The letter Steve Albini wrote to Nirvana pitching to produce what would become the band’s third and final album ‘In Utero’ has surfaced online.
Albini begins his three-and-a-half page proposal letter by addressing “Kurt, Dave and Chris” and ends with a memorable P.S.: “If a record takes more than a week to make, somebody’s fucking up.” Read the full letter below.
Nirvana accepted Albini’s pitch and the band recorded the album at Pachyderm Studio in Cannon Falls, Minnesota from February 13-26, 1993. The producer accepted a flat fee of $100,000 (£62,000) for his services, refusing to take royalties on future record sales.
The iconic grunge band’s final studio album celebrates its 20th anniversary this month and a remastered version of the LP was released earlier this week (September 23). It features 70 tracks including previously unreleased recordings and demos, B-sides and compilation tracks and live material featuring the band’s final touring line-up of Cobain, Krist Novoselic, Grohl and Pat Smear.
Speaking earlier this week, the band’s drummer Dave Grohl said that people should listen to ‘In Utero’ “without thinking of Kurt dying”.