Nirvana “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Drum Recording

Dave Grohl’s drum setup for Nevermind was a Tama Grandstar with a Ludwig Black Beauty bell brass snare drum nicknamed “The Terminator.” Butch Vig added an extra kick drum in front of Grohl’s to enhance the low end. The kick was mic’ed with an AKG D12 in the kick and a Neumann U47 FET at the end of the “drum tunnel.” The snare was close mic’ed with an SM57 on top and an AKG C451 on bottom and toms got Sennheiser 412s. Hi-hat and cymbals had Neumann KM84s and AKC 414s with a pair of U87s in the room. The mics went into a Neve console onto a Studer tape deck.

During the mix, Andy Wallace used some “gunshot” samples to add impact and ambiance to the drums.