2024 05 10
Someone posted that Steve Albini had more effect on Chicago than most mayors do, and that’s probably true. I never knew Steve, never met him, was aware of his existence and importance but vastly under-appreciated it until yesterday, when he sadly died far too soon. The entirety of my social feeds were flooded with Albini stories and memories, which was a joy to take in.
Albini most recently lived in the Ravenswood Gardens neighborhood. He told the Columbia College blog “In the Loop” why he stayed in Chicago in a 2017 interview:
“There’s not a lot of bloodthirsty competition in Chicago. In places like New York and L.A. the cost of living is so high and the the notion of ‘industry’ is much more cemented. In L.A. there is a pop music industry, in New York there is a pop music industry, and there’s competition to be part of that. The competition to beat other people to the brass ring or whatever, and I never get that feeling in Chicago.”
I loved this take about why Steve chose to stay in Chicago after finding fame in recording massively successful rock albums and I think it helps summarize why Chicagoans hold Steve in such high regard. He was a complex figure who did not take bullshit from anyone and was not afraid to call people out for anything he deemed wrong, which is not a personality type that tends to do well within the power structures of big time America among the coastal elites.
If you, like me, were not well versed in Albini and his brain, do yourself a favor and dig into him some more. Listen to his albums. Read some of his thoughts.
This Baffler piece, for example, written in 1993 is an epic takedown of the extreme power structures which built up around mainstream music, designed to suck as much money out of the artists as it possibly could. His writing style is direct, strong, and punchy! 😛
The official Nirvana twitter account posted the 4-page letter he wrote to the band before recording In Utero with them and it’s an incredible read illustrating a wonderful piece of history. Check it out via the tweet linked below.
Rest in noise, Steve. Thanks for being you.
-Clayton
Old van that sits by my house collecting parking tickets. Chicago, Illinois. March, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Someone posted that Steve Albini had more effect on Chicago than most mayors do, and that’s probably true. I never knew Steve, never met him, was aware of his existence and importance but vastly under-appreciated it until yesterday, when he sadly died far too soon. The entirety of my social feeds were flooded with Albini stories and memories, which was a joy to take in.
Albini most recently lived in the Ravenswood Gardens neighborhood. He told the Columbia College blog “In the Loop” why he stayed in Chicago in a 2017 interview:
“There’s not a lot of bloodthirsty competition in Chicago. In places like New York and L.A. the cost of living is so high and the the notion of ‘industry’ is much more cemented. In L.A. there is a pop music industry, in New York there is a pop music industry, and there’s competition to be part of that. The competition to beat other people to the brass ring or whatever, and I never get that feeling in Chicago.”
I loved this take about why Steve chose to stay in Chicago after finding fame in recording massively successful rock albums and I think it helps summarize why Chicagoans hold Steve in such high regard. He was a complex figure who did not take bullshit from anyone and was not afraid to call people out for anything he deemed wrong, which is not a personality type that tends to do well within the power structures of big time America among the coastal elites.
If you, like me, were not well versed in Albini and his brain, do yourself a favor and dig into him some more. Listen to his albums. Read some of his thoughts.
This Baffler piece, for example, written in 1993 is an epic takedown of the extreme power structures which built up around mainstream music, designed to suck as much money out of the artists as it possibly could. His writing style is direct, strong, and punchy! 😛
The official Nirvana twitter account posted the 4-page letter he wrote to the band before recording In Utero with them and it’s an incredible read illustrating a wonderful piece of history. Check it out via the tweet linked below.
Rest in noise, Steve. Thanks for being you.
-Clayton