Why Grohl never worked with Novoselic again after Nirvana

On the occasion of the release of the latest Foo Fighters album (all our articles here), Dave Grohl has returned to reflect on the past in a conversation with Zane Lowe about Apple Music. Among the topics addressed, the relationship with Krist Novoselic after the end of Nirvana and the meaning, still very powerful today, of returning to play those songs. Grohl explained that while their friendship remained intact, he and Novoselic never had a real deep conversation about why they never collaborated again after the band broke up.. “After Nirvana ended we all ended up in places that made us feel safe,” he says. For him, that safe space it was the recording studio: Recording alone the first songs that would give birth to the Foo Fighters it was almost therapeutic.

On Novoselic, Grohl remains cautious but intuitive: “I can’t speak for Krist, but I think at that moment he needed stability, maybe even to take a step back.” Two different paths, therefore, born from the same need: to put one’s feet back on the ground after a huge shock. However, the trajectory with Pat Smear is different, whose entry into the Foo Fighters occurred almost by chance. Grohl recalls sending him one of the first demo cassettes without expectations: “I didn’t think he would become our guitarist.” Smear’s reaction – surprised by how “pop” that material was – However, it paved the way for a collaboration destined to last. The discussion becomes even more emotional when Grohl addresses the topic of sporadic reunions with Novoselic to play Nirvana songs.

For years, he admits, it was difficult even just getting close to the drums to start the intro of “Smells Like Teen Spirit”: “It almost seemed like something forbidden.” Yet when it happens, the effect is powerful: “It’s like a time capsule.” Grohl describes that sound as unique and irreproducible: Novoselic’s bass, his way of staying on time, Smear’s visceral approach to guitar and explosive drums that take everything back decades. “When that happens, you think: I remember that. I haven’t heard this sound in 35 years.”