Exactly 30 years ago, more specifically on August 17, 1991, Nirvana gathered at GMT Studios in Culver City, California, to record the music video for "Smells Like Teen Spirit," the first single from the album Nevermind .
The direction of the now iconic music video was handled by Samuel Bayer , who oversaw the production with a budget between 30 and 50 thousand dollars, inspired by the films Over the Edge , by Jonathan Kaplan , and Rock 'n' Roll High School , by Allan Arkush, both from 1979, which feature an anarchic school show.
The video depicts Nirvana playing in a high school gymnasium to an audience of apathetic students in the stands. The discontent captured in the scenes was entirely genuine, as the extras were forced to sit for hours watching the band play the same song in an enclosed space.
Upon its release on MTV in the US, the music video for "Smells Like Teen Spirit" became a sensation and was one of the first from the American music channel to become a reference point for an entire generation. Watch the video again below.
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