Few figures had as far of a reach in independent music as Steve Albini, who died at 61. As a musician, Albini influenced generations with his formative post-punk band Big Black and his ongoing band Shellac (which is releasing a new album next Friday). In the studio, he recorded and engineered hundreds of albums, from influential rock records like Nirvana’s In Utero and PJ Harvey’s Rid of Me to contemporary albums like Joanna Newsom’s Ys and Cloud Nothings’ Attack on Memory. Many admired Albini’s staunch independence in the music industry. On May 9, following news of Albini’s death, Harvey tweeted that “working with him changed the course of my life.†Pixies, who recorded their 1988 album Surfer Rosa with Albini, honored him on social media. Cloud Nothings’ Dylan Baldi called Albini “a genuine, singular, principled person†in a tweet.
Many more indie bands and artists who looked up to Albini posted tributes on May 8, including Ratboys, Chat Pile, and Speedy Ortiz’s Sadie Dupuis, who said Albini “changed my worldview.†A number of independent record labels also honored Albini, including Don Giovanni Records, which called him “the last person in the music industry who actually mattered while maintaining a fierce code of ethics around their work.†And the guitarist Bill MacKay, who recorded at his studio Electrical Audio, remembered sharing “one unforgettable & hilarious Ramen dinner†with Albini. Below, more tributes to Albini.
This post has been updated.