90s Grunge Just Got A Very Strange, Very Fancy Makeover

Weird Music Wednesday: “Heart-Shaped Box” (Jazz version) by Ulysses Owens Jr. & Generation Y

Aug 19, 2026

If you told a room full of jazz purists a few years ago that a drummer as technically gifted as Ulysses Owens Jr. would eventually pivot to a project like Kind of Grunge, they might have checked your temperature. For years, Ulysses Owens Jr. has built his reputation on the kind of impeccable, conservatory-approved musicianship that makes other drummers weep with envy. Whether he is anchoring a tight jazz quartet or navigating complex compositions with the precision of a Swiss watch, his trajectory has been defined by a relentless commitment to musical sophistication. Yet, here we are, and frankly, it is a spectacular thing for this Gen Xer to experience. This album is a weird, wonderful, and undeniably bold pivot that manages to capture the spirit of the 90s Seattle sound without losing the intellectual rigor that defines the rest of his discography.

The origin story of Kind of Grunge is one of those happy accidents that only the internet can manufacture. It began when Owens Jr. walked into the Drumeo studios for a “For the First Time” challenge. Asked to tackle Nirvana’s “In Bloom” without having ever heard the original, he did what any seasoned jazz professional would do: he treated it like a spontaneous composition exercise. The resulting video went viral, racking up millions of views and proving that the rhythmic DNA of the Seattle grunge era and the improvisational spirit of jazz were closer cousins than anyone dared to admit.

That initial spark was so blindingly bright that it demanded a follow-up… Owens Jr. returned to the Musora studios, this time bringing his ensemble, Generation Y, to see if they could once again strike gold. Their improvised take on “Heart-Shaped Box” cemented the project’s identity. The viewership for these sessions wasn’t just high; it was a clear signal that audiences were hungry for this specific brand of creative collision.

That was the moment Musora founder Jared Falk realized that the real magic was in the nimble, high-wire act of the smaller Generation Y unit. The band essentially walked into the studio, hit “record,” and spent three days in a creative sprint. Aside from a few pre-planned tracks, they captured the entire album in real-time, essentially treating the recording process like a live discovery phase. It’s a bold move that keeps the “grunge” ethos of raw energy intact, even while the “jazz” side of the brain is busy dissecting the melody.

Side Note: To be fair, a grunge—jazz mashup is not exactly a new concept. Avant-garde jazz trio The Bad Plus had covered Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” on their sophomore album These Are The Vistas back in 2003 (also covering Blondie’s “Heart of Glass” on the same record). While the Ulysses Owens Jr. & Generation Y approach to these songs is arguably more straightforward and “listenable” in many ways, The Bad Plus version is definitely worth checking out.
https://music.apple.com/us/album/these-are-the-vistas/193535775

Despite the presence of other super-interesting renditions of grunge classics like Soundgarden’s “Spoonman” and STP’s “Interstate Love Song,” the absolute highlight of the record for me is still the O.G… Nirvana’s “Heart Shaped Box.” To call it a standout is an understatement. It is unusual because Owens Jr. manages to strip away the original’s sludge-drenched angst and replace it with a rhythmic playfulness (maybe even joy?) that is almost offensive given how heavy the song is supposed to be. This combo’s replacement of the original’s crushing wall of distortion with syncopated accents that feel like they are dancing on the edge of a cliff—is truly something to behold. It turns a song synonymous with misery into something almost fun, yet somehow, it retains the jagged edges of the source material. It is a baffling, precise, and utterly singular track that encapsulates exactly why this entire project exists: just to see if it could be done.