Hear Four Rare Nirvana Demo Tapes Unearthed By Friend of Kurt Cobain | Revolver

Hear Four Rare Nirvana Demo Tapes Unearthed By Friend of Kurt Cobain

Trove purportedly contains pre-Grohl 'Nevermind' demos, rehearsals with Melvins' Dale Crover and much more
Kurt Cobain Undated Getty, Kevin Mazur/Wireimage
photograph by Kevin Mazur/Wireimage

Grunge fans are going to want to sit down for this one: John Purkey, an old friend of Kurt Cobain, recently uploaded a set of videos containing raw audio sourced from four rare demo tapes recorded by the band in the late Eighties –roughly two hours of material in total.

The tapes – which Purkey says were given to him by the late frontman – purportedly feature early versions of tracks that eventually appeared on Nirvana's 1989 debut Bleach, material recorded with Melvins' Dale Crover (including the previously-unearthed "Montage of Heck"); and a host of Nevermind demos the band recorded with Chad Channing, who sat behind the kit prior to Dave Grohl.

In yet another video, Purkey provides a run-down of the contents of the Nirvana tapes (two of which have since been sold), how they came into his possession, and the steps he took to ensure their safety. "I knew in the '90s I had stuff that was collectible," he says of the trove. The man thought right – listen below.