0720642442524. Pre-Owned: Good condition. CD. Nevermind was never meant to change the world but you can never predict when the Zeitgeist will hit and Nirvana s second album turned out to be the place where alternative rock crashed into the mainstream. This wasn t entirely an accident either since Nirvana did sign with a major label and they did release a record with a shiny surface no matter how humongous the guitars sounded. And yes Nevermind is probably a little shinier than it should be positively glistening with echo and fuzzbox distortion especially when compared with the black-and-white murk of Bleach. This doesn t discount the record since it s not only much harder than any mainstream rock of 1991 its character isn t on the surface it s in the exhilaratingly raw music and haunting songs. Kurt Cobain s personal problems and subsequent suicide naturally deepen the dark undercurrents but no matter how much anguish there is on Nevermind it s bracing because he exorcizes those demons through his evocative wordplay and mangled screams -- and because the band has a tremendous unbridled power that transcends the pain turning into pure catharsis. And that s as key to the record s success as Cobain s songwriting since Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl help turn this into music that is gripping powerful and even fun (and really there s no other way to characterize Territorial Pissings or the surging Breed ). In retrospect Nevermind may seem a little too unassuming for its mythic status -- it s simply a great modern punk record -- but even though it may no longer seem life-changing it is certainly life-affirming which may just be better. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine Rovi