Deep cuts are songs that only true fans of an artist/band will know and enjoy. These tracks are obscure and take dedication to discover and truly love. Now, these are not your garden variety singles whose heavy rotation on the local FM rock stations have strippped a song’s potency through repeated plays in a concentrated period, those commemorative tunes that refelct the latest cultural craze or fashion fad, nor are they the million dollar video production filmed for your entertainment pleasure on MTV*. They are songs that separate the genuine fans from the drive-by fans. For example, everybody knows Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” “In Bloom,” and “Lithium” and profess their deep love of the band through these songs. There is no denying their genius and the impact that they have had in the music industry, but give me the new wave surge of “Lounge Act” and the manic defiance of “Stay Away” any time. In fact, give me the menace of side B over the singles-bloated side A. Give me songs that spit nails over the shiny cellophane of “Come as You Are” (though, I must profess my love for that particular song). To me, these songs are the guts of the album and are the missives that validate their legacy. To go even deeper, give me the shattering and abrasive In Utero over the radio-friendly Nevermind. Better yet, give me the low-fi stereo of Bleach. Now, the question may arise, “Can a popular album like Nevermind have a deep cut when it’s become such a zeitgeist in our culture?” My answer to that—absolutely. If a person truly loves a particular song over any other song that happens to be the source of attention/fame for an album, then it is a deep cut. But if that doesn’t convince you and you want to go even deeper, give me the deep grime of “Sappy,”the white noise of “Son of a Gun” (Vaseline cover), and the dizzying heights of “Aero Zeppelin.” I would add the onslaught of “Aneurysm” to that short list, but its live version in From the Muddy Banks of the Wishkah and its heavy radio rotation has pushed it out of the “Deep Cuts” category and placed it firmly in the “Popular but Still Fucking Good” category. Still, the Smells Like Teen Spirit single version of “Aneurysm” with its slow and menacing build, whaling lead guitar, gnarled vocals and spitfire callbacks is fucking nirvana.

* Does MTV even show videos anymore or has YouTube replaced that utility?