Post Malone has triumphed as a rapper, a rocker, a pop star, and a country artist. If there’s a solid core within this multiplicity, it’s that Malone is, in essence, a Kurt Cobain fanatic.
It’s literally written on his face: the Nirvana song title “Stay Away” is inked into his forehead. A portrait of Cobain occupies Post’s upper arm. “WHATEVER” is tattooed across his left palm, “NEVERMIND” across the right. If the world needs a celebration of the iconic grunge band, Malone’s the man to bring it.
Post Malone: A Tribute to Nirvana makes its debut on Record Store Day 2025. But the only thing new about the release is its yellow vinyl format. The album’s 14 songs are drawn from Malone’s COVID-19 lockdown performance in April, 2020. That show was a live-streamed fundraiser for COVID victims; the new album is likewise a benefit, with all proceeds going to the nonprofit organization MusiCares. (Specifically, the donation goes to the Addiction Recovery/Mental Health arm of MusiCares, which is in itself a nod to Cobain.)
Joining Malone for the all-Nirvana set were Brian Lee on bass, Nick Mac on rhythm guitar, and Travis Barker of blink-182 fame on drums. And what a set it was! With a righteous cause and a hard-hitting band, Malone seemed large and in charge. On top of his vocalist/guitarist frontman duties, he emceed the fund-raising operation; between songs Post gave shout-outs to the more generous donors, and kept one eye on the chat window for any big names signing in. (Both Courtney Love and Krist Novoselic entered the chat at different points.) Host Malone did it all, and he did it in a dress (yet another bow to his hero). All this without forgetting a single word or chord in the hour-long set.
For the album release, of course, we get only the songs themselves, not the party-down atmosphere, the banter, the beer breaks, the false starts. But that’s kinda the bad news: an electrifying show, a sense of something happening, doesn’t always get encoded into the record grooves. Songs can lose their juice when taken from their context. The livestream raised over $4 million in donations–a huge success–but A Tribute to Nirvana, the record, amounts to little more than a solid if somewhat perfunctory outing.
The more dedicated Post supporters–the ones who always call him Posty–will scoop up Tribute in droves. (They should act fast, since it’s a limited edition pressing.) And if the album does for Nirvana what Nirvana’s Unplugged did for the Meat Puppets, Leadbelly, and Bowie, that would be a fine thing. The livestream has already had the effect of exposing Post’s Gen Y and Gen Z fanbase to old ’90s alt rock. And the reverse happened as well: Post’s performance won over the OGs (original grungesters) who were skeptical that any hip-hop artist could take on Nirvana’s brand of metal/punk angst. More than a few found themselves streaming his music for the rest of the pandemic.
For those of us who are already on board with Nirvana, and not easily amused by soundalike covers, Malone’s tribute doesn’t add much to the conversation. The covers are earnest but unimaginative; they’re impressive as emulations, but they lack any fresh spark of their own. It’s disappointing because Malone has proven he can breathe new life into reinterpretations. In 2023 we ranked his live version of “Them Bones” by Alice In Chains among the year’s best covers. Malone brought a surprising twist to the song–a vocal choir. But any such stroke of inspiration is missing from A Tribute to Nirvana.
Why didn’t “Something in the Way” (for one example) get any sort of creative reworking? On Cobain’s most vulnerable song, I’d expect a more memorable or at least a more emotional statement–maybe a solo turn by Malone would have clicked. Or a raw and raucous take. Anything. But Malone simply switches to acoustic guitar for the ballad, and Brian Lee bows a violin (echoing the cello featured on original); these moves just seem like easy mimicry. The song has a paint-by-numbers feel to it. As does the rest of the disc. Post stays in the Cobain lane too well, maybe, and doesn’t put his own colorful self into the music.
Oh well, whatever: the pandemic was raging, the musicians only had about 48 hours to whip a set into shape, and the point wasn’t to reinvent anything. The point was to raise funds and raise spirits. Which it did. Bravo.
But still. A rarity or a deep cut might have helped. Instead, the band just storms through Nevermind, with just two tracks from each of Nirvana’s two other studio albums thrown in: “About a Girl” and “School” from Bleach, “Heart-Shaped Box” and “Very Ape” from In Utero. Even if you accept that Nevermind was Nirvana’s defining moment, the setlist is unhappily skewed.
Malone skipped only two Nevermind tracks in his homage: “Polly” and “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” (Three, if you count the hidden track “Endless Nameless.”) Post saved “SLTS” for a better occasion: he performed the song with a reunited Nirvana for Saturday Night Live’s 50th Anniversary show. Now that was a tribute, imperfections and all. Nothing against Joan Jett or J Mascis or anyone else who has stood in for Cobain, but the go-to frontman for any future Nirvana reunion is now abundantly clear.
As for Post’s “new” tribute on vinyl, I’m not gonna say “stay away,” but I can’t summon more enthusiasm than a “whatever.” That’s only because there’s something better out there: watching the live stream of the 2020 event.
Post Malone Tribute to Nirvana Tracklist:
SIDE A:
1. Drain You
2. Come As You Are
3. Lounge Act
4. School
5. Heart Shaped Box
6. Something In The Way
7. About A Girl
SIDE B:
8. Stay Away
9. Lithium
10. Breed
11. On A Plane
12. Very Ape
13. Territorial Pissings
14. In Bloom
I’ve been really on the edge of buying this, I loved the livestream and have replayed a few times, but I think you’ve hit the nail on the head.