Former Nirvana Members Reunited For An Awesome Performance Last Night
If you're a rock n' roll fan, you may have heard that last night, we got the return of one of the most legendary bands of all time to the stage. That's right. Pup Punk burned down Mulcahy's on Long Island.
On the other side of the country, however, Dave Grohl, Krist Novaselic, Pat Smear, Beck, and Annie Clark (aka St. Vincent) took to the stage at the Hollywood Bowl in attempt to recapture the energy and spirit of that classic Nirvana sound in a live setting for the first time in many years, and I gotta say - I think they did a GREAT fucking job.
St. Vincent kicked things off with 'Lithium', the same song she helped induct Nivana into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame with a few years back...
…and set a grrrreat tone for the performance. She doesn't sound like Kurt Cobain and doesn't try to, which I love. She's been one of my favorite artists for years, and makes some of the most unique music out there. I'd highly recommend checking out her 2017 album 'Masseduction' if you wanna hear what I'm talking about. She's a complete and total rockstar and the full package in every sense of the phrase. She also had that performance at the GRAMMYs last year with Dua Lipa that…uh…made it move.
Beck took over on vocals for 'In Bloom' - and forgot some of them - but otherwise did a serviceable enough job, and then crushed on 'Been A Son', which I never would've imagined would make a Nirvana "Reunion" setlist in 2020, so hearing that (and Dave on background vocals) was cool; and then, the best moment of the night happened.
Dave Grohl welcomed his 13-year-old daughter Violet to the stage, Beck ripped into the haunting introduction of 'Heart-Shaped Box', and even in just watching the YouTube video, you could feel the energy in the room change. I think everybody had one of those moments where they realized they were witnessing something special. Thinking about how powerful and emotional this performance must've been for Dave Grohl could make me emotional, honestly. Early candidate for Awesome Dad Grohl Moment of the Year.
2019's Winner: Dave & Violet Grohl Sing 'My Hero' At Leeds Festival
Beck closed the set out with Nirvana's legendary 'Unplugged' rendition of David Bowie's 'The Man Who Sold The World', which was great, and even though the whole show was only five songs in total, it felt like the perfect length for one like this. I think you gotta get outta there early, leaving the people wanting more, because after all, it'd be hard to recapture that energy and spirit for an entire gig. Just strike the nostalgia bone - don't milk it dry.
Hopefully we see more mini-shows like this in the future, though, and possibly with a completely different cast of singers each time. I'd like to elect Billie Joe Armstrong to be first on the list!