August 27, 1991 a song came on the radio. The guttural, loud, and irreverent voice of Nirvana front man, Kurt Cobain, forever cemented grunge in music history and defined a generation. The song was called "Smells Like Teen Spirit." It shot to the top of the charts and has consistently ranked high in various lists of Top 100 songs of all time.
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| The song was accidentally named after this deodorant |
Why is that the case though, if many still contend that the guitar riff is too simple, the lyrics are sung in an almost incomprehensible slurring of syllables, and it has more of a pop sound than a rock sound. Why, then, is it thought of as such a masterpiece?
There are a few theories as to why people connected with the song, so I'll posit my own. The song, although simple, is rife with emotion. The impassioned voice of Kurt Cobain straining as it yells and rants, echoes the frustration of angsty adolescents angry acclamations of the "loser" culture of the nineties. Those kids that never fit in and said they didn't care found a kindred spirit in the singer. There's a sense of anger, apathy, angst, and acceptance all throughout the song. It didn't only describe the way teenagers felt in the lyrics, but through the way the lyrics were presented.
There are a few theories as to why people connected with the song, so I'll posit my own. The song, although simple, is rife with emotion. The impassioned voice of Kurt Cobain straining as it yells and rants, echoes the frustration of angsty adolescents angry acclamations of the "loser" culture of the nineties. Those kids that never fit in and said they didn't care found a kindred spirit in the singer. There's a sense of anger, apathy, angst, and acceptance all throughout the song. It didn't only describe the way teenagers felt in the lyrics, but through the way the lyrics were presented.
Nirvana as a whole has an interesting relationship with lyrics. The lyrics all mean something by themselves, certainly, but what really makes them effective communication tools is the delivery of those lyrics. "Something in the Way," for instance, is a calm, almost mourning expression of pain while "Lithium" is more light and sarcastic. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" has the distinction of being seen as almost an open declaration of revolution against the norms and expectations society has of the next generation.
Cobain wanted to write a song that was, in his words, "the ultimate pop song." He said he was trying to rip off the Pixies, one of his favorite bands. He liked their soft verses and loud chorus. This is a model that Nirvana has used in many of their songs and was even carried by its drummer, Dave Grohl, into the Foo Fighters.
This song was extremely well-received by the general public, being adored by young adults and teens. It propelled Nirvana from being a lesser-known grunge band from Seattle to one of the most famous bands of all time, with a venerated place in rock history. The music video for "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was listed in the 2000 Guinness Book of World Records as the most played video on MTV Europe. The song/music video is listened to and seen even today as a revolutionary statement about the rejection of the old and an embrace of the radical new. I for one, enjoy listening to it every now and again, especially if I'm feeling a little stupid and contagious.
~H. Logan Christensen
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