I assume anyone reading this blog would have some idea of Steve Albini was, and that he died yesterday from a heart attack at age 61. I'm 61. Damn. Reportedly it happened while working at his studio, so you can at least say he died doing what he loved.
I never met nor interacted with Steve, so I can speak from no firsthand knowledge. Among the descriptions of him online, I've read that he was sweet, a pussycat, dedicated to work. I also read "needlessly abrasive". That part of his reputation definitely precedes him.
I listened to Steve conversing with Marc Maron on the latter's podcast. He seemed guarded and a little prickly, but again that was his reputation already, being a difficult interview subject. I took issue with something in particular he said, though keep in mind I'm paraphrasing something I'd heard a few years ago. Steve became defensive of his tastes, how some people decide they like jazz when they grow older, and that he'll always love rock music no matter his age. It's what he loves and there's no changing that.
My issues are these: first of all, nobody wakes up on their 40th birthday and says, "I'm an adult now, I guess I must listen to jazz." Sometimes people's tastes can shift. There's a saying that you never lose your love of what you listened to when you were 13. I say yes, maybe, to some extent. There are plenty of things I experienced around that age, actively enjoyed, that no longer appeal to me. I mean, the first LP I bought for myself was a Kansas record. I don't hate that band but Leftoverture doesn't do for me now what it did forty years ago. And there's nothing wrong with that. The idea that some people decide they grow out of rock music into something else is inaccurate, in my opinion.
I also disagree because I have friends who are 60yo+ rockers and will never leave it. Friends who, for example, traveled to see a reunion of The Flesh Eaters some years back. Oh, maybe they might also like Miles Davis, Charles Mingus, or Thelonious Monk too, they're not strictly limited by the rock idiom. Hell, a few years back I saw Thurston Moore's band in Philadelphia and they were great. (My wife thought so too.) I don't want to limit myself to say I only like one thing, if anyone who might have seen this blog would have probably figured out.
I was thinking of Robert Crumb. Crumb's an internationally known collector of string band 78s, centering on the decades of the 1920s and 30s. It's what he loves and he's highly knowledgeable in the music. I wouldn't presume to go to him and say, "Hey man, grow up already and get more modern. You need to listen to what I'm doing." That would be rude and ridiculous. He has a well-informed opinion on things, that in itself is valuable and to be respected. Likewise Steve Albini, I would never tell him to become an adult and stop listening to that hard rock kid's music.
Steve famously turned down in excess of $1,000,000 worth of income by refusing to declare himself producer of Nirvana's In Utero, instead only claiming to be the recording and mixing engineer. Geffen turned down Albini's mix and had the album rebalanced. Vocals were too low, the sound to metallic and abrasive. Albini's contention was that he was just there to assist in making the album that band wants to make, though I can't help but believe he had influence on the results of the first mix.
It does speak to his ethics though. It says to me, that first of all, he insisted on not stepping into roles he didn't believe he belonged. It also says he didn't need the money. That is, he was doing all right for himself, and he was doing what he loved, why collect the money just for the sake of collecting the money? It's very admirable, and no doubt upped the respect he received from others. I can't say I would turn down a $1,000,000 offer, but I know I'd be fine without it. But if I was starving, struggling? I can't say.
To make that even more interesting, Steve later became a champion-level poker player. I'm certain in that case the money did mean something, but also it couldn't have been the only reason for his involvement. There must have been something about knowing the odds, how to read the table, the intellectual part of the game, that must have appealed to him.
I thought I still had a Big Black record, but I guess I sold it off years ago. Oh well. It served its purpose then. So even if our tastes didn't largely coincide, respect to you Steve. Someone who does his job well, creatively, ethically, for decades, deserves praise.
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