Steve Albini, the legendary record producer has died at the age of 61 – he was best known for fronting underground rock acts Shellac and Big Black, as well as for engineering albums for Pixies, Nirvana, Jimmy Page, PJ Harvey, and many more. Albini died of a heart attack at his recording studio, the Electronic Audio, in Chicago.
He was a one of kind person in the independent rock music scene – Albini frequently criticized the music industry’s exploitative practices as he famously refused to take royalties from the recordings as detailed in his landmark 1993 essay ‘The Problem with Music’.
He produced for other artists, known for his forward-thinking productions, unapologetic irreverence, and sense of humour. Speaking in 2018, Albini said he had worked on more than 2,000 albums, mostly for underground or indie bands – he was most well known for being the producer of major albums such as Nirvana’s final studio record ‘In Utero,‘ Pixies’ debut ‘Surfer Rosa,’ and PJ Harvey’s ‘Rid of Me.’