Butch Vig named the greatest album of all time: ‘It has a really widescreen sound’
There are few people who have fully unlocked the power of the great album. One producer and musician who certainly has is Butch Vig. Understanding all aspects of the process—songwriting, musicianship, and production—this holistic technicolour view he’s accrued over the years has seen him bring some truly iconic records to life and alter history in the process.
Of course, the most famous and culturally significant album that Vig worked on was Nirvana’s 1991 effort Nevermind. The trio’s second album and major label debut shifted the course of music almost overnight. Within days of the lead single ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ being released, the zeitgeist evolved immensely, with pompous glam metal bands finally consigned to history. Signifying this change, frontman Kurt Cobain asserted himself, albeit accidentally, as the voice of Generation X.
Vig’s rich production—employing George Martin-esque layering to achieve a much fatter sound than Nirvana’s debut Bleach—weaponised Cobain’s innovative blend of pop melodies and punk fury. This sonic character strongly contributed to it becoming the most essential alternative rock album ever, perfectly toeing the line between mainstream appeal and underground fire. It also kicked open the gates for the rest of the Seattle scene, capturing the imaginations of listeners from all walks of life and making the guitar band cool again. From the lead single to ‘In Bloom’, ‘Come as You Are’, and infallible tracks such as ‘Drain You’, Nevermind is an undisputed classic from start to finish.
The scale of the album’s success was momentous, of the like that hadn’t been seen since The Beatles’ heyday. The songs became ubiquitous, and no one involved could escape it. Cobain and the group even came to hate what it represented and how it sounded due to its cultural significance. For their follow-up, In Utero, they would hire Vig’s influential underground counterpart, Steve Albini, to create a much darker opus and get back to their dissonant roots.
While there is much debate surrounding Nevermind, and it is by far the most significant release Vig has attached his name to, there are many other great albums he’s brought to life. These include The Smashing Pumpkins’ heady magnum opus Siamese Dream and debut Gish, and Sonic Youth’s Dirty. Experimental Jet Set and Trash and No Star, to name just a few.
A dynamic producer who has worked with all kinds of styles, even former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl can’t have hated his work on Nevermind that much, as he’s made two studio albums with his subsequent project, Foo Fighters. This isn’t forgetting Vig’s platinum-selling work as drummer and co-producer of Garbage, either.
Vig is a lifelong lover of the traditional album format. This attitude goes back to when he was young and developing his ear, with the vintage sound of the classic rock period heavily influencing it, as his Beatles-inspired approach on Nevermind first suggested years ago. However, it is not a record by the Fab Four he deems the greatest studio album of all time, but one by their British invasion counterparts, The Who. He thinks it’s Who’s Next, the 1971 fifth album by the quartet, an arena rock masterpiece that affected his unwavering dedication to widescreen-sounding production.
Vig told Classic Rock in 2021: “Who’s Next by The Who. I saw The Who play on The Smothers Brothers show when I was twelve years old, and that’s what got me into playing the drums. Up until that point I’d been playing piano. I saw Keith Moon and told my mom and dad: ‘I wanna do that’. The sound, for a three-piece band, had this really widescreen sound to it.”
It might seem strange, but without Vig first hearing the stirring keyboard arpeggio of ‘Baba O’Riley’ or the profound harmonies of ‘Behind Blue Eyes’, there might not have been Nevermind or Siamese Dream as we know them. Guitar music could have been entirely different.
