The Foo Fighters are a little more than a month away from releasing a new album and whenever they do I always think of Dave Grohl's other band. I ask myself "Are the Foo Fighters a better band than Nirvana?". And the answer is always yes. Now I'm not saying the Foo Fighters are a more influential band, I'm just saying they are better.
I think the reason I like the Foo Fighters more is because their music has always seemed timeless to me. What I mean is that I think their music would be popular in any era of rock history. Nirvana, on the other hand, represents an era of history. And the only reason Nirvana represents Seattle grunge music is because Kurt Cobain died. Up until that point Pearl Jam was the biggest, most important grunge band on the planet. After Cobain committed suicide the rock critics finally had their tragic figure along the lines of Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin or Jim Morrison (Morrison especially). Had he not died, I believe Nirvana would have been considered a second-tier grunge band like Alice in Chains or Soundgarden.
If I'm feeling nostalgic about the early 90's (not something that happens too often) I'd play a Nirvana album (or more likely Pearl Jam). However, whenever I want to rock out, I'd always choose the Foo Fighters (of the two) and am never disappointed.
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i'm sorry, but this is way off, on a couple different levels.
first, nirvana WAS considered the definitive grunge band before cobain's death. certainly his death added significantly to their lore. but "nevermind" was a truly iconic album at the time of its release, in a way that "ten" never came close to. the only other album of the era that even approaches it on that front is dr. dre's "the chronic".
second, you're assessment of "timelessness" is fair: to put it bluntly, the foo fighters could have been a moderately successful, marginally acclaimed band during any decade. but in no decade would they have been more than that. foo are a solid rock band, consistently. nirvana was more ambitious. and, while more hit and miss, was at time brilliant. nevermind and unplugged are "timeless" records in the sense that most people use that word, and way more so that anything by the foo.
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