to be seen here. Some songs have ear worm melodies, and others increased sales on distortion pedals by 50%. Punk albums can often feel more bark than bite — I believe the case is clear here that In Utero is not. Least favorite — Very Ape, Tourette’s, Radio Friendly Unit Shelter Top tracks — the rest
8/10. Nevermind is a better album but i love how raw and real this is. All apologies is an amazing closer
Seemed good. A bit sweary and intense
Having flashbacks of my nirvana “phase” in high school and I liked it!
Som en blyg och sympatisk seriemördare
heart-shaped box and dumb already saved. Let's see the other ones:
This one is good, but it hits differently than Nevermind. I didn't get into this as much, and I'm not sure why. I would've loved to have heard another album from them, but it wasn't meant to be. Fun fact, The Prodigy samples the opening guitar on Very Ape for their song Voodoo People on Music for the Jilted Generation. Give it a listen. Anyhoo, this album is a 4 for me.
I have mentioned that Nirvana was a hugely impactful band for me when I was a kid in the early '90's. But that after Kurt's death it was hard for me to keep listening. So it's been a long time since I listened to this album straight through. If you would've asked me what I rated this album, before I recently listened to it again, I would have told you that it was a five, easily. But listening to it surprised me and made me realize that it was a much louder, harsher album on some tracks than some of their other stuff. Kurt was too raw and screamy for some of these songs to be anything I would reach for on a regular basis these days, but they still have their place and I still appreciate them. Yet I realize that it doesn't quite meet my threshold of an album needing to be absolute wall to wall greatness for it to garner a five. So I'll give it a four and a half. My favorite tracks are Serve The Servants, Heart-Shaped Box, Dumb, Pennyroyal Tea, All Apologies.
Hard to follow up “Nevermind” but still solid, actually found the slower songs more enjoyable
Amazing of course.
Pretty good!, but i love nevermind more than this one
12/1001. What do you get when an angry and depressed band gets world famous, pushed and pulled around? Add a bit of drugs to the mixture and they get angrier and more depressed, and it shows here. So for me this album is a diary of what was happening at that time to Nirvana / Cobain. Somehow I can't imagine what would have happened after this if what happened didn't happen with the band? Cobain sobered out, grunge craze gone by, next big thing in everyone's cd-walkmans — would they have mellowed out, wrote more savvy, still a bit grungy songs a la the Foo Fighters? Would the world have wanted that? And does this make this album better because of that improbable future never happened? The album is honest, with great songs and amazing energy and rawness, but I don't really feel too comfortable reading or listening to someone's private life splattered over 12 songs. I liked Bleach when it came out and Nevermind was out of this world, and this album reminds us that Grunge Lives Matter.
This album is so good. I’m not really the biggest rock guy but they are undeniable. Their chemistry bleeds through the music, it just sounds seamless. I’m usually indifferent to Rock vocalists singing capabilities but Kurt’s voice just fits perfectly. I loved this project!
90s grunge have my heart. Good times.
Classic nirvana
Very very solid rock
I never used to like Nirvana because I thought they were all poppy tunes under a veneer of rock guitars, but since listening to a lot more grunge this year I've found I like them after all. I realised they (and grunge more generally) are a bridge from hard rock to sludge/stoner/doom that I just skipped. I didn't really get why Melvins are sometimes labelled as grunge until I heard songs like Blew and Mr. Moustache I still prefer the noisy and chaotic moments, like Scentless Apprentice and the guitar solo on Serve the Servants. The softer moments suffer a bit for me because of Kurt's voice, sometimes I find it offputting and grating. Not always though, the verses on Heart-Shaped Box work I could also tell Steve Albini produced this purely by the sound of the drums on Scentless Apprentice I don't like Rape Me though, it's a level of edgelord that ends up quite cringe in my opinion. The riff also sounds like shitty self-plagarisation of Teen Spirit Highlights: Scentless Apprentice, Pennyroyal Tea, Heart-Shaped Box, Milk It
Ah, the Nirvana album they made to intentionally alienate their fans from Nevermind (allegedly). The album has a much dirtier, uglier sound, which is certainly... A choice. It's unconventional but it's still clearly purposeful and every song is distinct. And though I may not like it as much as Nevermind, it's not without it's high points. Heart Shaped Box is one of my favorite Nirvana songs ever, and Pennyroyal Tea is a damn good song where Kurt gets out a lot of his pain. It's an ugly album, but one still with a place.
This album was riding high on the success of Nevermind, an iconic cover design, and the slow and steady decline of Cobain’s mental health. Kurt’s erratic behavior paired with public suicidal ideations was creating friction within the band. Relistening to this album in retrospection makes those little nuances become increasingly more evident. That’s not to say that there aren’t some good songs on here: Heart-Shaped Box; Rape Me; Dumb, and my favorite, All Apologies. But the other songs on there tend to lead toward the forgettable ans they seem like leftovers from Bleach and Nevermind. I wonder: if Cobain won’t have died, would have this been the last Nirvana album anyway?
Random thoughts: * It is hard not to judge this album in the shadow of Nevermind. No matter what Nirvana did after that it was not going to measure up. * They definitely went a little darker and harder to probably turn off the masses. But a few songs still pushed through: Heart Shaped Box, Rape Me, Pennyroyal Tea, All Apologies. * There is enough here for an above average album with a more acquired taste.
I’ve never listened to any Nirvana ever before and I can now say I get why people love them now. It’s emotion and talent expressed like no other. Good stuff but I think it’ll take me a second to really fully appreciate this record.
It’s good but the grunge schtick gets boring. Nevermind is a better album despite what all the greebos say
Nirvana’s best album. It’s raw and noisy and full of energy.
Wow grandma's review makes me want to listen again and pay closer attention! Like gumblesnork, this sounded a lot more like Creed than I remembered. But I was tapping my feet and I like the vocal range that Kurt Cobain has throughout the album. I might like Nevermind more 😬
Alt rock is never going to be the same once they hear this
When I think of Nirvana I mostly think of "Nevermind". By comparison this album felt like a move away from pop and towards a more raw energetic sound. I'm sure that a lot of people like that a lot but I'm not sure how I feel about it. On one hand I think it's cool to see a band with so much mainstream success move towards a less palatable sound. On the other hand I think that at it's best the band was really fueled by Cobain's impeccable sense of melody and this album didn't really put that on display. Regardless: good listen IMO. Album art is sick AF too
Hard to complain about Nirvana. Heart-Shaped box, Rape Me, and Dumb have catchy familiar melodies, while the rest is just very grungy 90s alt rock.
Great album. I really dug the use of feedback that Kurt used. Just disgusting guitar tone they used
“Slaps the top of Kurts head” This bad boy can hold so much angst.
Se rämisevämpi Nirvana. Pidän tätä nevermindia parempana sen räkäisyyden takia.
another album i've heard before (partially) Serve The Servants - 4/5 Scentless Apprentice - 3/5 Heart-Shaped Box - 5/5 Rape Me - 5/5 Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge... - 4/5 Dumb - 5/5 Very Ape - 4/5 Milk It - 4/5 Pennyroyal Tea - 4/5 Radio Friendly Unit Shifter - 4/5 Tourette's - 3/5 All Apologies - 5/5 Average score: 4.1/5 it's Nirvana, what can i say?
Not my favorite of the nirvana albums but always a good listen.
Still relevant in 2025, honestly. I was young (exactly 20 years old) when this album came out, and I was fond of the grunge scene — and the Britpop scene as well, which is funny — but I was devastated by the news of Cobain’s death. So I decided not to listen to this LP. And I never listened to it later on. But now… oh boy, this is a masterpiece.
The highs on this album are all time!
More creative than Nevermind, but a little too self loathing
Nice album
nice mix of heavy but still melodic
I haven’t listened to Nirvana in a long time, but this is undeniably a great album. Also, without Nirvana, I’m not sure that Dave Grohl would have ever made Everlong, so it would be really hard not to give this album praise.
The best nirvana album. Album is dripping in angst and is so consistent start to finish. 8/10 Favorite tracks - pennyroyal tea, tourettes, dumb
I only know a couple songs from this record. I owned it in the 90s. We’ll see how this aged for me. Ok, opening track “serve the servants” sounds like “Big Me” from Foo Fighters. “Gentleness apprentice” sounds like “my hero”. Have the foo fighters just been Nirvana re-treads? From “Heart shaped box” on sounds like nirvana. I really like “Milk it”. I love the noise at the end of “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter”. “All apologies” is the best song on this record. This is the song that makes me believe that they all loved the Beatles. This song is raw and ferocious while retaining the song writing sensibility of Eleanor Rigby.
First album I've not (re) listened to as I know it well enough to not need to. I reckon if I was rating this as a first listen it'd be lower.
It’s got some good songs but not quite as many as Nevermind.
Angry and energetic. The hit songs are my favorites - if it wasn't for them, this score would likely be a 3.
8/10. Very good. I like Rape me and Marigold both are class
Some real gems in here. “Heart shape box” is probably one of the best Nirvana songs imo, “Dumb” is another great one. Compared to “Nevermind” this feels like it has some more breadth with experimentation with string instruments and different sounds. The sound is very Nirvana, if you enjoy grunge you will like this. I really enjoyed it, maybe a better album than “Nevermind” even? It is at least as good. I’ll settle for a very strong 4 since after listening to it I still can’t remember that many of the songs. See it as evening out giving “Nevermind” a 5 star, they are quite equal in my opinion.
Listening to In Utero is like a time machine to 90s rock, specifically the emotions attached to the sound.
i've already heard this plenty of times. it's good.
Oh yes. What can i possibly say what hasn't already been said a thousand times over. I'm just glad Kurt didn't live long enough to have a twitter account. They'd be awful.
Solid. Only issues I had were some of the random screaming and noise like guitar feedback that popped up from time to time.
In Utero > Nevermind I still feel that Nirvana is an overrated band but In Utero is as near a masterpiece that can be gotten out of them. All Apologies is/was one of my favorite songs when Kurt was still alive. If only he had the help he needed In Utero's follow up could've been stellar. 4/5
This is the first album that I've listened to before that I truly love. I can even play a couple of the songs on the drums. Some music pipeline I've already been down has meant that I've listened to a lot of noise rock albums that I believe do the same thing better, though. It 'only' gets a 4/5 because of this. I also recommend throwing 'Gallons Of Rubbing Alcohol Flowing Through The Strip' at the end, since it was the hidden track on some releases and I'm sure you throw in Endless, Nameless when you listen to Nevermind.
Muy bueno
Cobain's whining hasn't aged perfectly, but its a good sound overall. Heart Shaped Box is a 9/10. Dumb is a classic too. Pennyroyal Tea is solid, and All Apologies is probably my favorite Nirvana song. Little bit of boring filler but overall it is a good album and very important in music history.
The BEST Nirvana album. These has everything you could ever want from a Nirvana album. This is their masterpiece.
No Unplugged but its still good
1001 Albums Generator aka I Learn What Nirvana Songs Are Actually Called
one of the biggest albums of all time. not exactly my jam
Es el sonido de una época. Me gusta la mezcla del álbum. Me gusta la bata de Dave Grohl y su estilo. Nirvana no es para mi y eso le saca un puntito. De igual manera sigue siendo un gran disco.
Frequently feral and occasionally pretty. I don’t buy that it’s better than Nevermind - even if you prefer the raw production of In Utero, song for song it’s just not quite as good - but that doesn’t mean it isn't a very good album in its own right.
already listened
A great Nirvana album. This one is definitely less beginner friendly than Nevermind, but still a banger. Very raw, aggressive grunge, which is what I like about Nirvana compared to their contemporaries in the Grunge genre.
8/10
Don’t think this is quite in the same league as Nevermind. All Apologies, Pennyroyal Tea, Milk It and Heart Shaped Box were my favourites but the other tracks left me a bit cold.
4/5
I love the vibe of the album and what Nirvana means for 90s music. Great songs, but some of them go a little over the line for me as far as edgy. Not a fan of the screaming or intentionally provocative lyrics in some songs, but overall I enjoyed it
What a glorious mess of an album. There was only ever going to be one way out of this, right? Albani delivers his usual bruises, whilst KC tries to add some soul to the chaos around him. The album almost falls over, such is the out of control nature. A fitting full stop.
Not my favorite album by Nirvana, but a very good one.
A grunge classic, some incredibly good songs and a couple that prevent this album a five star rating.
Je suis un normie, je préfère Nevermind.
Better with more listens. Found the hardcore edge while still remaining musical and crisp. Great singles.
I didn't listen to Nirvana much these days, but it's pretty impressive coming back to it. This is still a really strong album with a bunch of great songs, and maybe a couple I generally skip. I still like Nevermind more, but I'm really happy I listened to this again today.
If you can manage to make it through the end of Scentless Apprentice, you'll be rewarded by a grungy album that is as nostalgic as it is raw - but fuck scentless apprentice, Kurt its 9:30am can you take it down a notch
I personally prefer Nevermind but this album is fantastic in its own right. It's so raw compared to Nevermind and the emotion comes through strongly. Heart-Shaped Box, Rape Me, Dumb, All Apologies are all great songs.
My familiarity with Nirvana is mostly limited to Nevermind, so I was a bit turned off during the first few songs when I realized how much more abrasive this album is. But once I opened my mind to the more experimental sounds, I really got into it. I wish the lyrics were easier to understand, but I know that would make it lose its grungy appeal.
Such a great album. Raw...yet very well produced. This is obviously the 2nd best Nirvana album (I wonder which is #1 lol) but this album was a part of my constant rotation in high school. I love it. I'm gonna try to remove some bias here, because it ISN'T a perfect album. Specifically the singing in "Tourette's"....oof. (the guitar parts fuck tho). However "Heart-Shaped Box" is a perfect piece of music, "Dumb" is such a meaningful song and you can tell it means a lot to Kirk, and obviously "All Apologies" is a fantastic song. 99% of the time Kirk crushes his lyricism too. I understand if his voice isn't for you, but the lyrics are great. I LOVE "Very Ape" and "Pennyroyal Tea" as well and the crunchy-ness of the first chord in "Serve The Servants." (And that whole song). The solos throughout are also severely underrated. Simple. But underrated. 4 stars Liked Songs: "Serve The Servants" , "Heart-Shaped Box" , "Rape Me" , "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle" , "Dumb" , "Very Ape" , "Pennyroyal Tea" , "Radio Friendly Unit Shifter" , "All Apologies"
liked songs: most of them I definitely hear some production similarities to the Pixies; there's a lot of quiet/loud/quiet on this album. Very good. 4
Tasty jams
👍
This is a 90s grunge album made by the godfathers of the genre and, in my opinion, its an album that still holds up today. It's a heavier and more unpolished album than it's predecessors and it gives it an undeniably edge that reels you in. The lyrics are devastatingly real and unforgiving, giving the album a raw feeling. The moody guitar and the heavy vocals create the shape of the album and although I'm not a fan of screamy vocals, I'm willing to see past it for this album. It's melancholy feel will stick with you long after this album has finished and solidifies why Nirvana has stuck through the passage of time and is still a favourite for many people. It's sad to think where the band could have gone if Cobain was still here but his memory is preserved in his music forever. A great listen.
Metal Nirvana big angst
An album that's very punk and very pop, but doesn't make any compromises in the process. The noisy "Scentless Apprentice" ends, and suddenly you're at "Heart-Shaped Box". The lyrics are full of the disturbing imagery that Kurt was known for. He said that the songs on this album were impersonal and unemotional. I can't listen to "Pennyroyal Tea" and imagine that's true. Maybe my view is coloured by his suicide that followed, but I feel that there's this palpable anguish here. At its most straightforward, at its most abrasive, at its sweetest, at its wryest. It cloaks everything. Fav tracks: Scentless Apprentice, Heart-Shaped Box, Rape Me, Pennyroyal Tea, All Apologies
2 Nirvana albums this week? I'll take it. I've always gone back and forth on which I prefer- Nevermind or In Utero. I think Nevermind is overall more consistent but the highs on In Utero are higher in my opinion. Some of the highlights are "Heart-Shaped Box", "Dumb", "All Apologies" and "Pennyroyal Tea" My favorite from this album, and also my favorite Nirvana album in general, is "R*pe Me". I always hate telling people that its my favorite Nirvana song but I can't help it. It's sorta like a better "Teen Spirit" to me. Anyways this album is an absolute classic. You really cannot go wrong with Nirvana. Favorite track: R*pe Me 4.5/5
Should have come to this one much earlier, as a continuation to Nevermind. It's a great record, much to digest though. So tragic to think this is the last I will hear from Kurt. That's one of the reasons I was waiting for it for a long time. Tracks 1, 3, 4, 6, 9 12 absolutely fire
С юности знакомый альбом, многими почитаемый лучшим альбомом Nirvana.
I had written a pretty extended review of the album. Kurt playing and control of feedback is top notch(especially on Radio Friendly Unit Shifter). Scentless Apprentice might be the best drum take by Grohl in Nirvana. 8/10 https://youtu.be/riIWXeCYJvw
just doesn't hit me the same as nevermind
I like it but the best song isn't on the album officially i really like alcohol i really want to make songs and album. Also hi gamers i hope you're having a fun time it's nice fun i hope we
A smattering of blue link classics I know very well and a few songs I've never really heard before for seemingly good reason. I think I prefer Nevermind.
9/10 I’m stuck with a thousand yard stare sort of feeling when listening to this album, I of course love and personally prefer Nevermind, a much more cynical and addictive album than In Utero which gave a voice to a lot of discomfort and nihilism for 90s youth, the sort of youth that would be soundtracked by Grunge, Nu Metal and Industrial music for a decade until its death on April 20th, 1999. I think anyone who tries to negate Nirvana’s legacy by calling Kurt Cobain a hack or a lousy player sort of misses the point of why this dude became a martyr for Grunge music, a mythologized figure post-ironically propped up like Jesus Christ, with the most hardcore zealots stopping you on the street to force you to “name 5 songs”, but that’s as far as it goes, art is never that serious. In Utero probably does take it far however, it’s why as much as I think this album is excellent and understand the acclaim, I think I just get mentally snagged on the context, like I can’t listen to this without being in a psychological purgatory. It’s unavoidable, you can’t listen to this album without knowing that they prompted Kurt blowing his brains out, you’re sitting with the final words of a dead man, it’s not stated, it’s not completely direct, but you know that this was going somewhere. It’s not the final words of someone who’s lived a tortured life and inevitably dies from an overdose or an accident, you’re just sort of forced to accept the outcome, the inevitability of it, there was not saving Kurt, because everyone loved it, and if he didn’t do it, he’d be seen as a phony. It’s that discomfort that I can’t help but dwell on this, but the album is indulgent on that feeling. Steve Albini’s production guides this album’s nihilistic ethos with a violent and searing viscera, you can’t help but be engulfed by fiery guitar tones and pitch black hollowness. Talk your shit, say they’re overrated, say they’re garbage players, it doesn’t really matter, your input is just as hollow as the commercialization and oversaturation of their image and sound, there’s no negating what actually occurred here, and it’s an uncomfortable reality. After the cultural reset of 9/11 we’ve now reached another irony poisoned nihilistic state in our culture, maybe we can martyr Charli XCX to be our Alt-Pop Jesus Christ and we can bully people on the street to name 3 songs off Pop 2 for the next decade until we’re engulfed in flames
Nirvana! A pleasant surprise for my Gen X husband, who has to deal with my eclectic tastes and my decision to take on the 1001 albums. 😅 Scentless Apprentice is brutally unpleasant to listen to. The other eleven tracks range from fine to excellent, but the screeching. The screeching! Extremely skippable track. I know this is the final finished artistic product of a tormented mind, but eeeeeeesh. Love the Albini production, love Albini's snarky dismissal of Nirvana as a band. I was 9 when this album came out, and I liked MTV back then (before it turned into a reality show dumpster fire) so a few of these tracks are woven into the soundscape of my youth. I have my biases. Four stars. Yeah, Scentless Apprentice is that bad.
in a word: awesome
Not the best Nirvana album but that makes it still awesome
Nirvana's response to their commercial success was to push their sound back to something closer to their original Bleach sound. Most of it works well with Cobain sounding more aggressive and grating with his vocals. Overall, a classic in my opinion though I can understand if some are turned off by the abrasive nature of the vocals.
I was born and raised in the Seattle area, so I speak with some authority when I say that the only thing more Seattle than Nirvana is telling out-of-towners "not everybody here is into Nirvana." Personally, I just could never really get into them. I think Nevermind is a very good album, but I wouldn't list it as one of my favorites. In Utero is even farther down the list for me. It goes on too long, the tracks aren't as memorable ("Rape Me" is the only one most would recognize), and its position in musical history is due more to its proximity to Cobain's death than to its musical merits. Worth a listen as an "important" album more than as an "enjoyable" album.
Incredible riffs, catchy melodies, energetic, chaotic and one of the greatest vocals in music history
This album is harder and angrier than I remember, but I suppose that makes sense in hindsight. I enjoy this a lot more than I remember, maybe it’s a sign of our current times and my current mood.
All Apologies is amazing Iconic punk album. Screaming not in my taste but love what Nirvana did for punk
Not as good as Nevermind but still damn good.
Amazing rock record. Intense and not super accessible. Lyrics are minimalist, but they are intense and often profound, also very intense/angry/depressing. Struggling between 4 and 5 for this one. Maybe a couple songs aren't quite as strong as others
Rape Me is such an unfortunate song title but so so good. That and Dumb are the standouts here but the whole things is really solid. High 4.
Obviously not as fun to listen to as Nevermind, but I do respect what Nirvana was doing here. Kurt Cobain had clearly had enough of being a "pop star" and wrote an album intentionally designed to alienate people (kind of like Yeezys imo). That said, there are still some really catchy melodies here b/c Kurt remained a Beatle head through and through.
Sound is too raw, lyrics too emo, still worth listening to
Fantastic album, but I feel like this has songs that are not that good all in all to weigh up against classics like Heart-shaped Box or Rape Me.
My least favorite of nirvanas but still solid music and lyrics.
Groundbreaking, respect
Try to imagine this In the time of Christmas Sitting round the table It sure is no fable Playing the Top2000 out loudly For this you can't blame me From the speakers out proudly The cute and quiet guitar from Rape me
I just noticed that the guitar intro to “Rape Me” sounds a lot like the riff to “Teen Spirit.” Much of this album sounds like a reaction to the life-altering success of Nevermind and the weight of expectations (“I miss the comfort in being sad,” Kurt sings). There’s a stark contrast on this album between bitter and brutal tracks that seem almost purposely designed to alienate large segments of Nirvana bandwagon fans and tender, melodic songs that betray a growing maturity and songwriting sensibility.
Pretty good noise music for workout. More chaotic than Nevermind? Serve the Servants: classic rock guitar riff, hard to focus on words with drums. Scentless Apprentice: loud everything, not a fan of whatever is happening with the vocals. Heart Shaped Box: sounds familiar, moody guitar, subtle vocal harmony, build to classic Nirvana chorus. Rape Me: obvious tie back to Teen Spirit in guitar, drums and lyrics/story. France's Farmer: not sure what's happening lyrically, but I like the drums and guitar- again it seems to harken back to Teen Spirit. Dumb: also a similar progression to Teen Spirit, cello?, I prefer this style of vocals (cause I can understand the words...), slower tempo and more contemplative. Very Ape: dissonant vocals again, more sonically structured compared to other tracks. Milk It: I'm probably wrong but I feel like I'm hearing the same rhythm guitar. Pennyroyal Tea: acoustic guitar?, slower tempo but still loud as usual, nice bass in verse after chorus, still can't tell you what's happening lyrically, nice structure in guitar. Radio Friendly Unit Shifter: no to whatever that sound is at the beginning and the screeching beep, drunk vocals again, repetitive chorus. Tourette's: crashing drums, incomprehensible yelling, and rough electric guitars. All Apologies: bowed bass/cello, strummed electric guitar, slower tempo initially, rock chorus.
The first few songs had me disappointed but from dumb onwards I really enjoyed it and I think it gets up to a 4 star
Are the released and well known tracks that much better because they're just better - or because of nostalgia? Doesn't matter. Angsty teen energy in full effect and I want to live in that place again when I listen to this.
Some absolute bangers. Very loser-coreo
This is Nirvana album #3 for me on here (Nevermind and the live album have come before). I'll skip most of the detail, this is their third and final studio album. I can never quite pinpoint exactly what I like about Nirvana, because other music in the same rough genre usually isn't really my thing. The simple answer is probably just Kurt Cobain's talent, but I feel like there's something more. They manage to pull off this incredible sound of intensity and desperation, and I don't think it's just him. I think my favorite Nirvana song is the last one on this album ("All Apologies"), which feels a bit fitting as it's their song on their last studio album. It makes me wonder what more there was to come that never happened. It's fairly soft (comparatively) and has a simple beat, but the delivery is so powerful and I think captures what made Nirvana so great. The other standout on here is "Heart-Shaped Box" on the front half. I really like this album a lot, but it's definitely a bit harder than I really like at times, so there's a few stretches that I struggle with a bit. Steve Albini produced this, and his whole thing is basically abrasiveness, so it makes sense. Apparently Albini didn't really like Nirvana previously, was a bit abrasive while making this, and they re-mixed some of the songs on here (including this two I mentioned above) which pissed him off. I think this is a half-step below Nevermind to me, though at it's best it's incredible. I actually think my favorite Nirvana album is the Unplugged album, which does have a lot of covers from this one. This is borderline 5 territory, but the few down stretches pull it back a bit for me. Favorite song: All Apologies Other: Serve The Servants, Heart-Shaped Box, Rape Me, Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle, Dumb, Milk It, Pennyroyal Tea 1/20/25
3.5 / 5 rounded up I had to get used to the vocal delivery on this album but started to enjoy it more throughout. Might appreciate it more on consecutive listens.
7+
Already listened to before and I wish I had this as the next album instead of FGTH.
Really good album. Heart Shaped Box and Dumb are two excellent songs
I love this album
Day378 - the anticipation for this album was crazy and it mostly lived up to all the hype
Kurt Cobain.
I was anticipating Nirvana’s 2nd album Nevermind making this list, and maybe it did, I’ve never listened to In Utero all the way through. What a vibe shift. The production quality feels cleaner, I’d argue this is more hard rock than grunge but not in a “gone mainstream” sense. Really enjoyable listen.
Great album. Not my favorite from Nirvana
Not quite as good as Nevermind but still 4.5 stars
It's difficult to overstate how important this album is. It's obviously iconic but it changed the grunge genre and the music landscape as a whole. That being said, it's not quite my taste. It's an incredible piece of work, but in terms of listening to it on my own volition, it's not something I gravitate toward. It's an abrasive album, but it's incredible.
Better than expected, I just wish I felt OK saying the names of some or my favourite songs on here
Chill para una tarde de verano
Klassiker
A rawer and angrier album than Nevermind, almost like a rejection of that album’s success. I can’t say I enjoy it quite as much, but I do appreciate its darker tone and rawer emotions. Strong production and dynamics, and of course, Cobain’s ear for melody is still here and strong ever. Best song: Heart-Shaped Box
I was familiar with some of the songs from the MTV album which made it easier to get into this album. Pretty good, but an insignificant number of songs that were too abrasive for my liking. Interesting to read that they got the guy who produced Surfer Rosa for this. Low 4.
Nostalgic
At least I got a good album today. The songs were all great, no duds. Not good enough for a 5 star rating, but still awesome. It's a shame that "In Utero" is Nirvana's last album. I'm still yet to listen to "Bleach". 4 stars for "In Utero".
Probably my least-favorite proper full-length by Nirvana but still lots to like here. They knew what they were doing. Even if they didn't.
It's taken me a long time to admit it, but this is a great album. The success of Nevermind pushed me away from Nirvana pretty quickly and despite knowing the radio hits from this album I never really spent time listening to it as a whole. I totally get why people regard it so highly now.
Nirvana - In Utero Near perfect album that Nirvana has made. What an album to finish a short yet impactful catalogue that this band had in the past. From start to finish, this album goes really hard and it shows the strenghts that the band had, it's a shame that they stopped making music, imagine the great albums we could've gotten later on. This album is great! R.I.P. Kurt Cobain 1.- Serve the Servants = 10/10 2.- Scentless Apprentice = 9/10 3.- Heart-Shaped Box = 10/10 4.- Rape Me = 9/10 5.- Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle = 8/10 6.- Dumb = 9/10 7.- Very Ape = 8/10 8.- Milk It = 8/10 9.- Pennyroyal Tea = 10/10 10.- Radio Friendly Unit Shifter = 8/10 11.- tourette's = 8/10 12.- All Apologies = 10/10 FINAL SCORE: 8.9/10
4.25
This is the best of it's genre and an extremely important album to boot. It's style, sound, and substance was huge, managing to enjoy mainstream success while also resonating with music nerds of the day (and today). To top it all off, it managed to do this while being the follow-up to the darling Nevermind, and it still rocks. 4⭐️
Pretty good, attractive, even for an album composed of a lot of aggressive riffs and a lot of shouting. Knows what it's trying to do. Nothing really stood out for me as great though. My biggest problem with it is that it feels like it's trying to conclude a few times, and even with it's unorthodox feeling, it's throwing me off too much.
I have a strange relationship with Nirvana, because I don't think that I 'like' the band, and yet they have a good dozen songs I could listen to on repeat all day every day. 'Heart-Shaped Box' is absolutely one of the best songs I've ever heard, though not the only one here worth mentioning. 'Dumb' and 'All Apologies' are also certified classics. It's a great listen all around, but it could stand to be a song or two shorter by the end of it.
Of the big 4 grunge groups (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden), Nirvana is solidly at the third rung, mainly due to their overwhelming presence. I have heard the front half of Nevermind a countless number of times, and will never be fervent in wanting to go back to it as long as I live. I never gave In Utero a full shot, however. I knew Heart Shaped Box, Rape Me, and All Apologies, as those are the big songs from it, but I never gave the full album a listen until now. HSB is in a similar spot to Smells Like Teen Spirit and the other hits from Nevermind, where I'm fully exhausted on the track, but the other songs I mentioned are still quite solid to my ears. I also got a kick out of Very Ape, Serve the Servants, and Radio Friendly Unit Shifter, but it all still remains a peg below Soundgarden and especially Alice in Chains. I know comparing like this is kind of cringe, but they're all from the same scene and it makes the most sense to me to draw similarities. I may get more into In Utero eventually, it's certainly got a better outlook than Nevermind, but as of now I'm not over the moon.
Feels like they were just getting started :( it’s a great album nonetheless. Excellent and abrasive, Kurt sounds strained on some of the songs, and it suits the album’s sound well. Wish we could’ve gotten more
Better than Nevermind
Great. 4.5
Definitely less accessible than Nevermind, it's even throatier and the vocals get closer to screamer stuff on a couple of the tracks. The music is a bit less polished, too, and I think it loses a little bit because of that? Don't think that you can say that Nevermind was overpolished in anyway, so this falls a bit short of that; there's also nothing as catchy as Come As You Are or Lithium, let alone Smells Like Teen Spirit. Squeaks a 4.
Love that Nirvana got to make the album they wanted, not the album the studio wanted, and shoutout the band for having the balls to land that ship. Not all noise needs a purpose.
So much worse than Nevermind in my books. But it still has a lot of highlights. Fave Tracks: Heart-Shaped Box, Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle, Dumb, Pennyroyal Tea, All Apologies 3.5/5
Some great songs, some mediocre songs. I think the idea of departing from Nevermind was a good idea but just didn't quite come together right. Still a decent album 3.5*
love this one; super raw and powerful. a perfect follow-up to the polish of their previous album. the more i relisten to it, the more gems there are to find :D
I like this more than Nevermind. Tourette's is my favorite Nirvana song.
Grunge isn’t necessarily my favorite but growing up in Seattle you have to like Nirvana and this had some of my favorites “Heart Shaped Box” and “Pennyroyal Tea”
really solid album, i like the sound
Good but screaming
My teenage angst has been stirred.
Feels like they were just getting started. Kurt had an ear for melodies and my favorites are the "softer" tracks like Dumb, Pennyroyal Tea, and All Apologies
Hey! Wait! I got a new complain!
Great album; It has real songs and fine vocals from Kurt. One of the few noteworthy albums in the 1990s. It has great energy but doesn't let this compromise the flow and clarity of the songs although 'Scentless Apprentice' gets close to losing it! ... but then 'Heart Shaped Box' brings it back to a more disciplined and melodic state (just because its loud dosn't mean it isn't disciplined). Too many of the songs have a very similar structure/tempo for my liking though.
Everything they make is gold. Great album.
I don't think this is a perfect record and never did, but it is very good, and it had a large impact on so many people. At the time, I was more into Stone Temple Pilots and Pearl Jam and some other bands in the scene, and while I liked In Utero, it wasn't my favorite of the genre. Listening to it, now, I still see the brilliance in so many of the songs, but, again, it's not some perfect album or something that I think completely reinvents the wheel. But it is very good rock and roll that did push some boundaries and expanded Nirvana's and the grunge style.
Don't listen anymore but would still recommend teens listen to this.
For some reason I had it in my head that all Nirvana's hits came from "Nevermind" but obviously that was incorrect. Lots of good stuff here from one of the seminal bands of the 90's. 3.9
pretty cool
Remember on Lost when Jack was having another breakdown and drove around blaring Scentless Apprentice? Love that!
I respect Nirvana, and will give all the accolades they deserve. This is not my sound, and I will never choose to go back to it. But you can’t deny there is something great about what they were doing.
Great band
I’ve always been a big fam of this album. It’s somehow darker and funnier than Nevermind. I enjoyed going back and listening to this one again, probably haven’t played the entire album in 15-20 years. Bleach is probably my favorite Nirvana album, but this one holds up well for being 30+ years old.
I’ve found over the years since this came out that I respect it more and more. Setting out to make an album you (the band) want to make instead of the album the record label wants (nevermind II !) takes some determination. Steve Albini was the right choice - he wasn’t going to bully or change the band at the urging of the suits (or for his own tastes). Sure there was some compromise for singles edits and what not. But, this is Nirvana 2.0 and if you don’t like it, fuck off and go listen to a Warrant album instead. Now, is this the Nirvana album I’m going to gravitate toward? Usually not, it’s still nevermind. However, there’s an amazing album here and I need to not forget that. Teenage angst to all in all is all we are. A triumph indeed, I wish we’d had a few more opportunities to hear other chances this band might have taken.
This is still a good album! This album is also a good reminder of how much of the Nirvana sound, to me, is Dave Grohl’s drumming!
p711. 711. 4 stars. Well, he knew how to write a riff and tune. The lyrics need work though. Still yards ahead of the rest of the pack.
Weaker album than Unplugged or Nevermind, but still pretty good as an album. Heart-Shaped Box is awesome, I don't love the other hits on here (Rape Me, Dumb, All Apologies). Probably a 3.5.
flott lög. dálítið uppfyllingarefni.
loved this when i was 13
I wish i could eat your cancer when it turns black.
Nevermind never really did it for me, but I always loved this album.
it's a good album. All Apologies is a brilliant tune
Not as good as Nevermind but still great
It's only natural for a band to want to keep evolving their sound, especially after the massive success of a record such as "Nevermind", for example. In Nirvana's case, there was an obvious artistic choice to gear the sound and production more towards the abrasive side of things (i.e. the band's earlier releases). Enter producer Steve Albini, noted hater of the mainstream music industry, to help carry out this vision for the group. How do you follow up a record such as "Nevermind"? Capture the essence of the band, get personal, no frills. I will agree that each member of the band somehow sounds more present here. Albini liked to showcase each member & instrument in their purest form in his productions. That's prevalent here with Novoselic's bass, Grohl's drums, and Cobain's guitar playing & especially raw/vulnerable vocal delivery here. The singles here, while some of Nirvana's best, don't really represent the album's overall sound & production. It all makes for an interesting result, as I would argue that the rest of the album is not very radio-friendly. Not really a knock (though I'd consider a handful of these songs "duds") but rather an indication of the group's maturation into their sound. It's a shame that we never got to see what came next of Nirvana, but their legacy is still very apparent.
4.1 2x prefer "Nevermind" but still good
Nirvanas peak
I mean its nirvana
This is damn close to being better than, Nevermind. Certainly better than Bleach. The grittiness is there. The simple melodies with haunting lyrics. The Dave Grohl perfect drum track for each song. The way he goes from batter head to rim shot in Heart Shaped Box is genius. You can tell that their sound was getting to a master level. They don’t try and do anything outlandish outside of what and who they are, but they are getting really close to perfecting it with this album. Heart Shaped Box is an underrated song for these guys and All Apologies is such an acoustic classic. This is a 4.5 for me but since we don’t do half stars I’m giving it a 4.
It's hard to imagine just how big of an impact Nirvana had on music in the 90s. To the point that I genuinely got tired of hearing All Apologies multiple times every day for years. That said, it's still an enduring part of the American music landscape, as is Heart-Shaped Box, and to a lesser extent, Dumb and Pennyroyal Tea. The rest of the tracks on the album are, well, not quite as memorable or as enjoyable. But on the whole, the album is as genuine an experience as you can have.
Nirvana has mastered the ability to fill an album with emotion and raw feeling all while sounding like they are bored and wish they weren't there. They set the standard of grunge. Wonderful when played from start to finish.
4 out of 5, the best nirvana album
A classic
214/1001 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
some big time nirvana classics: heart-shaped box, rape me, dumb and all apologies. also some def lesser stuff
This album seemed to pull back the ascension of Nirvana just a little bit in my opinion. Not commercially but developmentally. There are some bangers, some radio friendly hits and some songs that your mom and Dad would grope each other to. There is also noisy trash. It seems like as soon as the album starts to take off, it’s steered back toward the ground and then driven upwards again. I find that the deluxe version gives more flavor to the album as a whole. If you want to cut through the bullshit, ignore Scentless Apprentice Milk It Radio Friendly Unit Shifter Tourette’s …..then all is good Choice cut: Frances Farmer…
Uneven album. Some of the music is so raging that is barely music anymore. Some of it is awesome. It is definitely dated, but not in a bad way. That Angst and anger of the time is evident. I don’t love it as much as Nevermind, but it is definitely a good album.
It should be THE ALBUM, after all, its Nirvana. But its soooo noisy. 4 me mik
I would argue this as nirvanas best album
Great album, although I like Nevermind more.
At least Dave Grohls reputation remains untarnished to this day.
Much like sublime Nirvana is one of those bands that I feel like we got a glimpse at something amazing and unfortunately it was ended before reaching its full potential......but at the same time is that express window what makes it so impactful?
Great start to listening to an album a day, was already somewhat familiar with this album and a casual listener of nirvana, so I knew some songs, but most were very consistent to what I’ve heard before. The album doesn’t do anything special for me, but still very solid
Nirvana being Nirvana. Not my favorite Nirvana album, but a great one nevertheless.
18/10/24 I'm not on the Nirvana hype bus, but this album was okay.
- favs while listening: Heart-Shaped-Box, Rape Me, Dumb, All apologies (quite a basic answer, i know) - its such a raw and unpolished album - love the punk(-ish) influences - clearly many of those songs are very personal to Kurt which you can hear - was a nice listening experience OVERALL: 4/5
i have a lot of appreciation and a strange sort of affection for kurt cobain as a figure but this is the only nirvana album that i really Listen To (besides *mtv unplugged*). i associate it (especially “dumb”) with fall 2019. i think all apologies is one of the most beautiful songs ever. idk… nirvana is angsty across the board of course but i think there’s some genuine, nuanced pathos on this record and it does move me. pennyroyal tea is a hard fucking listen. :( fav tracks: dumb; all apologies; pennyroyal tea; serve the servants; frances farmer…; heart-shaped box; rape me
bretty good
This is Nirvana's shift to a more gritty sound. I loved this album as a young teenager, not as much these days. Heart-Shaped Box, Dumb, Pennyroyal Tea, and All Apologies are all timers in my opinion.
Feels a little less radio friendly after the massive Nevermind, more back to basics. There's still Heart-Shaped Box though, which is peak 90s rock, and the whole first part of the album is very good. Scentless Apprentice gets a bit screamy, but there's a great main riff and some real power to it. The second half is more subtle. I do like the overall sound and the combo of Milk It and Pennyroyal Tea is my favorite from the back half. No Apologies is a strong closer too. I like this more than I thought I would.
Grunge classic. Love the added orchestration on tracks like dumb
Great stuff - but a little shouty, even for Nirvana.
I don't personally vibe to this but I recognize it is a masterpiece and the highwater mark of the genre. I do not know if that means I give it a 2 or a 5, so I guess I'll do a 4
Good
Very good! I like the Albini mixing even if the singles lost that during the recording process.
I don't live under a rock, so of course I know Nirvana, but I had never bothered to listen to a full album as it has become this poser rocker thing over the years. My father was a Nirvana fan in the 90's and I have listened to the greatest hits tons of times as a kid. This album is really good. Very marked style. Sublime performances by all three of them. I don't find it precisely easy to listen, so that makes me think that, given the music culture of nowadays, Nirvana is just a fashion brand for 90% of the people you see with their logo stamped in a shirt. After listening to this album you realize why there is such a big mythical aura around Kurt. If only people cared about the music...
At first it felt like a great joy to hear these songs in the order they appear on the album. It gives them a sense of context and progression. The first song \"Serve the Servants\" hits like a ton of bricks. Nirvana has a way of creating sounds that fill your entire brain. One of the things I appreciate about listening to these tracks with headphones is how buttery the bass-riffs are. They have a warm, toasted quality. Getting into the familiar with \"Heart Shaped Box\" and \"Rape Me\" provided a nice reprieve from my perceived newness of the first tracks. \"Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle\" might be my favorite track that I hadn't heard yet with it's discordant, upsetting chorus, \"I miss the comfort of being sad.\" Unfortunately, by the end my ears began to get tired. The high levels of noise make for a quick dopamine hit but without start, stops, and silence- \"In Utero\" becomes hard to listen to. It's a solid album with so many tracks I love. However, those tentpole tracks are stymied by too many other songs using the same thematical and instrumental playbook. 4/5
I was in love with this album as a 14-year-old. 20 years later, it still holds up.
Better than Nevermind. Feels like they did what they wanted to do on this album, when they could have easily followed up nevermind with an even more accessible album to appeal to the masses. Instead they created a very raw and actually quite disturbing album.
Pretty cool album, still think Nevermind is better. I’ll bet this is rated twice as highly as the Nas album yesterday though which speaks to the niche of people here
Very raw. Goes hard. Reminds me of my teens. All around excellent. Makes you wonder where they would have ended up.
In your Utero.
- Just by tuning into alt rock radio off and on for 20 years, I have heard at least half of this album. - Very much enjoy "Heart-Shaped Box," "Dumb," and "All Apologies." Probably heard each 100 times, but they are still effective. - Discovered "Pennyroyal Tea." Also "Radio Friendly Unit Shifter," but that one was possibly the least inspired track. - Nirvana is Nirvana. Sit back and enjoy the distortion.
Good shit, I like nevermind better tho
I certainly prefer Nevermind but this is also a very very good album to listen to
Great album
Cobain is fairly difficult to understand through his mumbling in the best of circumstances, it gets much worse when he's screaming. Low points: Scentless Apprentice, Tourette's
Not their best
4. Went on a bit.
More high school nostalgia