Photograph by Michael Lavine
New York-based photographer Michael Lavine was on the frontlines as grunge music took hold in the late 1980s. His new book, Grunge, featuring a foreword from Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore, collects hundreds of photographs of iconic bands like Nirvana, Hole, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam and Dinosaur Jr. along with grainy, black-and-white portraits of punk fans in their element: on the street and in dingy rock clubs. We caught up with Lavine to get the inside story on some of his best-known photographs — including a never-before-seen snap of Kurt and Courtney from a notorious Sassy magazine shoot. Check them out, with Lavine’s commentary, here:

• Grunge: Mohawks, Flannel and Loud Guitars