Watch Nirvana reunite with Post Malone on vocals at ‘SNL50’ gig
Anyone expecting the recent Nirvana reunion to be a one-time thing would have been left pleasantly surprised when the legendary band made their second appearance in quick succession during the 50th-anniversary celebrations for Saturday Night Live, this time with Post Malone on vocals.
Dave Grohl had already been announced as one of the many performers at the SNL50 gig, although there was no confirmation as to whether he’d be turning up solo, with the Foo Fighters, or any of his other side projects, making the latest Nirvana get-together one of the biggest surprises of the night.
Introduced by SNL veteran Adam Sandler, surviving members Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and Pat Smear were joined by Malone for a rendition of ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’, the most iconic song in the band’s catalogue, a change of pace after their FireAire benefit saw the trio dip a little deeper into the vault.
Joined by a revolving door of vocalists on that occasion just two weeks ago, the first time the triumvirate had performed together in five years saw St Vincent perform vocals and guitar on ‘Breed’, while Kim Gordon and Joan Jett fulfilled the same duties on ‘School’ and ‘Territorial Pissings’, respectively, before Grohl’s daughter Violet took the mic for ‘All Apologies’.
Malone, a longtime fan of Nirvana who’d previously covered 15 of their tracks for a 2020 performance, couldn’t contain his excitement at being onstage with Grohl, Novoeselic, and Smear.
That’s understandable based not only on his fandom but also on the fact that SNL50 marked the first time the band had performed live for television or streaming with a male vocalist since Kurt Cobain’s death in 1994.
Introduced by Sandler as “Post Nirvana” at New York’s Radio City Music Hall, playing the group’s most famous song must have been a pinch-me moment for Malone.
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