Steve Albini’s been involved in music one way or another for too long a time to properly count. He’s played with countless bands and recorded even more. And despite the fact that he’s publically stated that he’s a hired gun in the studio, the aural aesthetic that Albini’s able to produce is on par with any great engineer in recorded music’s illustrious history.

Probably best known for his work as Big Black, Albini has moved on sonically even as he maintains a general cohesion throughout his recorded catalog. But what’s most interesting to note is the fact that his earliest recordings, in a great many ways, served as an underpinning for what would go on in Seattle during the end of the ‘80s and into the following decade.

Including some hardcore tropes alongside the most intelligent of tempo shifts and deft – if not rather odd – progressions, Albini wound up being a heralded act unto himself earning a spot in Michael Azerrad’s Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground. This type of renown eventually resulted in Albini being the central figure in high end, underground recordings.

For most folks that grew up under the auspices of Gen X, though, the Chicagoan probably first become easily visible subsequent to recording Nirvana for its final album, In Utero. As would be the case in countless examples, the disc was panned by some critics for its sonic proclivities. But never mind that, Albini’s work that was going on concurrently in Shellac should make up for any perceived shortcomings – if there were any – as he was behind the boards.

By the time that Shellac first released an album, Nirvana and its manufactured cohort had already made a mark in the marketplace. What’s interesting to note about Shellac’s first album, At Action Park, are the never ending similarities between that Cobain fronted group and this first long player.

The tone of Albini’s guitar and that of Cobain’s obviously don’t have too much in common – nor do the approaches to songwriting. But musically, both Shellac and Nirvana employed more than a passing nod to punk and hardcore from the ‘80s. Even the opening crunch of Albini’s guitar on “My Black Ass” points to some lost breakdown from 1983. And while Nirvana wouldn’t exactly approximate that sound, there are more than a few passing similarities behind the drums as well.

Todd Trainer and Dave Grohl probably don’t have too much in common. But they both hit hard and are capable of moving through various pacings without even the slightest hint of dropping the beat. “Song of the Minerals” seems to come off, percussion wise, like Grohl attempting to workout a George Hurley (the Minutemen) impression. Albini’s growling on that same track is simultaneously able to recall Cobain to boot.

None of this was intentional. Albini’s too much of personality to cop some one else’s attitude. All of this, though, does point towards the early ‘90s as an explosive time for underground sounds. And yeah, it’s worth a big thank you to those punker forbearers.