Review: Melvins Day 2

The performing of classic albums by artists has become such a commonplace occurrence that its almost expected, if not demanded of an artist. But tonight’s Melvins show is low on nostalgia, and free of the artistic and commercial cynicism with which some bands approach their old records. A show like this can never be nostalgia free – everyone is transported back to their first encounter with an album, who they were, where they were, and what a record means to them. But throughout their 30 years of existence, the Melvins have consistently refined their sound, and their approach to playing tonight’s pair of fan favourites, Bullhead and Stoner Witch, is to reinterpret much of that material, rather than purely recreating the recordings, meaning these twenty year old songs sound modern and contemporary, placing the band light years ahead in complexity and creativity of their peers, both old and new.

Bullhead, bizarrely, was one of the first compact discs that I ever bought in 1991, and whilst that format inevitably lacked the deep tones of the vinyl edition, the clarity and space in their music opened up then for the first time.

They rattle through an exhilarating version of Its Shoved and a superbly twisted Zodiac that sees the band build layers of voices and drums, the addition of a second drummer in their current incarnation bringing much of the new energy to these old songs. The dark, heavy drone of Boris, with its unexpected, quieter but more menacing reprise, reveals how skilled they are at building atmosphere and tension, taking the audience by surprise as they end the first set.

After taking a break, the second half of the show displays more of their sense of control, and their lack of fear of those quiet moments that counter balance the moments of aural rage. They begin with Lividity, the closing track on Stoner Witch, which starts with just the constant tap of a cymbal and a slow but melodic bassline that builds in its intensity. After a few ironic shouts from the crowd, the audience falls in with the mood of the song and stays silent, rocking back and forth and Buzzo’s repeated wail of vengeance, “how does it feeeeel, redneck?”, echoes back at us in a great piece of sound design.

The faster, heavier songs like Queen, the ones that get their audience jumping around, actually tend to be shorter slabs of metal than you remember. The Melvins have always used their riffs economically but for maximum effect. Their songs aren’t improvised, extended jams - each song takes a turn when you don’t expect it, they come to a sudden halt with a juddering drum beat and then they often change tempo altogether. There can be seconds of silence and an increase in tension before release or even just dissipation.

Tonight, The Melvins turned around the familiarity that comes through playing well known material by injecting a jolt of adrenaline into these songs. Festsaal was a furnace of heat at smoke tonight, but ultimately, music this dark is life affirming (as highlighted by the band's own humour in-between songs), and its effect stays with you days later.

Review: Melvins Day 1

Ah, the year is so young and I already have a number 1 on my Best of concerts list. But to be honest I knew that already when I bought my ticket for last week's Melvins double date months ago. The minute I saw an add for the show I ordered tickets online and let me say I never do that. But this event was different and special. The mighty Melvins planned on playing 4 1/2 classic albums on two consecutive nights at Festsaal Kreuzberg. The list of records they wanted to play made me nearly cry. Lysol, Egnogg, Houdini, Bullhead, Stoner Witch. Unnecessary to say I'm a fan. A big one.

The Melvins for me, I guess, is this one band everyone has. They can do whatever they want I'll always love them. Whether they release strange noise records like Colossus Of Destiny or have a ridiculous vinyl distribution. Between all that is an unbelievable gem of timeless records and live performances.

Formed in the mid 80s, the Melvins tried from the beginning on to do their own little thing. Something between Metal and Punk. Someone would say Grunge (yikes). Members of Mudhoney and Cows played in the Melvins and even Kurt Cobain auditioned once. Over the years their sound becomes so recognizable, a guitar riff, the pounding bass or the power of Dale Crover's drumming. Since 2006 the Melvins are a four piece, the current members are King Buzzo, who plays guitar and sings, Dale Crover, and the members of Stoner/Sludge band Big Business, Jared (ex-Karp) and Coady (ex-Murder City Devils), who play bass and drums respectively.

So, Tuesday was the first of two nights, where the Melvins performed 2 1/2 albums in its entirely. Lysol (1992), Eggnog (1991) and Houdini (1993) were scheduled for this glorious night. Festsaal Kreuzberg was sold out (obviously) to an old crowd with grey hair and holey band shirts. The doors opened at 8 and punctual at 9 accompanied by a Black Sabbath intro the Melvins entered the stage.

They started with the apocaplyptic Lysol record from 1992, which has become a blueprint for every Doom / Sludge band since. Reduced to the max, slow as hell and heavy as a bulldozer. Excuse my cliché description, but it is what it is, an unbelievable punch in the face. Just only the 11 minutes opener Hung Bunny or the Alice Cooper cover version manifests the state of this record. With the impressive double drum set in the middle and surrounded by guitar and bass amps, a lava of sound overran the audience. This beast was followed by the '91 recorded EP Eggnog. After an hour and standing on the balcony of a sold out Festsaal, we didn't have a gram of air to breathe. Fortunately the Melvins needed a break too. After 15 minutes they returned to play my first Melvins record.

Houdini was recorded in 1993 and was their first on a major label. There a people out there who are saying they became weak and too poppy, but all of their 3 Atlantic records are timeless and favorite records of mine. So, beat it. Don't get me wrong, Houdini is far from a mainstream album. With the success of Nirvana (Kurt Cobain plays guitar on Sky Pup) and Grunge, Atlantic thought it was a good move to sign them. I for myself think Houdini, next to Stoner Witch, is about the closest record to getting a representative Melvins album. It captures strikingly the band's major characteristics, like their undestroyable power, vision and weirdness. Every song on it is a hit and I sang every line and played every riff on my invisible guitar this evening. Certainly everyone waited for Honey Bucket, their big video hit (?) and the mosh pit was brutal, but totally worth it. They left, one after another with a noisy fade-away version of Spread Eagle Beagle and most of the audience knew they would return the following day to celebrate their favorite band.