Interesting and slashy quotes to give you plot bunnies!
Kurt says... | Krist says... | Dave says... | Banter
Quotes By Others | Quotes About Others | Fan Ravings
"Chris? I love you."
-Kurt at the No On 9 benefit gig, 10 Sept 1992, before making out with Krist
"Chris and Shelli broke up. God am I relieved! [...] I'm very content with the relationship Chris, Chad and I have. We get along great and have a lot of dedicated fun."
-Kurt, Journals (hardcover ed.) pg. 30-31
"Did you know that I'm gay? Then I got married to a hermaphrodite [referring to rumors about Courtney]. But if somebody tried to take away my gay rights it would have been really bad, because I really like to buttfuck. It's fun. It feels good."
-Kurt at the No On 9 benefit gig, 10 Sept 1992
Kurt: "I always wanted to move to the big city. I wanted to move to Seattle, find a chicken hawk, sell my ass, and be a punk rocker, but I was too afraid. So I just stayed in Aberdeen for too long, until I was 20 years old."
SPIN: "Forgive me for being uneducated, but when you said "chicken hawk"--"
Kurt: "A chicken hawk is, like, an older gay man."
SPIN: "Okay."
Kurt: "Who sells children, like in Oliver Twist, you know."
-Spin Magazine, December 1992
Kurt is bisexual when he's single:
Interviewer: "Well, are you [gay]?"
Kurt: "If I wasn't attracted to Courtney, I'd be a bisexual."
-11 Sept. 1992, Monk Magazine
"God is gay and so am I"
-Kurt, Journals (hardcover ed.), pg. 123, exact date unknown
"I remember seeing him in high school a few times and thinking he was definitely somebody I wanted to meet. But I never saw him other than at pep assemblies. He would usually participate in some kind of a skit, or something. And I remember thinking, God, he was this really clever, funny, loudmouth person. I kept, you know, always making it obvious that I wanted to be in a band, I wanted someone to play with, but still Chris never wanted to. Until I made the Fecal Matter tape with Dale and always making it available for Chris to hear, and he just never bothered to listen to it until one day he just came over and said, "I finally listened to that tape you made. It's pretty good. You know, we should start a band." Ok! Finally! [laughs]"
-Kurt (1992) on his attempts to make senpai notice him in high school--he spent a whole year doing this! (from About A Son)
"If any of you in any way hate homosexuals, people of different color, or women, please do this one favor for us-leave us the fuck alone! Don't come to our shows and don't buy our records."
-Kurt in the liner notes for Incesticide
"I've had the reputation of being a homosexual every since I was 14. It was really cool, because I found a couple of gay friends in Aberdeen-which is almost impossible. How I could ever come across a gay person in Aberdeen is amazing! But I had some really good friends that way. I got beat up a lot, of course, because of my association with them.
People just thought I was weird at first, just some fucked-up kid. But once I got the gay tag, it gave me the freedom to be able to be a freak and let people know that they should just stay away from me. Instead of having to explain to someone that they should just stay the fuck away from me-I'm gay, so I can't even be touched. It made for quite a few scary experiences in alleys walking home from school, though."
-Kurt, The Advocate 9 Feb 1993
"I respect people who promote the way they feel sexually."
-Kurt, source unknown
"He's the most well adjusted boy I've ever met. He's totally easy to get along with, everyone loves him. He plays drums better than any drummer I've ever heard, I mean he blows away John Bonham. If I had the choice of bringing John Bonham back to life or to choose any drummer from any band I can think of, they wouldn't be better than Dave. He's great."
-Kurt on Dave (source unknown)
"Well, when we played that No on 9 benefit in Portland, I said something about Guns N' Roses. Nothing nasty-I think I said, "And now, for our next song, ‘Sweet Child o' Mine.'" But some kid jumped onstage and said, "Hey, man, Guns N' Roses plays awesome music, and Nirvana plays awesome music. Let's just get along and work things out, man!"
And I just couldn't help but say, "No, kid, you're really wrong. Those people are total sexist jerks, and the reason we're playing this show is to fight homophobia in a real small way. The guy is a fucking sexist and a racist and a homophobe, and you can't be on his side and be on our side. I'm sorry that I have to divide this up like this, but it's something you can't ignore. And besides they can't write good music." [Laughs]"
-Kurt, The Advocate 1993
"My songs have always had frustrating themes-relationships I've had."
-Kurt, source unknown
Interviewer: And you used to spray-paint GOD IS GAY on people's trucks?
Kurt: That was a lot of fun. The funniest thing about that was not actually the act but the next morning. I'd get up early in the morning to walk through the neighborhood that I'd terrorized to see the aftermath. That was the worst thing I could have spray-painted on their cars. Nothing else would have been more effective.
Aberdeen was depressing, and there were a lot of negative things about it, but it was really fun to fuck with people all the time.
(The Advocate 1993)
"All drugs are a waste of time.They destroy your memory and your self-respect and everything that goes along with your self-esteem....I've found they're a waste of time."
-Kurt, source unknown
"I can't think of any other band I'd rather be in. The only reason I'm in this band is because I like my friends, Krist and Dave, they're my friends and I like being around them and I like the music that we write. That's all that matters. Everything else is secondary, and I can't take some of it as seriously as everyone expects a rock star to take it."
-Kurt, source unknown
Kurt On Cross-Dressing
Kurt: I really don't know why. I like to wear dresses because they're comfortable. If I could wear a sheet, I would. I don't know what to say, if I said we do it to be subversive then that would be a load of shit, because men in bands wearing dresses isn't controversial anymore.
MM: Do you approve of cross-dressing?
Kurt: Of course I do. Of course. Men shouldn't wear a dress because it's feminist, particularly, but because it's comfortable. Sometimes my penis will literally fall asleep or feel as if it's dropped right off because it's been constricted by wearing tight Levi's, and I'll have to wear baggy pants or a dress instead.
(Melody Maker, date unknown)
"[...] when "Teen Spirit" first came out, mainstream audiences were under the assumption that we were just like Guns N' Roses.
Then our opinions started showing up in interviews. And then things like Chris and I kissing on Saturday Night Live. We weren't trying to be subversive or punk rock; we were just doing something insane and stupid at the last minute. I think now that our opinions are out in the open, a lot of kids who bought our record regret knowing anything about us. [Laughs]"
-Kurt, The Advocate 1993
"People think of life as being so sacred and they feel like this is their only chance and they have to do something with their life and make an impact. As far as I'm concerned, it's just a pit-stop for the afterlife. It's just a little test to see how you can handle reality."
-Kurt, source unknown
Let's play a game of Three Truths and A Lie:
"My name is Kurt Cobain. I'm a homosexual, I'm a pagan, I'm a drug abuser, and I like to fuck pot-belly pigs."
-Kurt at Nirvana's Newcastle gig
Interviewer: Because people thought you were gay and you had gay friends, did you ever wonder if you might be gay?
Kurt: Yeah, absolutely. See I've always wanted male friends that I could be real intimate with and talk about important things with and be as affectionate with that person as I would be with a girl. Throughout my life, I've always been really close with girls and made friends with girls. And I've always been a really sickly, feminine person anyhow, so I thought I was gay for a while because I didn't find any of the girls in my high school attractive at all. They had really awful haircuts and fucked-up attitudes. So I thought I would try to be gay for a while, but I'm just more sexually attracted to women. But I'm really glad that I found a few gay friends, because it toally saved me from becoming a monk or something.
I mean, I'm definitely gay in spirit, and I probably could be bisexual. [...] If I wouldn't have found Courtney, I probably would have carried on with a bisexual life-style.
(The Advocate 1993)
"I'm too much of a creepy, negative person... a sicko... desperate... the pathological type... ugly, awkward, uptight, and socially retarded."
-Kurt, source unknown
"Friendship is one of the biggest things I can think of. Relationships are more important than anything else. I think everyone should go all the way in trying to strengthen their personal relationships. For me, it's very important to have friends who understand your needs and who'll help you in difficult times. The value of friendship is immense, and it should be thought of that way."
-Kurt, November 1991, Blast Magazine (Italy)
Interviewer: Have there been times in the last year when you've just wanted to quit?
Kurt: Oh, yeah. The other night. I called up Chris late at night; I was really drunk, and I said, "I don't want to be in this band anymore, I'll call you tomorrow." I was dead serious. For a couple of hours. [Laughs]
(The Advocate 1993)
The Interview: What do you do when you're not playing music?
Kurt: Well, I'm reading Perfume for the second time. It's about a perfume apprentice in the 1700s. And I really like Camille Paglia a lot; it's really entertaining, even though I don't necessarily agree with what she says. I still paint once in a while-I painted the cover of Incesticide.
And I make dolls. I like the style of things from the 1700s and 1800s from Yugoslavia and that area. I copy them from doll-collector magazines. They're clay. I bake them, and then I make them look really old and put old clothes on them.
(The Advocate 1993)
FUDGE PACKIN
CRACK SMOKIN
SATAN WORSHIPPIN
MOTHERFUCKERS
-Nirvana t-shirt designed by Kurt
Kurt failing to understand what motivates straight men:
"I just can't believe anyone would start a band just to make the scene and be cool and have chicks. I just can't believe it."
(source unknown)
"I definitely have a problem with the average macho man--the strong-oxen, working-class type, because they have always been a threat to me. I've had to deal with them most of my life--being taunted and beaten up by them in school, just having to be around them and be expected to be that kind of person when you grow up.
"I definitely feel closer to the feminine side of the human being than I do the male--or the American idea of what a male is supposed to be. Just watch a beer commercial and you'll see what I mean.
"As I got older I felt more and more alienated--I couldn't find friends whom I felt compatible with at all. Everyone was going to become a logger, and I knew I wanted to do something different. I wanted to be some kind of artist."
-Kurt, 16 Apr 1992, Rolling Stone magazine
"I used to think that I was adopted by my mother because she found me after a spaceship left me from a different time or a different planet. Every night I used to talk to my real parents in the skies. I knew that there were thousands of other alien babies dropped off who were all over the place and I'd met quite a few of them. It's just something I'd always like to toy with in my mind...it was really fun to pretend that there's some special reason for me to be here."
-Kurt, source unknown
"To you I might be a gay motherfucker, but to everybody else I'm just happy. Look, I've sucked one dick, that's all."
-Kurt, source unknown
-Kurt at the No On 9 benefit gig, 10 Sept 1992, before making out with Krist
"Chris and Shelli broke up. God am I relieved! [...] I'm very content with the relationship Chris, Chad and I have. We get along great and have a lot of dedicated fun."
-Kurt, Journals (hardcover ed.) pg. 30-31
"Did you know that I'm gay? Then I got married to a hermaphrodite [referring to rumors about Courtney]. But if somebody tried to take away my gay rights it would have been really bad, because I really like to buttfuck. It's fun. It feels good."
-Kurt at the No On 9 benefit gig, 10 Sept 1992
Kurt: "I always wanted to move to the big city. I wanted to move to Seattle, find a chicken hawk, sell my ass, and be a punk rocker, but I was too afraid. So I just stayed in Aberdeen for too long, until I was 20 years old."
SPIN: "Forgive me for being uneducated, but when you said "chicken hawk"--"
Kurt: "A chicken hawk is, like, an older gay man."
SPIN: "Okay."
Kurt: "Who sells children, like in Oliver Twist, you know."
-Spin Magazine, December 1992
Kurt is bisexual when he's single:
Interviewer: "Well, are you [gay]?"
Kurt: "If I wasn't attracted to Courtney, I'd be a bisexual."
-11 Sept. 1992, Monk Magazine
"God is gay and so am I"
-Kurt, Journals (hardcover ed.), pg. 123, exact date unknown
"I remember seeing him in high school a few times and thinking he was definitely somebody I wanted to meet. But I never saw him other than at pep assemblies. He would usually participate in some kind of a skit, or something. And I remember thinking, God, he was this really clever, funny, loudmouth person. I kept, you know, always making it obvious that I wanted to be in a band, I wanted someone to play with, but still Chris never wanted to. Until I made the Fecal Matter tape with Dale and always making it available for Chris to hear, and he just never bothered to listen to it until one day he just came over and said, "I finally listened to that tape you made. It's pretty good. You know, we should start a band." Ok! Finally! [laughs]"
-Kurt (1992) on his attempts to make senpai notice him in high school--he spent a whole year doing this! (from About A Son)
"If any of you in any way hate homosexuals, people of different color, or women, please do this one favor for us-leave us the fuck alone! Don't come to our shows and don't buy our records."
-Kurt in the liner notes for Incesticide
"I've had the reputation of being a homosexual every since I was 14. It was really cool, because I found a couple of gay friends in Aberdeen-which is almost impossible. How I could ever come across a gay person in Aberdeen is amazing! But I had some really good friends that way. I got beat up a lot, of course, because of my association with them.
People just thought I was weird at first, just some fucked-up kid. But once I got the gay tag, it gave me the freedom to be able to be a freak and let people know that they should just stay away from me. Instead of having to explain to someone that they should just stay the fuck away from me-I'm gay, so I can't even be touched. It made for quite a few scary experiences in alleys walking home from school, though."
-Kurt, The Advocate 9 Feb 1993
"I respect people who promote the way they feel sexually."
-Kurt, source unknown
"He's the most well adjusted boy I've ever met. He's totally easy to get along with, everyone loves him. He plays drums better than any drummer I've ever heard, I mean he blows away John Bonham. If I had the choice of bringing John Bonham back to life or to choose any drummer from any band I can think of, they wouldn't be better than Dave. He's great."
-Kurt on Dave (source unknown)
"Well, when we played that No on 9 benefit in Portland, I said something about Guns N' Roses. Nothing nasty-I think I said, "And now, for our next song, ‘Sweet Child o' Mine.'" But some kid jumped onstage and said, "Hey, man, Guns N' Roses plays awesome music, and Nirvana plays awesome music. Let's just get along and work things out, man!"
And I just couldn't help but say, "No, kid, you're really wrong. Those people are total sexist jerks, and the reason we're playing this show is to fight homophobia in a real small way. The guy is a fucking sexist and a racist and a homophobe, and you can't be on his side and be on our side. I'm sorry that I have to divide this up like this, but it's something you can't ignore. And besides they can't write good music." [Laughs]"
-Kurt, The Advocate 1993
"My songs have always had frustrating themes-relationships I've had."
-Kurt, source unknown
Interviewer: And you used to spray-paint GOD IS GAY on people's trucks?
Kurt: That was a lot of fun. The funniest thing about that was not actually the act but the next morning. I'd get up early in the morning to walk through the neighborhood that I'd terrorized to see the aftermath. That was the worst thing I could have spray-painted on their cars. Nothing else would have been more effective.
Aberdeen was depressing, and there were a lot of negative things about it, but it was really fun to fuck with people all the time.
(The Advocate 1993)
"All drugs are a waste of time.They destroy your memory and your self-respect and everything that goes along with your self-esteem....I've found they're a waste of time."
-Kurt, source unknown
"I can't think of any other band I'd rather be in. The only reason I'm in this band is because I like my friends, Krist and Dave, they're my friends and I like being around them and I like the music that we write. That's all that matters. Everything else is secondary, and I can't take some of it as seriously as everyone expects a rock star to take it."
-Kurt, source unknown
Kurt On Cross-Dressing
Kurt: I really don't know why. I like to wear dresses because they're comfortable. If I could wear a sheet, I would. I don't know what to say, if I said we do it to be subversive then that would be a load of shit, because men in bands wearing dresses isn't controversial anymore.
MM: Do you approve of cross-dressing?
Kurt: Of course I do. Of course. Men shouldn't wear a dress because it's feminist, particularly, but because it's comfortable. Sometimes my penis will literally fall asleep or feel as if it's dropped right off because it's been constricted by wearing tight Levi's, and I'll have to wear baggy pants or a dress instead.
(Melody Maker, date unknown)
"[...] when "Teen Spirit" first came out, mainstream audiences were under the assumption that we were just like Guns N' Roses.
Then our opinions started showing up in interviews. And then things like Chris and I kissing on Saturday Night Live. We weren't trying to be subversive or punk rock; we were just doing something insane and stupid at the last minute. I think now that our opinions are out in the open, a lot of kids who bought our record regret knowing anything about us. [Laughs]"
-Kurt, The Advocate 1993
"People think of life as being so sacred and they feel like this is their only chance and they have to do something with their life and make an impact. As far as I'm concerned, it's just a pit-stop for the afterlife. It's just a little test to see how you can handle reality."
-Kurt, source unknown
Let's play a game of Three Truths and A Lie:
"My name is Kurt Cobain. I'm a homosexual, I'm a pagan, I'm a drug abuser, and I like to fuck pot-belly pigs."
-Kurt at Nirvana's Newcastle gig
Interviewer: Because people thought you were gay and you had gay friends, did you ever wonder if you might be gay?
Kurt: Yeah, absolutely. See I've always wanted male friends that I could be real intimate with and talk about important things with and be as affectionate with that person as I would be with a girl. Throughout my life, I've always been really close with girls and made friends with girls. And I've always been a really sickly, feminine person anyhow, so I thought I was gay for a while because I didn't find any of the girls in my high school attractive at all. They had really awful haircuts and fucked-up attitudes. So I thought I would try to be gay for a while, but I'm just more sexually attracted to women. But I'm really glad that I found a few gay friends, because it toally saved me from becoming a monk or something.
I mean, I'm definitely gay in spirit, and I probably could be bisexual. [...] If I wouldn't have found Courtney, I probably would have carried on with a bisexual life-style.
(The Advocate 1993)
"I'm too much of a creepy, negative person... a sicko... desperate... the pathological type... ugly, awkward, uptight, and socially retarded."
-Kurt, source unknown
"Friendship is one of the biggest things I can think of. Relationships are more important than anything else. I think everyone should go all the way in trying to strengthen their personal relationships. For me, it's very important to have friends who understand your needs and who'll help you in difficult times. The value of friendship is immense, and it should be thought of that way."
-Kurt, November 1991, Blast Magazine (Italy)
Interviewer: Have there been times in the last year when you've just wanted to quit?
Kurt: Oh, yeah. The other night. I called up Chris late at night; I was really drunk, and I said, "I don't want to be in this band anymore, I'll call you tomorrow." I was dead serious. For a couple of hours. [Laughs]
(The Advocate 1993)
The Interview: What do you do when you're not playing music?
Kurt: Well, I'm reading Perfume for the second time. It's about a perfume apprentice in the 1700s. And I really like Camille Paglia a lot; it's really entertaining, even though I don't necessarily agree with what she says. I still paint once in a while-I painted the cover of Incesticide.
And I make dolls. I like the style of things from the 1700s and 1800s from Yugoslavia and that area. I copy them from doll-collector magazines. They're clay. I bake them, and then I make them look really old and put old clothes on them.
(The Advocate 1993)
FUDGE PACKIN
CRACK SMOKIN
SATAN WORSHIPPIN
MOTHERFUCKERS
-Nirvana t-shirt designed by Kurt
Kurt failing to understand what motivates straight men:
"I just can't believe anyone would start a band just to make the scene and be cool and have chicks. I just can't believe it."
(source unknown)
"I definitely have a problem with the average macho man--the strong-oxen, working-class type, because they have always been a threat to me. I've had to deal with them most of my life--being taunted and beaten up by them in school, just having to be around them and be expected to be that kind of person when you grow up.
"I definitely feel closer to the feminine side of the human being than I do the male--or the American idea of what a male is supposed to be. Just watch a beer commercial and you'll see what I mean.
"As I got older I felt more and more alienated--I couldn't find friends whom I felt compatible with at all. Everyone was going to become a logger, and I knew I wanted to do something different. I wanted to be some kind of artist."
-Kurt, 16 Apr 1992, Rolling Stone magazine
"I used to think that I was adopted by my mother because she found me after a spaceship left me from a different time or a different planet. Every night I used to talk to my real parents in the skies. I knew that there were thousands of other alien babies dropped off who were all over the place and I'd met quite a few of them. It's just something I'd always like to toy with in my mind...it was really fun to pretend that there's some special reason for me to be here."
-Kurt, source unknown
"To you I might be a gay motherfucker, but to everybody else I'm just happy. Look, I've sucked one dick, that's all."
-Kurt, source unknown
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Interviewer: First of all, love the suit. [referring to Kurt's canary yellow dress]
Kurt: It's Headbangers' Ball, so I thought I'd wear a gown. He [Krist] wouldn't wear his tux. He didn't give me a corsage, either.
Int: You hurt his feelings.
Krist: At least I asked you out, you know.
(MTV, 25 Oct 1991)
Krist: I'd like to tell you about this next song. It's about homosexual love. Cause we're all queers. We're all butt-pirates here. We're butthole surfers.
Kurt: By the way, Chris is a girl. This song is About A Queer. [starts playing About A Girl]
(22-11-89 during a gig)
Double Meanings
Interviewer: What do you get by smashing guitars? [footage of Krist and Kurt bashing their guitars together]
Kurt: Satisfaction. Climax.
Krist: [not audible]
Kurt: [smiling] What??
Krist: [grinning] Don't have to do encores.
-1991
Tour Van Activities
Dave: [holds up a small glass bottle full of white liquid]
Camera man: What is that?
Dave: It's jissom.
Krist: It's jissom.
Dave: It's cum.
Buzz Osborne: I'm serious. Everyone's really hard up and it's a long drive--
Krist: We've all been masturbating...
~A bit later~
Krist: Homo-sex rules. You're not a man till you've sucked a cock. You're not. Only a man knows what another man likes.
-21 Sept. 1991
Kurt: It's Headbangers' Ball, so I thought I'd wear a gown. He [Krist] wouldn't wear his tux. He didn't give me a corsage, either.
Int: You hurt his feelings.
Krist: At least I asked you out, you know.
(MTV, 25 Oct 1991)
Krist: I'd like to tell you about this next song. It's about homosexual love. Cause we're all queers. We're all butt-pirates here. We're butthole surfers.
Kurt: By the way, Chris is a girl. This song is About A Queer. [starts playing About A Girl]
(22-11-89 during a gig)
Double Meanings
Interviewer: What do you get by smashing guitars? [footage of Krist and Kurt bashing their guitars together]
Kurt: Satisfaction. Climax.
Krist: [not audible]
Kurt: [smiling] What??
Krist: [grinning] Don't have to do encores.
-1991
Tour Van Activities
Dave: [holds up a small glass bottle full of white liquid]
Camera man: What is that?
Dave: It's jissom.
Krist: It's jissom.
Dave: It's cum.
Buzz Osborne: I'm serious. Everyone's really hard up and it's a long drive--
Krist: We've all been masturbating...
~A bit later~
Krist: Homo-sex rules. You're not a man till you've sucked a cock. You're not. Only a man knows what another man likes.
-21 Sept. 1991
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"I remember one time during their [Nirvana's] 1992 Australian tour and we were in the tour bus. Everyone was drinking wine and Dave Grohl took out a notebook. Dave Grohl had a diary or journal of some sort, whatever it was, and during that tour he wrote in it everyday. He might have written in it afterward, too, but I wouldn't know.
Dave started writing and Krist Novoselic asked him what he was doing. Dave ignored him and Kurt Cobain became curious, too. Kurt grabbed the journal and picked a random page from it and read it out loud. This journal entry described Kurt Cobain in somewhat interesting detail.
Dave called Kurt Cobain his best friend and said getting that call from Kurt and Krist was the best day of his life. The journal entry also said Kurt Cobain saved his life because he felt very confused, or lost, while in Scream and contemplated life-threatening situations, if you know what I mean.
Kurt Cobain gave the book back to Dave Grohl, took another sip of wine, and hugged him. He told Dave Grohl that he is his best friend and asked him to never leave the band no matter what, because he couldn't do this [the band] without him. Krist shook his head in agreement. Dave Grohl said he would die before that happened and they smiled. Krist Novoselic, Kurt Cobain, and Dave Grohl had a group hug.
I laughed hysterically at them with warmth in my heart. The next day Kurt Cobain said it was just the wine talking, but I know he meant what he said. You can't fake a moment like that."
-Youri Lenquette, 1995
"[One of] Kurt's earliest aspirations [was] to earn enough money to buy a piece of land that both he and his best friend, Krist, could live on with their girlfriends. Sub Pop's Megan Jasper recalls an early conversation:
"I remember one time they were in my office waiting for Jonathan and Bruce and they were making jokes about why they were making records, they were half-joking, because they never thought it would be possible, but they wanted to buy a chunk of land in the middle of nowhere that was all farm land. And they wanted it to be big enough so Krist and Shelli could have a house built on that land, and Kurt and Tracy wanted a house on the same chunk of property, so they could be neighbors and have these great farmhouses. And they were laughing because they never thought they'd be able to have it. Those two [Kurt and Krist] were inseparable at the time. They were so tight.""
-from Nirvana: The Daily Eyewitness Chronicle by Carrie Borzillo
"At that, Kurt jumped on James [Seenan] and started wrestling with him. Kurt did well for his size and height and had great wrestling technique. He was apparently on the school wrestling team. He did really well, had him on the floor, then Kurt kissed James. Krist picked up some food and started a food fight. Within 30 seconds chaos ensued, with food, beer, and red wine everywhere. Kurt then climbed up a stack of 12 function suite chairs and dived off, bringing them all down. [...] Suddenly the three of them stopped and ran through the door and went on stage. I couldn't believe it."
-Andy Bollen, drummer for Captain America, describing Nirvana-style backstage chaos on the '91 tour (Nirvana: A Tour Diary, pg. ?)
"Chris and Dave have had to pick up a lot of Kurt's slack. Chris and Dave were close before, but now they're inseparable."
-Nils Bernstein, Nirvana's fanmail oragnizer, 16 Apr 1992, Rolling Stone magazine
"Krist was very protective of Kurt. It was very much a Sam and Frodo kind of a thing. Krist really fostered Kurt's ability to do what he did. And I think that you really need these two elements."
-Earnie Bailey, Nirvana's guitar tech, 13 Jun 2020
"In retrospect, my lack of skills led to lateral topics, such as ant farms and his [Kurt's] reverence for Mel Gibson, a.k.a. the Road Warrior, whom he termed "a hunk.""
-Robyn Doreian, about her second interview with Kurt dated 7 Dec 1991
Int: Well, Kurt seems very, like, different. At what age was it clear that he was not going to be a logger?
Wendy O'Connor: Ok, I was thinking the other day about how I guess he thought at one point he might be gay, which is fine, I mean, it runs in our family, but I kind of felt that he was kind of questioning himself. He would ask me questions about girls. And trying to figure out how to get one, I think. That's what I thought. And I think he was really kind of like, wondering--because he was artistic... [...]
"And then as he got older he became aware that he wasn't like the regular guys. But it didn't mean that he didn't have guy friends, he had a lot of guy friends, but they were very much similar to him."
-Kurt's mother, 2015, Montage of Heck film outtakes
"Yeah, I know the Cobain kid," says James, "Faggot."
"He's a faggot?" asks Joe, taken aback. Recovering quickly, he declares, "We deal with faggots here. We run 'em out of town."
-Two of Kurt's old classmates from Aberdeen, 16 Apr 1992, Rolling Stone magazine
"It's a gay publication, Kurt, so don't forget to tell them about the time you stole your tights out of your mother's drawer."
-Courtney to Kurt during his interview with The Advocate, 1993
Dave started writing and Krist Novoselic asked him what he was doing. Dave ignored him and Kurt Cobain became curious, too. Kurt grabbed the journal and picked a random page from it and read it out loud. This journal entry described Kurt Cobain in somewhat interesting detail.
Dave called Kurt Cobain his best friend and said getting that call from Kurt and Krist was the best day of his life. The journal entry also said Kurt Cobain saved his life because he felt very confused, or lost, while in Scream and contemplated life-threatening situations, if you know what I mean.
Kurt Cobain gave the book back to Dave Grohl, took another sip of wine, and hugged him. He told Dave Grohl that he is his best friend and asked him to never leave the band no matter what, because he couldn't do this [the band] without him. Krist shook his head in agreement. Dave Grohl said he would die before that happened and they smiled. Krist Novoselic, Kurt Cobain, and Dave Grohl had a group hug.
I laughed hysterically at them with warmth in my heart. The next day Kurt Cobain said it was just the wine talking, but I know he meant what he said. You can't fake a moment like that."
-Youri Lenquette, 1995
"[One of] Kurt's earliest aspirations [was] to earn enough money to buy a piece of land that both he and his best friend, Krist, could live on with their girlfriends. Sub Pop's Megan Jasper recalls an early conversation:
"I remember one time they were in my office waiting for Jonathan and Bruce and they were making jokes about why they were making records, they were half-joking, because they never thought it would be possible, but they wanted to buy a chunk of land in the middle of nowhere that was all farm land. And they wanted it to be big enough so Krist and Shelli could have a house built on that land, and Kurt and Tracy wanted a house on the same chunk of property, so they could be neighbors and have these great farmhouses. And they were laughing because they never thought they'd be able to have it. Those two [Kurt and Krist] were inseparable at the time. They were so tight.""
-from Nirvana: The Daily Eyewitness Chronicle by Carrie Borzillo
"At that, Kurt jumped on James [Seenan] and started wrestling with him. Kurt did well for his size and height and had great wrestling technique. He was apparently on the school wrestling team. He did really well, had him on the floor, then Kurt kissed James. Krist picked up some food and started a food fight. Within 30 seconds chaos ensued, with food, beer, and red wine everywhere. Kurt then climbed up a stack of 12 function suite chairs and dived off, bringing them all down. [...] Suddenly the three of them stopped and ran through the door and went on stage. I couldn't believe it."
-Andy Bollen, drummer for Captain America, describing Nirvana-style backstage chaos on the '91 tour (Nirvana: A Tour Diary, pg. ?)
"Chris and Dave have had to pick up a lot of Kurt's slack. Chris and Dave were close before, but now they're inseparable."
-Nils Bernstein, Nirvana's fanmail oragnizer, 16 Apr 1992, Rolling Stone magazine
"Krist was very protective of Kurt. It was very much a Sam and Frodo kind of a thing. Krist really fostered Kurt's ability to do what he did. And I think that you really need these two elements."
-Earnie Bailey, Nirvana's guitar tech, 13 Jun 2020
"In retrospect, my lack of skills led to lateral topics, such as ant farms and his [Kurt's] reverence for Mel Gibson, a.k.a. the Road Warrior, whom he termed "a hunk.""
-Robyn Doreian, about her second interview with Kurt dated 7 Dec 1991
Int: Well, Kurt seems very, like, different. At what age was it clear that he was not going to be a logger?
Wendy O'Connor: Ok, I was thinking the other day about how I guess he thought at one point he might be gay, which is fine, I mean, it runs in our family, but I kind of felt that he was kind of questioning himself. He would ask me questions about girls. And trying to figure out how to get one, I think. That's what I thought. And I think he was really kind of like, wondering--because he was artistic... [...]
"And then as he got older he became aware that he wasn't like the regular guys. But it didn't mean that he didn't have guy friends, he had a lot of guy friends, but they were very much similar to him."
-Kurt's mother, 2015, Montage of Heck film outtakes
"Yeah, I know the Cobain kid," says James, "Faggot."
"He's a faggot?" asks Joe, taken aback. Recovering quickly, he declares, "We deal with faggots here. We run 'em out of town."
-Two of Kurt's old classmates from Aberdeen, 16 Apr 1992, Rolling Stone magazine
"It's a gay publication, Kurt, so don't forget to tell them about the time you stole your tights out of your mother's drawer."
-Courtney to Kurt during his interview with The Advocate, 1993
For lots more fascinating quotes, visit the Nirvana Slash Archive.
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Fan question: If you could see Kurt Cobain one more time, what would you say to him?
Krist: I love you.
-Q Magazine, March 2003
"HOMOSEXUAL SEX RULES"
-grafitti in Aberdeen by Kurt and Krist, 1985 (The Advocate, 9 Feb 1993)
"Dear Kurt,
It's been 20 years since you left and I think about you every day.
- Love, Krist"
-5 Apr. 2014, Krist's Twitter
Krist about his and Kurt's snog on their 1992 SNL appearance (on which Krist also kissed Dave):
"I walked right up to him and grabbed him and stuck my tongue in his mouth, kissing him. I just wanted to make him feel better. At the end of it all, I told him, 'It's going to be ok. It's not so bad. Ok?'"
(Heavier Than Heaven)
"Homo-sex rules! You're not a man till you've sucked a cock. You're not. Only a man knows what another man likes."
-Krist, 21 Sept 1991
Krist: "I mean, homosexuality is a natural thing and to meddle with nature is going to cause a lot of friction, like in society. You just can't repress something like that, you can't repress a person's feelings."
-10 Sept 1992, No On 9 pre-gig interview
Krist on Kurt's undiagnosed stomach problem:
"I remember he would throw up so much he couldn't throw up any more. I took him to doctors, specialists. [...] I'm the dude who drove him to the frickin' hospital, or hanging out with him while he's puking his guts, and trying to help him."
-14 Oct 2008
"We knew in two minutes that he was the right drummer."
-Krist, about his and Kurt's decision to pick Dave, Come As You Are (Azzerad) 1994
"He was out of his mind on heroin. I remember seeing him those last days and he was loaded. And so he wasn't thinking clearly when he did that [committed suicide].
And after Rome, he tried to kill himself in Rome, and he was really weird after that. Like, quiet and just kinda, he should've never done that, but he did it. You know, it's just like, it's terrible. People do it. I was heartbroken when it happened. It was terrible.
I wish Kurt woulda lived and then was like a monk somewhere. He woulda been a great monk. He coulda been a great painter. He coulda been a great sculptor. He was such a talented artist. He coulda done whatever he wanted to do. He didn't have to do what he did."
-Krist, SPIN Magazine, 10 Sept 2015
"We were at our best when we were playing. We liked to rehearse, we liked to make songs, and play together. That's what we did best, that's when we were happy. I have dreams about Kurt. I'm so happy to see him in a dream, like, 'Oh my god, it's so good to see you.' Then we're always like, 'Okay, let's go play.' We're always going to go play music."
-Krist, Young Turks Interview 2014
"I met these fellow teenagers, they were in this band called the Melvins. Buzz Osborne was the guru. And he turned me on to American hardcore music, which is like the second generation of punk in the United States. This really independent music - it wasn't on major labels. And there was this whole scene that was independent, it wasn't part of the corporate structure, it wasn't part of the state structure, it wasn't part of the mainstream entertainment complex. And it was vital; there was a lot of great music, and there was this community of young people. And we'd go to punk rock shows and there would be like, fanzines - this was before the internet. [...]
I got into the music scene and the culture of it, then I met this other kid in Aberdeen. His name was Kurt Cobain. And we shared this interest with this music and I was playing guitar and he played guitar, and, 'Well, let's start a band!' and we found a drummer. And then I started playing bass. Kurt was very artistic - he was always painting, sculpting, writing, music, always doing something. And so we started our band and that creativity came out and we had our own identity.
Dave Grohl was in 1990, we went through a few drummers. Kurt and I drove to Los Angeles from Tacoma, WA, which is like a 14 hour drive. We slept in our van in a parking lot on I-5 somewhere. We came here [L.A.] and we talked to some music industry people to get a major label deal. [...] And then we took our leisurely drive back north, 'Let's stop in San Fransisco and see Buzz and Dale from the Melvins.' And Buzz is like, 'Hey, Scream is playing!' 'Oh, we love Scream!' [...] They had this drummer who was really good and played this really big drumset, and I met him briefly and we talked to Buzz, like, 'Wow, what a cool drummer.'
And then Kurt and I drove up 101, we went up north. I think we found a cat. We stopped somewhere on the Oregon coast and this cat came up. We found this cat. Gave it a home. And then we get a call from Buzz, he says 'Hey, man, Scream went down to L.A. after San Francisco and their bass player split. And they're just broke at the singer's sister's house.' [...] And Dave was stuck in L.A. and he got enough money to get a plane ticket and his drumset and he came up and started playing with us, and we were hooked. It gelled right away."
-Krist on how Nirvana formed, Young Turks Interview 2014
"Yeah, things flipped day and night, so you had these hair metal bands and they had these really soft features and fluffy hair, but had this macho bravado. And so then grunge rock came out and we had like, facial hair and flannel shirts, but we had a feminine sensibility."
-Krist on the difference between metal and grunge, 7 Oct 2015 FOX Business Network Interview
Interviewer: "Do you still have dreams about Kurt?"
Krist: "I do. And it's beautiful! It's just loving. You know when you lose somebody and you see them in a dream and you just feel all this love? It's nice."
(7 Oct 2015 FOX Business Network Interview)
"We were always serious about recording and rehearsing. We would drive sixty miles to rehearsal. We would rehearse in Seattle, starting at eleven o'clock at night. I lived in Tacoma, Kurt lived in Olympia and Chad Channing lived in Bainbridge Island. We all came together every night--do a lot of driving and crash in Bainbridge or Tacoma.
We also rehearsed in Tacoma. We found this barn--someone had made it into a studio. It was warm, and we weren't disturbed. There weren't other bands bleeding through the walls. We had the music to ourselves. And Kurt was always kicking songs around. He'd be in his apartment, cranking out riffs and vocal melodies, then bring them up: "Hey, check this one out." We'd put it into the grinder and see what came out the other end."
-Krist, Rolling Stone 13 Sept. 2001
On behalf of Dave, Pat, and I, I would like to thank you all for your concern at this time. We remember Kurt for what he was: caring, generous, and sweet. Let's keep the music with us. We'll always have it... Forever. Kurt had an ethic towards his fans that was rooted in the punk rock way of thinking. No band is special, no player royalty. But if you've got a guitar and a lot of soul just bang something out and mean it. You're the superstar. Plugged in the tones and rhythms that are uniquely and universally human: music. Heck... use your guitar as a drum, just catch the groove and let it flow out of your heart. That's the level Kurt spoke to us on: in our hearts, and that's where he, and the music, will always be, forever.
-Krist's eulogy for Kurt, 10 April 1994 Seattle Center Flag Pavilion
RS: What are the things about [Kurt] that make you laugh now?
Krist: His weird sense of humor, which was kind of grotesque. The comics and drawings he did, because he was a good visual artist. Sometimes he would speak in these high-pitched voices, like a child Satanist. We were always laughing about something, being ridiculous--mostly dumb jokes.
-Krist, Rolling Stone 13 Sept. 2001
"Novoselic admitted he had tipped Kurt off [about the drug intervention], feeling the idea would backfire and that Kurt would flee. "I just felt so bad for him," Krist recalled. "He looked so fucked up. I knew he wouldn't listen to it." Krist saw Kurt for the first time since Rome that week at the Marco Polo Motel on Aurora Avenue. "He was like, 'Krist, where can I buy a motorcycle?' I was like, 'Fuck, what are you talking about? You don't want to buy a motorcycle. You've got to get the fuck out of here.'" Krist invited Kurt to go away on vacation, just the two of them, to talk things out, but Kurt refused. "He was really quiet. He was just estranged from all his relationships. He wasn't connecting with anybody."
Kurt complained of being hungry, so Krist offered to buy him dinner at a fancy restaurant; Kurt insisted he wanted a Jack in the Box hamburger. As Novoselic drove toward Jack in the Box in the nearby U-District, Kurt protested: "Those hamburgers are too greasy. Let's go to the one on Capitol Hill--the food is better there." Only when they arrived on Capitol Hill did Novoselic realize Kurt didn't want hamburgers at all: He was simply using his old friend to get a ride to score drugs. "His dealer was right by there. He just wanted to get fucked up into oblivion. There was no talking to him. He just wanted to escape. He wanted to die, that was what he wanted to do." The two men began screaming at each other and Kurt bolted from the car."
-Heavier Than Heaven, Charles R. Cross, pg. ?
"He talked about how ugly he thought he was all of the time. I remember one day he looked in a mirror and almost shed a few tears because he was so uncomfortable in his own skin."
-Krist about Kurt, source unknown
Krist: I love you.
-Q Magazine, March 2003
"HOMOSEXUAL SEX RULES"
-grafitti in Aberdeen by Kurt and Krist, 1985 (The Advocate, 9 Feb 1993)
"Dear Kurt,
It's been 20 years since you left and I think about you every day.
- Love, Krist"
-5 Apr. 2014, Krist's Twitter
Krist about his and Kurt's snog on their 1992 SNL appearance (on which Krist also kissed Dave):
"I walked right up to him and grabbed him and stuck my tongue in his mouth, kissing him. I just wanted to make him feel better. At the end of it all, I told him, 'It's going to be ok. It's not so bad. Ok?'"
(Heavier Than Heaven)
"Homo-sex rules! You're not a man till you've sucked a cock. You're not. Only a man knows what another man likes."
-Krist, 21 Sept 1991
Krist: "I mean, homosexuality is a natural thing and to meddle with nature is going to cause a lot of friction, like in society. You just can't repress something like that, you can't repress a person's feelings."
-10 Sept 1992, No On 9 pre-gig interview
Krist on Kurt's undiagnosed stomach problem:
"I remember he would throw up so much he couldn't throw up any more. I took him to doctors, specialists. [...] I'm the dude who drove him to the frickin' hospital, or hanging out with him while he's puking his guts, and trying to help him."
-14 Oct 2008
"We knew in two minutes that he was the right drummer."
-Krist, about his and Kurt's decision to pick Dave, Come As You Are (Azzerad) 1994
"He was out of his mind on heroin. I remember seeing him those last days and he was loaded. And so he wasn't thinking clearly when he did that [committed suicide].
And after Rome, he tried to kill himself in Rome, and he was really weird after that. Like, quiet and just kinda, he should've never done that, but he did it. You know, it's just like, it's terrible. People do it. I was heartbroken when it happened. It was terrible.
I wish Kurt woulda lived and then was like a monk somewhere. He woulda been a great monk. He coulda been a great painter. He coulda been a great sculptor. He was such a talented artist. He coulda done whatever he wanted to do. He didn't have to do what he did."
-Krist, SPIN Magazine, 10 Sept 2015
"We were at our best when we were playing. We liked to rehearse, we liked to make songs, and play together. That's what we did best, that's when we were happy. I have dreams about Kurt. I'm so happy to see him in a dream, like, 'Oh my god, it's so good to see you.' Then we're always like, 'Okay, let's go play.' We're always going to go play music."
-Krist, Young Turks Interview 2014
"I met these fellow teenagers, they were in this band called the Melvins. Buzz Osborne was the guru. And he turned me on to American hardcore music, which is like the second generation of punk in the United States. This really independent music - it wasn't on major labels. And there was this whole scene that was independent, it wasn't part of the corporate structure, it wasn't part of the state structure, it wasn't part of the mainstream entertainment complex. And it was vital; there was a lot of great music, and there was this community of young people. And we'd go to punk rock shows and there would be like, fanzines - this was before the internet. [...]
I got into the music scene and the culture of it, then I met this other kid in Aberdeen. His name was Kurt Cobain. And we shared this interest with this music and I was playing guitar and he played guitar, and, 'Well, let's start a band!' and we found a drummer. And then I started playing bass. Kurt was very artistic - he was always painting, sculpting, writing, music, always doing something. And so we started our band and that creativity came out and we had our own identity.
Dave Grohl was in 1990, we went through a few drummers. Kurt and I drove to Los Angeles from Tacoma, WA, which is like a 14 hour drive. We slept in our van in a parking lot on I-5 somewhere. We came here [L.A.] and we talked to some music industry people to get a major label deal. [...] And then we took our leisurely drive back north, 'Let's stop in San Fransisco and see Buzz and Dale from the Melvins.' And Buzz is like, 'Hey, Scream is playing!' 'Oh, we love Scream!' [...] They had this drummer who was really good and played this really big drumset, and I met him briefly and we talked to Buzz, like, 'Wow, what a cool drummer.'
And then Kurt and I drove up 101, we went up north. I think we found a cat. We stopped somewhere on the Oregon coast and this cat came up. We found this cat. Gave it a home. And then we get a call from Buzz, he says 'Hey, man, Scream went down to L.A. after San Francisco and their bass player split. And they're just broke at the singer's sister's house.' [...] And Dave was stuck in L.A. and he got enough money to get a plane ticket and his drumset and he came up and started playing with us, and we were hooked. It gelled right away."
-Krist on how Nirvana formed, Young Turks Interview 2014
"Yeah, things flipped day and night, so you had these hair metal bands and they had these really soft features and fluffy hair, but had this macho bravado. And so then grunge rock came out and we had like, facial hair and flannel shirts, but we had a feminine sensibility."
-Krist on the difference between metal and grunge, 7 Oct 2015 FOX Business Network Interview
Interviewer: "Do you still have dreams about Kurt?"
Krist: "I do. And it's beautiful! It's just loving. You know when you lose somebody and you see them in a dream and you just feel all this love? It's nice."
(7 Oct 2015 FOX Business Network Interview)
"We were always serious about recording and rehearsing. We would drive sixty miles to rehearsal. We would rehearse in Seattle, starting at eleven o'clock at night. I lived in Tacoma, Kurt lived in Olympia and Chad Channing lived in Bainbridge Island. We all came together every night--do a lot of driving and crash in Bainbridge or Tacoma.
We also rehearsed in Tacoma. We found this barn--someone had made it into a studio. It was warm, and we weren't disturbed. There weren't other bands bleeding through the walls. We had the music to ourselves. And Kurt was always kicking songs around. He'd be in his apartment, cranking out riffs and vocal melodies, then bring them up: "Hey, check this one out." We'd put it into the grinder and see what came out the other end."
-Krist, Rolling Stone 13 Sept. 2001
On behalf of Dave, Pat, and I, I would like to thank you all for your concern at this time. We remember Kurt for what he was: caring, generous, and sweet. Let's keep the music with us. We'll always have it... Forever. Kurt had an ethic towards his fans that was rooted in the punk rock way of thinking. No band is special, no player royalty. But if you've got a guitar and a lot of soul just bang something out and mean it. You're the superstar. Plugged in the tones and rhythms that are uniquely and universally human: music. Heck... use your guitar as a drum, just catch the groove and let it flow out of your heart. That's the level Kurt spoke to us on: in our hearts, and that's where he, and the music, will always be, forever.
-Krist's eulogy for Kurt, 10 April 1994 Seattle Center Flag Pavilion
RS: What are the things about [Kurt] that make you laugh now?
Krist: His weird sense of humor, which was kind of grotesque. The comics and drawings he did, because he was a good visual artist. Sometimes he would speak in these high-pitched voices, like a child Satanist. We were always laughing about something, being ridiculous--mostly dumb jokes.
-Krist, Rolling Stone 13 Sept. 2001
"Novoselic admitted he had tipped Kurt off [about the drug intervention], feeling the idea would backfire and that Kurt would flee. "I just felt so bad for him," Krist recalled. "He looked so fucked up. I knew he wouldn't listen to it." Krist saw Kurt for the first time since Rome that week at the Marco Polo Motel on Aurora Avenue. "He was like, 'Krist, where can I buy a motorcycle?' I was like, 'Fuck, what are you talking about? You don't want to buy a motorcycle. You've got to get the fuck out of here.'" Krist invited Kurt to go away on vacation, just the two of them, to talk things out, but Kurt refused. "He was really quiet. He was just estranged from all his relationships. He wasn't connecting with anybody."
Kurt complained of being hungry, so Krist offered to buy him dinner at a fancy restaurant; Kurt insisted he wanted a Jack in the Box hamburger. As Novoselic drove toward Jack in the Box in the nearby U-District, Kurt protested: "Those hamburgers are too greasy. Let's go to the one on Capitol Hill--the food is better there." Only when they arrived on Capitol Hill did Novoselic realize Kurt didn't want hamburgers at all: He was simply using his old friend to get a ride to score drugs. "His dealer was right by there. He just wanted to get fucked up into oblivion. There was no talking to him. He just wanted to escape. He wanted to die, that was what he wanted to do." The two men began screaming at each other and Kurt bolted from the car."
-Heavier Than Heaven, Charles R. Cross, pg. ?
"He talked about how ugly he thought he was all of the time. I remember one day he looked in a mirror and almost shed a few tears because he was so uncomfortable in his own skin."
-Krist about Kurt, source unknown
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"It's like the greatest love affair, but with three people."
-Dave, describing his relationship with Kurt and Krist, 1999 allstarnews.com
"Kurt heard that, and kissed me on the face, as he was in a bath. He was so excited. He was like, 'I heard you recorded some stuff with Barrett [Jones].' I was like, 'Yeah.' He was like, 'Let me hear it.' I was too afraid to be in the same room as he listened to it."
-Dave, on showing Kurt his demo tapes, including Alone + Easy Target (Nov. 2014, Sonic Highways, HBO)
"Bands can recover from bad hair, from genres that have disappeared, from members quitting, or lineup changes. The things that bands can't recover from are death and drugs. And that's bottom line.
If there were anything I could tell a young band, it'd be just "Don't do coke." Go take Ecstasy and fuck your friends and buy giant bags of weed and wear a condom.
But it happens over and over again anyway. Musicians are a funny bunch of idealistic dreamers and self-destructive depressives. Those are the type of people that usually flash out quick."
-Dave, Spin Magazine 1 Aug 2005
"There was this guy who was about six-foot-seven, really huge. He's telling a story, and he's really loud and obnoxious and jumping around. Then there's this other tiny weasel of a guy sitting in a corner, not talking to anybody and looking like he's taking a shit."
-Dave recounting his first encounter with Chris and Kurt, source unknown
Dave: I looked at Krist and Kurt as soulmates. The two had such a beautiful, unspoken understanding of each other. Those two guys, together, totally defined the Nirvana aesthetic. Every quirk, all the strange things that came from Nirvana came from Krist and Kurt. I think [growing up in] Aberdeen, their experiences together in those formative years, had a lot to do with that.
-24 Sept. 2013, Rolling Stone Magazine
"Whatever, in like, a month or two, we were out in the backyard shooting stuff with BB guns, and breaking windows at the lottery building across the street. It was fun, it was great, that apartment was great."
-Dave, talking about the apartment he shared with Kurt, source unknown
"When I found out that he had killed himself, I was kind of numb. I knew that it--that he was gone. But I didn't know how to feel."
-Dave about Kurt, source unknown
"Krist was one of the only people who could make Kurt laugh. They shared a sense of humor. Krist could make Kurt start laughing, rolling and crying on the floor. Of course, I never understood what the fuck they were talking about."
-Dave, Rolling Stone 13 Sept. 2001
Audience member: So, 22 years ago, you guys were on SNL--in dresses--and there was a man- on-man kiss. That was revolutionary.
Dave: You know, I'm glad that some people think that. [audience laughter] I'm not kidding! You know one of the things we wanted to represent--we were the antithesis of a lot of that, like, bullshit heavy metal--
AM: Jock rock.
Dave: --that homophobic jock rock, because we truly grew up in an underground community where everybody was different and everybody was cool and that's what was so great about it. I mean, you know, I used to get fucking chased around my neighborhood in Virginia, with people calling me a "fag!", because I listened to punk rock. So then I was like, 'I'm in the biggest fuckin' band in the world!' [flips the bird in illustration]
[audience cheers]
AM: Thank you, and how do you think things have changed in the 22 years since then? I mean, it's big-time changes.
Dave: Like, musically?
AM: Musically, sociologically, everything.
Dave: Well, that was such a great time in the 90s, in the early 90s, because there seemed to be like this rebirth of idealism, or something, people were--they didn't feel so restricted any more. They didn't feel so compartmentalized, it was more cool. It was ok to be weird, you know. And it was ok to sound like a band in a garage. And it still is! That was a really exciting time.
I mean, I have kids. I have two daughters. And they're great, they're super fun. And I look at them and I can't wait till they fucking dye their hair blue! I can't wait till they start doing all the stupid shit I did when I was young, because I feel like you have to really try to experience everything before you decide--before you really become, you know, the person that you are.
-Bottle Rock Napa Valley 2013
"Krist and Kurt had a legendary lifetime connection. Those guys were soulmates. They'd been through so much together, from Aberdeen to the success of 'Nevermind'. They fuckin' shared everything, and they were the kind of friends that didn't have to talk to each other--they just knew."
-Dave, Rolling Stone 2005
"Kurt was so many different things. He was funny or shy or this outgoing, larger-than-life persona. He could be sweet or he could be fucking wicked. He could be intimidating."
-Dave, Rolling Stone 2005
"I can't think of one show that I ever played with that band where we walked offstage and said, 'That was great.' Never one. Only two times did I get any reassurance from Kurt. Once when I joined the band, in 1990, we were drunk at some disco in England, and Kurt came up and said, 'I'm so glad you're in this band. I'm so glad you're down-to-earth.' I was like, 'Wow!' The next time was in late '93 or early '94 when I came home and turned on my message machine and had a message from Kurt that said, 'Y'know, I was just sitting here listening to 'In Utero', and your drumming is so awesome. You did such a great job!' I was like, 'Wow!' Those two things were spread out by about four years [laughs]."
-Dave, Rolling Stone 2005
Rolling Stone: What was that last year like?
Dave Grohl: "You just never knew. There were times when the room was lit up with energy and happiness, and there were times when the vibe was like the fucking plague. The last year, being in that band was rough. There was a whole lot of dark shit going on. At that point I was living this wonderful, healthy life outside the band, but when I'd enter a band environment, that all changed. It wasn't a lot of fun. But when Pat Smear joined the band, it changed everything. We went from being fucking sulking dirtbags to kids again. It changed our world. He's the sweetest person in the world. He became really close with Kurt. There was laughter."
(2005)
Interviewer: How would you describe the relationship between Kurt and Krist?
Dave: Krist was Kurt's best friend - always. The two of them had a connection beyond words. I think they were closer to each other than they were to anybody else. Krist is a very lovely, gentle, sweet, and huge man. If he's your friend, he's your friend for life. He protected Kurt in a lot of ways and situations. The perfect example is Krist keeping that huge bouncer from killing Kurt after Kurt smacked him over the head with his guitar in Dallas, Texas. The first person to jump up and protect Kurt was Krist. You have a 400-pound bouncer wanting to kill Kurt, and Krist just got up and said, "Don't even try it."
-13 Sept. 2001, Rolling Stone Magazine
"I still dream about Kurt. Every time I see him in a dream, I'll be amazed and I get this feeling that everyone else thinks he's dead. It always feels totally real, probably because I'm a very vivid dreamer. But, in my dreams, Kurt's usually been hiding - we'll get together and I'll end up asking him, 'God, where have you been?'"
-Dave, source unknown
Interviewer: Your house containing everything you own catches fire. After saving loved ones and pets, you have time to save one item. What would it be?
Dave: "Probably this letter I got from Kurt in 1992. That sounds terribly melodramatic, but it's true. I lose everything: passports, wallets, car keys, credit cards, but that letter is absolutely irreplaceable. He wrote it to me when everything was going nuts. We were all living in different places- he was in Los Angeles, I was in Virginia and Krist was in Seattle- and some decisions were being made without me. I got really bummed out and Kurt sent me this letter about my role and stature in the band. It was all, 'I love you like a brother.' It was just before we did 'In Utero' and it said, 'I can't wait to get back in the studio and make a record so we can whittle ourselves back down to a comfortable level,' Which of course never really happened."
Melody Maker (sometime between 1997-2000)
"I remember being in the same room with them and thinking, 'What? That's Nirvana? Are you kidding?' Because on their record cover they looked like psycho lumberjacks... I was like, 'What, that little dude and that big motherfucker? You're kidding me'. I laughed. I was like, 'No way'"
-Dave, Q Magazine 2010
-Dave, describing his relationship with Kurt and Krist, 1999 allstarnews.com
"Kurt heard that, and kissed me on the face, as he was in a bath. He was so excited. He was like, 'I heard you recorded some stuff with Barrett [Jones].' I was like, 'Yeah.' He was like, 'Let me hear it.' I was too afraid to be in the same room as he listened to it."
-Dave, on showing Kurt his demo tapes, including Alone + Easy Target (Nov. 2014, Sonic Highways, HBO)
"Bands can recover from bad hair, from genres that have disappeared, from members quitting, or lineup changes. The things that bands can't recover from are death and drugs. And that's bottom line.
If there were anything I could tell a young band, it'd be just "Don't do coke." Go take Ecstasy and fuck your friends and buy giant bags of weed and wear a condom.
But it happens over and over again anyway. Musicians are a funny bunch of idealistic dreamers and self-destructive depressives. Those are the type of people that usually flash out quick."
-Dave, Spin Magazine 1 Aug 2005
"There was this guy who was about six-foot-seven, really huge. He's telling a story, and he's really loud and obnoxious and jumping around. Then there's this other tiny weasel of a guy sitting in a corner, not talking to anybody and looking like he's taking a shit."
-Dave recounting his first encounter with Chris and Kurt, source unknown
Dave: I looked at Krist and Kurt as soulmates. The two had such a beautiful, unspoken understanding of each other. Those two guys, together, totally defined the Nirvana aesthetic. Every quirk, all the strange things that came from Nirvana came from Krist and Kurt. I think [growing up in] Aberdeen, their experiences together in those formative years, had a lot to do with that.
-24 Sept. 2013, Rolling Stone Magazine
"Whatever, in like, a month or two, we were out in the backyard shooting stuff with BB guns, and breaking windows at the lottery building across the street. It was fun, it was great, that apartment was great."
-Dave, talking about the apartment he shared with Kurt, source unknown
"When I found out that he had killed himself, I was kind of numb. I knew that it--that he was gone. But I didn't know how to feel."
-Dave about Kurt, source unknown
"Krist was one of the only people who could make Kurt laugh. They shared a sense of humor. Krist could make Kurt start laughing, rolling and crying on the floor. Of course, I never understood what the fuck they were talking about."
-Dave, Rolling Stone 13 Sept. 2001
Audience member: So, 22 years ago, you guys were on SNL--in dresses--and there was a man- on-man kiss. That was revolutionary.
Dave: You know, I'm glad that some people think that. [audience laughter] I'm not kidding! You know one of the things we wanted to represent--we were the antithesis of a lot of that, like, bullshit heavy metal--
AM: Jock rock.
Dave: --that homophobic jock rock, because we truly grew up in an underground community where everybody was different and everybody was cool and that's what was so great about it. I mean, you know, I used to get fucking chased around my neighborhood in Virginia, with people calling me a "fag!", because I listened to punk rock. So then I was like, 'I'm in the biggest fuckin' band in the world!' [flips the bird in illustration]
[audience cheers]
AM: Thank you, and how do you think things have changed in the 22 years since then? I mean, it's big-time changes.
Dave: Like, musically?
AM: Musically, sociologically, everything.
Dave: Well, that was such a great time in the 90s, in the early 90s, because there seemed to be like this rebirth of idealism, or something, people were--they didn't feel so restricted any more. They didn't feel so compartmentalized, it was more cool. It was ok to be weird, you know. And it was ok to sound like a band in a garage. And it still is! That was a really exciting time.
I mean, I have kids. I have two daughters. And they're great, they're super fun. And I look at them and I can't wait till they fucking dye their hair blue! I can't wait till they start doing all the stupid shit I did when I was young, because I feel like you have to really try to experience everything before you decide--before you really become, you know, the person that you are.
-Bottle Rock Napa Valley 2013
"Krist and Kurt had a legendary lifetime connection. Those guys were soulmates. They'd been through so much together, from Aberdeen to the success of 'Nevermind'. They fuckin' shared everything, and they were the kind of friends that didn't have to talk to each other--they just knew."
-Dave, Rolling Stone 2005
"Kurt was so many different things. He was funny or shy or this outgoing, larger-than-life persona. He could be sweet or he could be fucking wicked. He could be intimidating."
-Dave, Rolling Stone 2005
"I can't think of one show that I ever played with that band where we walked offstage and said, 'That was great.' Never one. Only two times did I get any reassurance from Kurt. Once when I joined the band, in 1990, we were drunk at some disco in England, and Kurt came up and said, 'I'm so glad you're in this band. I'm so glad you're down-to-earth.' I was like, 'Wow!' The next time was in late '93 or early '94 when I came home and turned on my message machine and had a message from Kurt that said, 'Y'know, I was just sitting here listening to 'In Utero', and your drumming is so awesome. You did such a great job!' I was like, 'Wow!' Those two things were spread out by about four years [laughs]."
-Dave, Rolling Stone 2005
Rolling Stone: What was that last year like?
Dave Grohl: "You just never knew. There were times when the room was lit up with energy and happiness, and there were times when the vibe was like the fucking plague. The last year, being in that band was rough. There was a whole lot of dark shit going on. At that point I was living this wonderful, healthy life outside the band, but when I'd enter a band environment, that all changed. It wasn't a lot of fun. But when Pat Smear joined the band, it changed everything. We went from being fucking sulking dirtbags to kids again. It changed our world. He's the sweetest person in the world. He became really close with Kurt. There was laughter."
(2005)
Interviewer: How would you describe the relationship between Kurt and Krist?
Dave: Krist was Kurt's best friend - always. The two of them had a connection beyond words. I think they were closer to each other than they were to anybody else. Krist is a very lovely, gentle, sweet, and huge man. If he's your friend, he's your friend for life. He protected Kurt in a lot of ways and situations. The perfect example is Krist keeping that huge bouncer from killing Kurt after Kurt smacked him over the head with his guitar in Dallas, Texas. The first person to jump up and protect Kurt was Krist. You have a 400-pound bouncer wanting to kill Kurt, and Krist just got up and said, "Don't even try it."
-13 Sept. 2001, Rolling Stone Magazine
"I still dream about Kurt. Every time I see him in a dream, I'll be amazed and I get this feeling that everyone else thinks he's dead. It always feels totally real, probably because I'm a very vivid dreamer. But, in my dreams, Kurt's usually been hiding - we'll get together and I'll end up asking him, 'God, where have you been?'"
-Dave, source unknown
Interviewer: Your house containing everything you own catches fire. After saving loved ones and pets, you have time to save one item. What would it be?
Dave: "Probably this letter I got from Kurt in 1992. That sounds terribly melodramatic, but it's true. I lose everything: passports, wallets, car keys, credit cards, but that letter is absolutely irreplaceable. He wrote it to me when everything was going nuts. We were all living in different places- he was in Los Angeles, I was in Virginia and Krist was in Seattle- and some decisions were being made without me. I got really bummed out and Kurt sent me this letter about my role and stature in the band. It was all, 'I love you like a brother.' It was just before we did 'In Utero' and it said, 'I can't wait to get back in the studio and make a record so we can whittle ourselves back down to a comfortable level,' Which of course never really happened."
Melody Maker (sometime between 1997-2000)
"I remember being in the same room with them and thinking, 'What? That's Nirvana? Are you kidding?' Because on their record cover they looked like psycho lumberjacks... I was like, 'What, that little dude and that big motherfucker? You're kidding me'. I laughed. I was like, 'No way'"
-Dave, Q Magazine 2010
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"If I remember correctly they also kissed and it was more graphic when they played on SNL
with Barkley as host. Here's what I remember. Keep in mind, its been many years since. All
three members were on the left side of Barkley, right side of screen. Krist and Kurt had big
kool aid smiles like when you are about to do something naughty. Like cats that just
swallowed the canary. Barkley says goodnight. Kurt and Krist turn their heads towards each
other and full out make out, but they don't turn to face each other, chests still facing
forward to the camera. Dave just smiles, but isn't kissed. Credits roll."
-Youtube user TrOllinM4sTEr 2015
"I know there's a sex tape put there. Just like I know there is a video of Kurt consonant cumming on his guitar at the paramount. The corporate bugs cut it out but I know it happened."
-Reddit user bobthe360noscowper in r/justnirvanakissing
"[Joao Gordo] showed this pic with Kurt and he also showed Kurt's autograph on a Hormoaning CD and the autograph read: "Kurt + Axl are lovers"...hahaha...I sent him a message asking him to scan this and post it online, but I didn't get an answer from him..."
-LiveNirvana user Bruno
-Youtube user TrOllinM4sTEr 2015
"I know there's a sex tape put there. Just like I know there is a video of Kurt consonant cumming on his guitar at the paramount. The corporate bugs cut it out but I know it happened."
-Reddit user bobthe360noscowper in r/justnirvanakissing
"[Joao Gordo] showed this pic with Kurt and he also showed Kurt's autograph on a Hormoaning CD and the autograph read: "Kurt + Axl are lovers"...hahaha...I sent him a message asking him to scan this and post it online, but I didn't get an answer from him..."
-LiveNirvana user Bruno
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"I bonded with Eddie from Pearl Jam. We broke our little feud. And we kissed and made up and
danced, to an Eric Clapton song."
-Kurt about the '92 VMAs
"I consider him a person that I really like. I mean, we've had a few conversations on the phone and I really like him. I think he's a really nice person."
-Kurt about Eddie Vedder (1992-ish)
"Later, after we played our show and were walking back to our trailer, the Guns N' Roses entourage came walking toward us. They have at least 50 bodyguards apiece: huge, gigantic, brain-dead oafs ready to kill for Axl at all times. [Laughs] They didn't see me, but they surrounded Chris, and Duff [McKagan of Guns N' Roses] wanted to beat Chris up, and the bodyguards started pushing Chris around. He finally escaped, but throughout the rest of the evening, there was a big threat of either Guns N' Roses themselves or their goons beating us up. We had to hide out."
-Kurt, The Advocate 1993
-Kurt about the '92 VMAs
"I consider him a person that I really like. I mean, we've had a few conversations on the phone and I really like him. I think he's a really nice person."
-Kurt about Eddie Vedder (1992-ish)
"Later, after we played our show and were walking back to our trailer, the Guns N' Roses entourage came walking toward us. They have at least 50 bodyguards apiece: huge, gigantic, brain-dead oafs ready to kill for Axl at all times. [Laughs] They didn't see me, but they surrounded Chris, and Duff [McKagan of Guns N' Roses] wanted to beat Chris up, and the bodyguards started pushing Chris around. He finally escaped, but throughout the rest of the evening, there was a big threat of either Guns N' Roses themselves or their goons beating us up. We had to hide out."
-Kurt, The Advocate 1993
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