Smells Like Teen Spirit

7" lathe cut record/processed audio
edition of 100
2010

This clear lathe-cut 7" record, cut one at a time by Peter King in New Zealand, contains "erased" versions of two Nirvana songs, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and "Polly".

Each song was run through a series of band-pass filters, which removes most of the frequency spectrum from an audio recording. "Polly" was erased based on the principle melody of the classic murder ballad, "Pretty Polly".

Additionally, the lathe cut records are more fragile than conventional vinyl and are slightly erased with each pass of the stylus.

While on one hand the work can be consider an homage or a remix, the piece transforms an icon of the full co-optation of punk culture into a diminished moment of quiet focus.


"Extremely interesting... what remains is quite remarkable."
-Byron Coley, Wire Magazine