"Breed" | ||||
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Song by Nirvana from the album Nevermind | ||||
Released | September 24, 1991 (Nevermind) | |||
Recorded | May/June 1991 at Sound City, Van Nuys and Devonshire, North Hollywood | |||
Genre | Grunge | |||
Length | 3:03 | |||
Label | DGC Records | |||
Writer(s) | Kurt Cobain | |||
Producer(s) | Butch Vig | |||
Nevermind track listing | ||||
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12 tracks |
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"Breed" is a song by American rock band Nirvana written by frontman Kurt Cobain. It is the fourth song on their 1991 studio album Nevermind.
"Breed" is a song written about being trapped in middle-class America. The song was developed by the band during live performances in 1989 when they toured Europe with their Sub Pop labelmates TAD. In an interview with Sub Pop founder Bruce Pavitt, he explained that the song was "hypnotic," and a stylistic breakthrough for the band. He stated that "audiences would become ecstatic. They were experiencing Nirvana. And when you're experiencing really good, primal rock n roll, you break into a trance." The original version was recorded at Smart Studios with producer Butch Vig.
In 2017, to mark what would have been Kurt Cobain's 50th birthday, the Phonographic Performance Limited released a list of the top twenty most played Nirvana songs on the TV and radio in the UK in which "Breed" was ranked at number thirteen.
American heavy metal band Otep recorded a cover of "Breed" for their 2007 album The Ascension, and they released a video for the cover.