Turns out it’s 1991. It had been 3 years since I started tape trading with some people out of my country, one of them being my pen pal Steve Dobbins aka Stevo from IMPETIGO. I remember the exact day when I got these 2 tapes from him full of demos and EPs. One of them was the oddly named band NIRVANA 2002’s “Disembodied Spirits” demo. OMFG! After the first 15 seconds of ‘Slumber’ I was hooked! I asked Stevo for more stuff from them and got back two more demos and a split with some other bands. Incredible! Formed back in the late 80s by Orvar Säfström (guitars / vocals) and Eric Qvick (drums) adding Lars Henriksson (bass) shortly after their second demo, I consider this band one of my all time favorites, that (sadly) never got to release an LP. They were one of the bands that shaped the now classic SweDeath sound. If you consider yourself a fan of Death Metal, you should know about NIRVANA 2002. Since releasing the “Truth & Beauty” rehearsal and the “Excursions In The 2002nd Dimension” back in 1989, both with a really raw production, they rapidly evolved into a massive Death Metal machine. Their “Disembodied Spirits” demo 90 and their Promo 91 got them great reviews from underground zines around the world and according to Orvar a lot of label interest. They also appeared in the now classic “Projections Of A Stained Mind” compilation by CBR. NIRVANA 2002 was quickly added to the elite of Swedish Death Metal bands erupting in the early 90s, ready to take on the underground international scene by storm! Everything was there. The sheer aggression, the tight drumming, the crushing yet catchy riffs and great vocals. Add to this insightful lyrics dealing with the metaphysical and parapsychology. There you go: instant classic! Despise being another band that recorded at the infamous Sunlight Studio, NIRVANA 2002 had their own style and development, which set them apart of the other handful of Death Metal bands back then in their native Sweden. This compilation of (almost) all their material, released by Relapse Records, has a great packaging / layout. There are 3 versions: digi CD and 2 vinyl versions in gatefold sleeve; 100 clear vinyl copies, that are not available to the public (?) and 500 black vinyl 180 gram copies. To sum it up, the tracklisting is: track 1 from “Projections Of A Stained Mind” compilation 1990, tracks 2-4 are from the “Disembodied Spirits” demo ’90 (2009 mix – clearer than the original mix), tracks 5-6 are taken from the “Promo ’91”, tracks 7-8 are the “Excursions In The 2002nd Dimension” demo ’89, then tracks 9-10 are from a 1990 rehearsal, track 11 is a 1991 rehearsal, track 12 is Live at Kafè 44, Jan 2007 and tracks 13-15 are the “Disembodied Spirits” demo ’90 (original mix). So basically, NIRVANA 2002’s “Recordings 89-91” is a must have for any respected Death Metal fan. www.myspace.com/disembodiedspirits, www.relapse.com