At last, a new gender of music has ievolved. Music that mixes the energy of punk rock with substantial messages telling kids not to take a backseat to what's going on in the world, but to become active. Music that challenges us to think but also keeps the listener entranced with its hard rock riffs. One band bringing this "new musical order" to the mainstream is Nirvana. Nirvana's third album "Nevermind" is topping the charts with their high charged teen anthem "Smells Like Teen Spirit." The band's first album, "Bleach" and EP "Blew" were both recorded in 1989 and spawned three major U.S. tours, but never got any airplay. But "Nevermind" is different. Since it hit number one, it must have surprised these three guys whose favorite off-time projects are building burl clocks and putting together latchhook rugs. Kurt Cobain (lead guitar/vocal), Chris Novoselic (bass) and Dave Grohl (drums) have hit it big with "Smells Like Teen Spirit." The songs represented on the album all have special meaning to the band.

"ASmells Like Teen Spirit' is about my generation's apathy. I'm disgusted with it. I'm disgusted with my own apathy, too, for being spineless and not always standing up against racism, sexism, and all those other Aisms' the counter-culture has been whining about for years," Cobain says.

Nirvana takes hold of the cutting edge with choruses like "With the lights out, it's less dangerous / Here we are now entertain us / I feel stupid and contagious / Here we are now entertain us / A mulatto, an albino, my mosquito, my libido." The album never left me disappointed. I got what I expected: high energy punkadelia with hard rock riffs. My favorite song is "Polly," which Cobain says is about rape.

"Nevermind" is a constant trip through the mind of Kurt Cobain. He says "No one, especially people our own age, wants to address important issues. They'd rather say, ANevermind, forget it.' On the one hand, we're not a political band -- we're just some guys playing music -- but we're not just another mindless band asking people to forget either. There's no rebellion in rock'n' roll anymore. I hope underground music can influence the mainstream and shake up the kids. Maybe we can change some kid's life and stop him from becoming a welder or a sleazy lawyer. Maybe what we need is a new generation gap." That's exactly what we need. n