There would seem to be no connection between the city of Tucson and influential grunge rock act Nirvana.
But Nirvana's leader, Kurt Cobain, was heavily influenced by the Meat Puppets, a Phoenix band formed by two brothers, one of whom decided to become a musician while he was living in Tucson.
Curt Kirkwood, the Meat Puppets' guitarist, vocalist and keyboardist, attended the University of Arizona for a year around 1980.
The Puppets started when Kirkwood moved back to Phoenix and included his bassist, vocalist and keyboardist brother, Cris Kirkwood, and original drummer Derrick Bostrom. The group released its first EP in 1981.
The Meat Puppets became such a huge inspiration on Nirvana's Cobain that they eventually opened for the famed Seattle act on tour.
During Nirvana's 1994 epic "Unplugged" session for MTV, the Kirkwoods joined Cobain and company to play Meat Puppets originals "Lake of Fire," "Plateau" and "Oh, Me."
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Those three songs are all off the Meat Puppets' 1984 release, "II," regarded by many as the band's finest work. If you listen to the original songs, you can hear the strain in Kirkwood's voice that Cobain seems to mimic on "Unplugged."
The Meat Puppets went on to score some radio success in the mid '90s with the grunge anthem "Backwater" from the 1994 album "Too High to Die."
The Meat Puppets went on hiatus after 1995's "No Joke!" and resurfaced around the turn of the century, albeit in a different form.
Cris got into heavy drugs like heroin during the '90s and holed up in his house, enduring a series of tragedies, such as the 1998 fatal overdose of his wife, Michelle Tardif, at the couple's Phoenix-area home.
Amid all the chaos in Cris' life, Curt moved to Austin and pushed forward with an alternate Meat Puppets lineup and released 2000's "Golden Lies."
More trouble came on the Cris front in 2003, when he was shot and arrested during an altercation with a Phoenix post office security guard. Cris spent some time in prison and got rehabilitated. When he was released in 2006, he rejoined the band for 2007's "Rise to Your Knees."
The current lineup, consisting of the Kirkwoods and drummer Ted Marcus, just wrapped up recording a new album in Phoenix. It was the first Meat Puppets album recorded in Arizona since 1988, and it will be released next year.
On the Meat Puppets' MySpace, they are listed as being located in Austin, although Cris still lives in Phoenix.
It appears the last time a Kirkwood was in town, it was Curt to perform a solo in-store performance at Zia Records behind his 2005 album, "Snow."
The Meat Puppets will head out on tour in September, after their Saturday night slot at the HoCo Festival.
We caught up with Curt on the phone from Los Angeles:
When you guys started, what was the Phoenix music scene like?
"Pretty much just like it is now. Who knows? That's what I've always said, who knows? Music scene, what? Tucson's got a better music scene, seems like, more cohesive always. You can say, 'These are Tucson bands.' Phoenix, I never know what's going on."
Back then, did you come down to Tucson much?
"Oh yeah, lots."
So this will be no big deal?
"We played at Club Congress a lot. I went to U of A for a year. I had a lot of influence from Tucson, just in lifestyle, really, that year. I kind of decided I wanted to be a musician while I was down there, didn't like going to school. That was an easier-going lifestyle. I think it's grown a lot since then. But the university area was just full of hippies, fraternity and sorority people, and it was a fun mix."
It actually doesn't sound like it's changed too much from what you're describing. What were you studying?
"I just went to college, nothing in particular."
You released the album "Rise to Your Knees" last year, your first album since 2000. The music industry has changed a lot. What do you make of it now?
"It's undefinable. They say it's changed a lot and it's a lot harder, but I see three times as many artists. . . . Crap shoot is not even a fair thing, it's like a Yeti hunting expedition. It's like looking for the Sasquatch."
If the band was just starting out now, how do think you'd fare? Seems like it's easier for independent artists to get exposure than back when you guys were starting out?
"Maybe, but it's a double-edged sword. MySpace: It's like everybody has a band and I just can't believe that all of those bands are any good. . . . I've always figured that if there is a Bigfoot, it will rise to the surface. You just have to get out and play."
— Kevin W. Smith
