But what followed was not your typical Unplugged. The next song, “Come As You Are,” re-created the burbling-underwater groove of the original, and other songs - “On a Plain” “Something in the Way” - felt beautifully bedraggled. (Not sure if that was true, since Nevermind sent many fans back to its predecessor, but, well, never mind.) The song was quieter than the studio version, and Grohl’s drum sticks were seen but barely heard, yet the song was as gripping as it was on Bleach, and you immediately sensed: Yes, this could work. Of course, Cobain was sporting that Fred Rogers sweater and playing an acoustic guitar (with hidden amplification), and the set opened with “About a Girl,” which he dryly introduced as from an album ( Bleach) most people didn’t know. And then we quieted down in order to get a handle on what exactly we were going to hear - the 1993 equivalent of a new album dropping at midnight without any music drifting out in advance. Everyone cheered as he, Dave Grohl, and Krist Novoselic, joined by new guitarist Pat Smear (and cellist Lori Goldstone on a few songs), settled in behind their instruments. (As one of my co-workers, Bruce Fretts, recalls, “It struck me that maybe they wanted cooler-looking people down front on camera.” They were probably right.) We took note of the beautiful if gloomy staging, watched as camera people made last-minute adjustments, and saw Cobain emerge on the other side of the room and talk to a few stunned fans in the front row. None of us knew that Cobain hadn’t washed his hair in more than a week.Īt the time, I was working for Entertainment Weekly, and several colleagues joined me as we were seated in the far corner of the last row of bleachers. There were even disputes between the band and network over the stage set. Cobain was going through withdrawal that morning. MTV brass weren’t thrilled when the promised guests turned out to be the Meat Puppets and not, say, anyone from Pearl Jam. Since Nirvana had never performed without full-on electricity, the rehearsals were tense. Thanks to accounts that have emerged since, we now know what was taking place in the days leading up to that taping. So most of us also assumed an unamplified Nirvana set would include songs from In Utero, which had dropped a little more than a month before. Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, LL Cool J, Rod Stewart, Neil Young, and Aerosmith, among many, had already taped Unplugged episodes to promote new records. By the fall of 1993, Unplugged wasn’t simply one of MTV’s biggest franchises but practically part of every act’s marketing plan. We knew Cobain didn’t seem all that happy being a rock star and that Nirvana was essentially acquiescing to industry dictates by taping one of these shows. We hope that Kansuke’s works of art will bring some comfort into your life.In those pre-social media days, those of us lucky enough to score tickets to the taping thought we knew what to expect as we were escorted into the Sony Studio just north of Times Square. “Unplugged Kurt Cobain” is a brushed-up version that was created with the same motivation as “Stay home art project”. Looking back at the post on Instagram, it’s evident that Kansuke worked hard to create works of art that could be a source of emotional support for people. Kansuke posted the art with the caption “Music always saves us”. This piece became the original idea for “Unplugged Kurt Cobain”. In May 2020, a portrait of Kurt Cobain was posted on Instagram as part of “Stay home art project”. He began posting portraits of celebrities requested by his Instagram followers in April 2020 and has, in total, unveiled portraits of 18 celebrities including athletes, musicians, and movie characters. ‘Stay home art project’ began with Kansuke’s yearning to create artwork through this project that could be a source of emotional support for people staying at home during the COVID-19 lockdown. The special edition of this artwork features a geometric cut-out in the background. “Unplugged Kurt Cobain” is a spellbinding piece of artwork painted by Japanese artist Kansuke Akaike using intricate stencils and an airbrush with acrylic paint.
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