Last week, Puddle of Mudd went viral for a heavily criticized cover of Nirvana’s “About a Girl.” Though Wes Scantlin’s SiriusXM performance of the song wasn’t the best, another video from 2005 has been gaining traction, proving the musician can nail the Nirvana classic.

In his 2020 performance, Wes Scantlin sounded like he was constantly trying to sing beyond his vocal range, straining as he attempted to hit Kurt Cobain’s high notes. Catatonic Youths picked up on the song, while Jared Dines made a popular reaction video to the bizarre footage.

Back in 2005, Puddle of Mudd performed at Harrah’s Hotel and Casino in Kansas City. A fan filmed Scantlin playing “About a Girl” in potato quality, though the sound is good enough to prove the Puddle of Mudd frontman has the ability to sing Nirvana.

The crowd loved the cover, giving Scantlin a huge ovation once he played the final chord in “About a Girl.” Perhaps it was performance rust, he recorded at SiriusXM early in the morning, or Scantlin just had a bad day, but this video provides a day-and-night comparison of how an “About a Girl” cover should sound, versus how it shouldn’t sound.

Watch Wes Scantlin perform a solid version of “About a Girl” below.

Top 30 Grunge Albums of All Time

More From 94.5 KATS