Sliver: The Best of the Box

Sliver: The Best of the Box review

Sliver: The Best of the Box – ??????? ?????? ???????? With the Lights Out

Nirvana have spent their entire career, both active and posthumous splitting audiences between Most Important and Most Overrated band of all time. Without staking a claim on their spectrum of their greatness, it's hard to imagine any greatness that still remains not being hoovered up by dodgy compilations touting half-hearted versions of songs that weren't originally released until the band decided they should be heard. In May 2002, Courtney Love bragged that she had the Holy Grail of rock and roll, referencing the already-legendary box of 109 unreleased Nirvana and Kurt Cobain demos, outtakes, and experiments. In 2004 bits from Love's infamous cache of cassettes appeared on the With the Lights Out box set, a collection of 61 tracks – the supposedly definitive postscript to Kurt Cobain's April 1994 suicide. With the Lights Out seemed like it might have been a godsend, but ultimately it suffered for being too large; while the material was indeed of historical interest, it simply overwhelmed the listener. Sliver: The Best of the Box is a pared-down version of With the Lights Out, adding three tracks that didn't appear on that set. Sliver: The Best of the Box is concise; it doesn't linger heavily in one particular time period, nor does it overwhelm the listener with bland material. It's a varied listen, and it does a much better job presenting these unreleased nuggets than With the Lights Out ever did.

19 bests tracks and three previously unreleased songs

The album comprises of ‘the best’ 19 tracks plus 3 previously unreleased songs. The tracks on Sliver: The Best of the Box range from seminal Nirvana hits such as Come as You Are and Lithium to lesser-known songs like Mrs. Butterworth and Blandest. Of the new tracks, Spank Thru opens proceedings in suitably brisk fashion. It's actually more blues-driven rock'n'roll than grunge but the guitars work well and there's a definite demo value about it. This long-sought-after rendition – which, strikingly, has never even been available on bootlegs – is pure artifact, hinting at an embryonic Nirvana. Sliver's version appeared on 1985's infamous Fecal Matter demo tape, and features a throaty, 18-year-old Cobain on guitar and vocals, backed by the Melvins' Dale Crover on drums and bass. Oddly, the quality of the recording is stellar in contrast to the rest of the album's material, and every vocal tic and nuance is instantly palpable. And Sappy is a sassy, power track that is also remarkably good quality for a studio demo – a worthwhile addition to any Nirvana collection. Sliver: The Best of the Box also offers a demo of Come as You Are, supposedly recorded for Butch Vig in 1991 before he began working on Nevermind. Also included the ubiquitous cover of Heartbreaker and the lovely radio recording of Opinion.

A template for future archival releases

Sliver fulfills its promise to cull The Best of the Box (see: Do Re Mi, Old Age, and a live Floyd the Barber), and as a collection of B-sides, demos, and outtakes, it lives up to its subtitle. Listening to some of Kurt’s early demos would give hope to any fledgling singer songwriter, as his tunes are basic, his vocal raw and gravely and in some cases what is recorded is distinctly average. Yet despite this there is a visceral quality and a genuine integrity. As a whole the compilation is an insight, albeit a very small one, into Kurt’s songwriting process, from the very beginning through to his later work, it illustrates lyrical and musical development. Since the emphasis is on home recordings, demos, and "boom box versions", the sound quality is especially lo-fi throughout. But the rough intimacy of these takes is part of the charm, especially on Cobain's solo acoustic spots. Even though Sliver: The Best of the Box smells like cash-in spirit, it shouldn't be assumed that it's a bad collection, because it's not. Instead, it's an excellent starting place for those who love the band's official albums and want to hear more. Sliver: The Best of the Box should serve as a template for future archival releases.