Why Nirvana's Nevermind Was Called "The Voice of Generation X"

There was something in the way...

Music in the ‘80s was pointedly jovial. “I Love Rock n’ Roll”, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”, and “Don’t Stop Believin”, were the fun and inspiring songs of my childhood. There were some deep, sad songs about heartbreak, sure, but they don’t symbolize the general mood of that decade. For every “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Colins, there were 100 “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” songs. It’s the cheery, danceable hits like Madonna’s “Holiday” or Men Without Hat’s “Safety Dance”, and the most requested song for wedding DJs to play, Kool & The Gang’s “Celebrate”, that are the quintessential sound of the 1980s.

Then one day in 1991, I was at my boyfriend Mike’s house and he turned on MTV before hopping into his shower. I was in the kitchen when I heard a song that beckoned me back to the TV. I felt pulled into the living room by this new sound I was hearing and when my eyes landed on the music video playing, I was mesmerized. I remember standing there, blown away by what I was seeing and hearing. The melancholy vocals that turned into ire during the chorus, the powerful drums and guitar riffs, the blonde singer with the unapologetically messy hair and plain clothes who’s melodically yelling while strumming his guitar in a zombie-like stance. The goth cheerleaders… the teenagers stomping their Converse sneakers on the bleachers…it was all speaking to me. It was, for lack of a better term, an almost religious experience.

Nirvana ushered us into the ‘90s with their 2nd studio album, the aptly titled Nevermind, a band made up of Gen-Xers Kurt Cobain, Dave Grohl, and Krist Novoselic. It was now our time. GenX musicians were creating music that expressed all the bottled-up contempt, anger, sadness and frustration we had for the world that told us one thing but showed us another.

This new sound was a boldly different rock n’ roll, rebranded grunge or alternative rock. Unlike its predecessor punk rock, with its decidedly colorful clothes, Mohawks, and metal accoutrements, grunge embraced plain, “grungy” clothes and simple hair. There was a lack of pretense, a desire for authenticity communicated by wearing muted color t-shirts, cardigans, and undone hair. Punk rock was notable for its angry lyrics and in-your-face look, a product of the older generations who wanted to give the middle finger to the uptight pearl-cluthchers of their time. When GenX rockers started hitting the scene after years spent refining their skills in their parent’s garages, they introduced a no-bullshit look to match the no-bullshit things they had to say.

He’s like sure I’ll wear a suit and tie for this photo shoot, but also fuck you

It was huge shift from the look and sound of artists like KISS, Cyndi Lauper, Poison, and Boy George, all of whom are fantastic in their own right. But grunge bands like Nirvana entered the scene and it was like I was watching The Little Mermaid and they came into the room, took the VHS tape, and replaced it with the movies Full Metal Jacket, The Accused, and Requiem For A Dream.

My sister and I binged Nevermind, Nirvana’s 3rd album In Utero, and Hole’s Live Through This (among other grunge artists). For the first time in my life, I was hearing songs expressing raw emotion about the things nobody was singing about before: self-doubt, mental illness, sexism, enforced conformity, sexual assault, addiction, contempt for shitty people and shitty systems. Some of these things I couldn’t relate to but that didn’t matter; the feelings of anguish and rage were relatable.

Nirvana was called “the voice of Generation X” by many, Vulture said “the best bands arose from the boredom of latchkey kids”, and grunge has been called “the product of GenX malaise”. When people called Cobain “the spokesperson for GenX” he reportedly replied, “I don’t have the answers for anything. I don’t want to be a fucking spokesperson.” Which is the most GenX thing he could’ve said.

Nirvana delivering their emo songs with gut-punching lyrics to the masses paved the way for other brilliant GenX artists like Beck, who saw success with his 1994 hit “Loser”. The MTV Generation had grown up and our musical artists were taking over the ‘90s by no longer ignoring the elephant in the room (the same is true about rap, but I’m saving that for another post). It became okay to express feeling and thinking all the things we’d been told to bury. GenX grew up hearing “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” GenX musicians like Rage Against the Machine, Alanis Morissette, and Smashing Pumpkins essentially said fuck that bullshit.

The opening lyrics and chords to Nirvana’s song “Lithium” blew me away when I first heard them. “I’m so happy, ‘cause today I found my friends, they’re in my head…I’m so ugly, that’s okay, ‘cause so are you…” I didn’t connect to feeling the same despondency and low self-esteem, I was awe-struck by the intriguing story unfolding. What is this song about? There was poetry to untangle, words that seem to be about loss, religious beliefs, and emotional upheaval. I had no idea at the time that lithium was a prescribed medication for bipolar disorder. I’ve since done a bit of digging, I recommend reading this piece that also sheds light on Cobain’s upbringing (and this article about shooting the epic album cover for Nevermind is fascinating, too).

“Come As You Are” is another song off Nevermind that captured my attention the most, with its rotation of contradictory lyrics. “Come, as you are, as you were, as I want you to be… take your time, hurry up, the choice is yours, don’t be late…” I’ve always interpreted this to be about contempt for hypocrites and the people who say one thing but actually mean another, but maybe it’s also about the expectation to conform fighting with our desire for individuality.

I had this magazine and when I discovered it in my boxes of memorabilia some years ago, I sold it for way more than I paid for it, but I wish I still had it dangit

Cobain’s death on April 5th, 1994 shook the world. I remember watching his wife, Hole frontwoman Courtney Love, tearfully read his suicide note to an enormous crowd of mourning fans. The televised breaking news interrupted regularly scheduled programs. Conspiracy theories about Love’s involvement began to spread, as fans wondered how a man who seemed to have it all—a wife and beautiful child (Frances Bean), millions of fans, wealth, fame, and one of the most influential and successful bands of all time—could decide he’d rather join the 27 club. I’m not going to pretend I understand what leads someone down that path, but it’s not hard to see how addiction and untreated mental illness probably played a role. All I know is that it was incredibly sad.

Grunge music seemed to be short-lived, as many declared April 5th of ‘94 “the day grunge died”, but it hadn’t yet. Many grunge artists continued producing hits throughout the ‘90s and into the ‘00s. Some bands still tour even now. 2022’s The Batman included “Something In the Way” on the soundtrack, a soulful melody that perfectly encapsulates the mood of the film.

Plus, there are the Zoomers and Gen A kids who are just discovering grunge artists, falling in love and sharing the songs with their friends. But you GenX parents who dropped the ball in educating your offspring about the GenX contribution to music history should be deeply ashamed of yourselves.

NO ONE REALLY KNEW ABOUT THEM UNTIL THEY WENT VIRAL ON HERE omg I’m dying