Hi friends, welcome to Peanut Gallery. Every Wednesday here at MusicOlogy, we'll be presenting two classic albums from the same iconic band or artist and asking you... the smart, savvy, blindingly attractive Ology readers... to debate amongst yourselves over which record reigns supreme. Individual songs, concepts, music videos, lyrics, album artwork—everything's on the table here, folks. Give us your best argument in the comments section below—we'll announce the winner at the beginning of next week's Peanut Gallery face-off.
Last Week's Winner:
We pitted Duran Duran's two self-titled albums up against each other in a battle to the... well, not death, but something definitely painful. Presumably because it was such a painful, difficult choice to choose between Duran Duran and The Wedding Album, the hordes of Duranies who regularly frequent Ology.com were completely speechless this week. We completely understand—sometimes being forced to choose between two awesome albums makes us run away from the computer for an entire week, too.
This Week's Match-Up:
Nirvana's third and final studio album In Utero (1993) versus their live MTV Unplugged In New York (1994) album.
Nirvana tapped famously abrasive producer Steve Albini (Pixies, PJ Harvey) to helm their hugely anticipated third album In Utero— a less-than-subtle creative attempt to scare off mainstream listeners who hopped on the Nevermind train two years earlier. Despite Kurt Cobain's best (or worst) intentions, In Utero is a boldly raw, surprisingly cohesive mix of raw punk energy, dissonant electric guitar fury and even elegant acoustic guitar chamber pop. A bit of a commercial disappointment upon its release (i.e. it wasn't Nevermind), In Utero may not have honed Nirvana's fanbase the way Cobain intended, but it remains an intriguing, challenging and thrilling listen to this day.
Classic Songs: "Heart-Shaped Box," "Rape Me," "Dumb," "Pennyroyal Tea" and "All Apologies."
Cobain's desire to transcend the grunge sound he helped define is best evidenced by the band's 1993 appearance on MTV's Unplugged. Filmed at Sony Music Studios in New York, the TV program and subsequent album presented Nirvana in a stripped down, raw acoustic environment, allowing Kurt to pull out the deep underlying emotions in his own material while paying tribute and introducing listeners to many of his biggest influences, including The Vaselines and Meat Puppets. One of the most devastatingly powerful live concerts ever recorded, Nirvana's Unplugged album would tragically become the band's creative swan song a short five months later.
Classic Songs: "About A Girl" (Unplugged Version), "Jesus Doesn't Want Me For A Sunbeam," "The Man Who Sold The World," "All Apologies" (Unplugged Version) and "Where Did You Sleep Last Night."
Okay, ladies and gentlemen... it's in your hands now. Hit up the comments section below and let us know why In Utero or MTV Unplugged In New York deserves to be declared the greatest post-Nevermind Nirvana album of all time.
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Emily Cheever:
I have to be honest, I think I'm going to choose Unplugged. The whole feeling and tone of the performance is what Nirvana was.
May 30, 2012
Anthony Schneck:
This is not fair. Completely unfair. This is like Sophie's Choice, but way, way worse. Gotta give it to In Utero because I don't think live albums can be considered in the same class as studio albums.
May 30, 2012
victoria sebring:
hmmm.... how dare you once again! I love them both and will probably weep for the one that does not win. Both very much the soundtrack of my youth (wohoo 1993-1994!) I would have to say... Unplugged.
Gabriel Hayes:
MTV Unplugged In New York. One of the best unplugged preformances. I love the "All Apologies (Unplugged Version)" Performance in particular
May 30, 2012
Chelsea Davison:
Absolutely 100% gotta go In Utero. That was the album that changed my life and took me from Britney Spears and N*SYNC to rock and concerts and guitar, etc. Unplugged is good, but In Utero is great.
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