I agree with Finiti...Im afraid to say, but Nirvana, although they were good, they weren't the best..it was Kurts suicide that brought Nirvana where it is now....
Bands like 'Sound Garden and 'Perl Jam' were grungde, same as Nirvana, and i think were amazing, but they never got the recognition Nirvana did...
yes they were famous before Kurt's death, but they're no way as inspirational as people think they were. firstly, they haven't produced anywhere near enough material to truly fullfil they're potential or influence as widely as is generally believed, also, as much as people may shout me down, Nirvana we're actually kind of a copycat band. They used to hang around with the real inventors of grunge, a band many people forget about. Mudhoney. it was just that Nirvana became huge because they took Mudhoney's style and made it a more radio-friendly sound. im not saying thats a bad thing, im just saying that all in all, many of these people who say they were influenced by Nirvana often mean (without knowing it) that they were actually more influenced by bands like Mudhoney or Pearl Jam. its just like lils said, those bands didnt get as much recognition, mainly because Nirvana produced one of the biggest selling albums of all time (but by no means the best album of all time) and of course their lead singer was killed.
im not saying this to spite their legacy, im a big fan of Nirvana, but my point is that Nirvana were not as inspirational and ahead of their time as people think, and no matter what the fans say, we all know that Nirvana wouldnt be as massive if Kurt was still alive today. to put it simply, Nirvana are overrated. they were a very good band, but they've only produced two truly excellent albums, which isnt enough to make them a great band.