Nirvana blew up the status quo of the rock world with a very basic, raw sound, without an overabundance of talent. There were many great guitar riffs, but no solos. But that's just it -- the solo was the dick-measuring contest of the late 1980s-early 1990s. To Nirvana, solos reflected the self-indulgent style that they were rebelling against. The glam metal bands had every hair perfectly placed and massive MTV production value, whereas Nirvana was just some guys playing garage rock.
I still like Guns N Roses better even though they were in their death-throes by 1992-1993.