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Nirvana - Stay Away - Guitar Lesson

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Nirvana - Stay Away - Guitar Lesson

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Nirvana - Stay Away guitar lesson video
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Nirvana Grunge F# minor
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Stay Away

"Stay Away" is a track by Nirvana, featured on their landmark second studio album Nevermind, released in 1991 on DGC Records. Produced by Butch Vig, the album marked a shift toward a more polished, radio-friendly sound while retaining the band's raw energy. For electric guitar players, "Stay Away" offers a strong study in Kurt Cobain's distinctive approach to grunge riffing, blending aggressive power chords with dynamic shifts between quiet and loud passages.

  • Nevermind was produced by Butch Vig, whose studio polish helped shape the album's guitar tone into something both gritty and radio-ready.
  • "Stay Away" showcases Nirvana's classic quiet-loud dynamic, making it a practical exercise for controlling pick attack and amp gain.
  • Nevermind was recorded at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California, a room known for its distinctively warm, powerful drum and guitar sound.
Fender Stratocaster
Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

Cobain used the Stratocaster on several Nevermind tracks, leveraging its bright single-coils to cut through dense arrangements. Though less iconic than his Mustang, the Strat provided tonal clarity for melodic passages within Nirvana's heavy sonic framework.

Fender Twin Reverb
Amp

Fender Twin Reverb

Cobain deployed the Twin Reverb's clean headroom and natural breakup for softer verses and intros, creating dynamic contrast against his saturated Mesa preamp tones. The amp's warm response complemented his sparse, dry-focused signal chain.

DiMarzio Super Distortion
Pickup

DiMarzio Super Distortion

Cobain swapped DiMarzio humbuckers into his Jaguars and Mustangs to fatten their typically bright single-coils, pushing harder into his Mesa preamp for compressed, fuzzy sustain. This high-output bridge pickup was essential to Nirvana's thick, aggressive midrange distortion.

Boss DS-1 Distortion
Pedal

Boss DS-1 Distortion

The DS-1 functioned as Cobain's heavy-hitting boost pedal, slamming the front end of his already-overdriven Mesa preamp to intensify saturation during explosive chorus sections. Its gritty character helped define Nirvana's raw, in-your-face distortion tone.

Electro-Harmonix Small Clone
Pedal

Electro-Harmonix Small Clone

Cobain's signature chorus voice, heard prominently on Come As You Are and clean passages of Smells Like Teen Spirit, added subtle wobble and width. The Small Clone's lush modulation provided dynamic relief against his otherwise aggressive, compressed overdriven tones.

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