Last night, I read a show preview in the NYT for a Melvins show in NYC. And I thought,"Yeah! I gotta listen to more Melvins!" Sure, they've become a kind of semi-underground sensation, but they still rule. Once I saw them play outside in Olympia at one of those early festivals (Yo-yo-a-go-go?). It was a nice sunny day, but when the Melvins started playing, I shit you not, within 5 minutes clouds rolled in and the day got dark. They used to play shows in Seattle and Tacoma when they first formed, and the crowd would heckle them with shouts of "play faster!" -- it was, after all, the heat of the early hardcore movement when speed ruled -- and Buzz and the guys would just laugh and slow it down even more. Meg told me last night that they played the final shows at the Velvet Elvis, the all-ages club she ran in Seattle during the Teen Dance Ordinance days, when all-ages shows were nearly impossible to put on. Yeah Meg!
After reading the review, I grabbed some records, and put on Ozma. I then tortured Meg by repeatedly saying in my best Buzzo voice, "You disgrace meeeeeeeah!" Then I started singing it to Bruce the cat. If you want to hear Buzz sing "You disgrace meeeeeaaaahhhh" check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLfdUYraQnI. Go to 1:14 if you're in a hurry, but if you're not, I recommend googling "Melvins Ozma lyrics" and checking them all out. I have all of their early stuff, including their early singles and comp tracks, and wacky flexi-disc (blue and green). But I don't really have much of their recent stuff.
Is it possible to do a poll on these things? Maybe just an informal one? Here's the deal: my friends' son Wyatt (well, my pal too) has really gotten into music in the last couple years, and is starting to amass a collection of vinyl. I take him to the record store (we used to go weekly to Eastside, but after it closed, we go to Revolver every two weeks or so), and try to influence him away from the Grateful Dead and Pink Floyd and toward the punk. I continue to ask him if Radio Birdman is still in his top ten bands of all time, it usually is, a good sign. He digs Sabbath too. Here is the crux of the matter: Do I turn Wyatt on to the Melvins? Will it drive his dad nuts? Must rock 'n' roll triumph over all?
You must! It is the responsibility of every MELVINS fan to enlighten those who are in the dark. Patti and I just had the pleasure of witnessing them perform Bullhead and Stoner Witch, in their entirety, up close and personal at the new and improved Crocodile Cafe.
ReplyDeleteWez, You have to listen to the newer material. It is my duty to tell you that they have truly risen to another level by melding themselves with Big Business. Coady and Jerad, together, have replaced that elusive bass player MELVINS have been going through over the years. There is a video series on the youtube of their show at Amoeba Records in LA. Very good!