Release and reception
It was the first single in the Sub Pop Singles Club and was limited to 1,000 numbered copies. A Sub Pop invoice indicates that 1200 sleeves were made, the other 200 having a red slash instead of a number.[6]
It was made single of the week in Sounds by John Robb, which was the first mention of the band in the UK press.[7][8]
The single was reviewed in the 2 December 1988 issue of CMJ, in which it stated "Nowhere else are you gonna hear such a teeth-rattling Seattle sludgemeister demolition job. Nirvana mixes things up good and choppy, including all the ingredients for primal rock greatness".[9]
In a 1989 review for British music magazine Melody Maker, Everett True wrote, "Nirvana are beauty incarnate. A relentless two-chord garage beat which lays down some serious foundations for a sheer monster of a guitar to howl over. The volume control ain't been built yet which can do justice to this three-piece!" True also made "Love Buzz" joint-US Single of the Week.[10] True also described Nirvana's "Love Buzz" single as a "Limited edition of 1,000; love songs for the psychotically disturbed".[11]
A slightly different mix of the song would also appear on Nirvana's debut album, Bleach. This version is missing a 10-second sound collage introduction put together by Kurt Cobain. "Love Buzz" was later released on Nirvana's Blew EP in the UK in December 1989. This was the song's first release in the UK after being substituted by "Big Cheese" on the British release of Bleach.[12][13]
Live versions
A live performance in Olympia, Washington from 1990, which was drummer Dave Grohl's first live concert with Nirvana,[14] was released on the DVD of the Nirvana rarities boxset With the Lights Out in 2004.
A live performance from October 19, 1991, at Trees in Dallas, Texas, can be seen on Nirvana's 1994 home video Live! Tonight! Sold Out!! in which frontman Kurt Cobain got into a fight with a bouncer.[15][16] On Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!, after the fight is stopped, the second half of the song is shown from a concert which took place on November 25, 1991, at the Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
A live performance from October 31, 1991 at the Paramount Theatre, Seattle, Washington, was released on the Live at the Paramount DVD and Blu-ray, and on the 20th anniversary "Super Deluxe" box set of the Nevermind album in 2011.
Three live performances were released on the 30th anniversary "Super Deluxe" box set of the Nevermind album in 2021. These were from November 25, 1991, at the Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands, February 1, 1992, at the Palace, Melbourne, Australia, and February 19, 1992, at the Nakano Sunplaza, Tokyo, Japan.[17]
A live performance from August 30, 1992 at the Reading Festival, Reading, England was released on the DVD Live at Reading in 2009, but was cut from the CD version.
