If It's Too Loud...

Photo via Facebook Dale Crover is the drummer for The Melvins, but is venturing out with an upcoming solo album. The first single for that album, "Tougher," is going to strongly appeal to fans of his other band. "Tougher" has the volume, sludgy guitars, and the discordance that his fans want, nay need. However, Crover isn't just mimicking the sound we expect from him. This new song has this odd 70's funk rock thing to it, almost like it's a bizarro song from Ram Jam or Rick Derringer, with some of the most killer bursts of noise rushing in out of seemingly nowhere. You can listen to "Tougher" below. Rat-A-Tat-Tat! , the upcoming album from Dale Crover, will be out January 15 on Joyful Noise Recordings. You can pre-order a copy of the album here . For more on Dale Crover, check out his website .

In a better world than ours, King Buzzo's latest acoustic album would have come out back in June, I would have gone to see him at Great Scott (RIP Great Scott), and we'd all be filled with the joy from both experiences. Instead, Gift of Sacrifice was delayed until August 14, and we're just hearing the third song off the album. "Delayed Clarity" is a six and a half minute song that goes about three minutes before there are any vocals. And (in a word that may never have been used with anything Melvins related before) it's beautiful. Granted, King Buzzo's vocals could never be described as beautiful, but once he starts singing, the menace you get in his voice complements the beauty of the music surprisingly well. And then the song ends in thirty seconds of electric squall to cleanse the palate of any Melvins fans listening. You can listen to "Delayed Clarity" below. Gift of Sacrifice , the upcoming album from King Buzzo with Trevor Dunn, will be...

Black Flag seem to be the band of the moment to cover. For some reason, they're just one of those bands that has never truly clicked for me, but when The Melvins and Mudhoney team up to cover them? That I can't resist. Calling the project "Mudvins," the two legendary Washington state bands released a cover of 1984's "My War." It's a mostly straightforward cover. It might be a step slower than Black Flag's original, but The Melvins and Mudhoney amp up the sludge and grunge and somehow make it heavier. Plus, anytime we can hear Mark Arm unleash a truly epic howl, we're on board. Every time. You can listen to The Melvins and Mudhoney's take on "My War" below. The song is available on a collaborative four track EP called White Lazy Boy on Amphetamine Reptile Records. As of this writing, the CDs are sold out, but you can check to see if it's been restocked here . For more on The Melvins, check out their website . For more on ...

For his second solo album, King Buzzo of The Melvins has enlisted Trevor Dunn (Mr. Bungle, Fantomas) to assist him and play bass. The first single off of the album, "Science in Modern America," is unlike any acoustic solo project you've ever heard before. Sure, it does follow the acoustic singer/songwriter template somewhat, but, and this will come as no surprise based on who is involved, "Science in Modern America" is weird. The best way I can describe this is if Alice Cooper sat in on Tom Morello's The Nightwatchman side project. But weirder. You can listen to "Science in Modern America" below. King Buzzo with Trevor Dunn's new album Gift of Sacrifice  will be out May 15 on Ipecac Recordings. You can pre-order the album here . For more on King Buzzo, check out The Melvins's website . Current tour dates are below the song. Gift Of Sacrifice (out 5/15/2020) by King Buzzo (with Trevor Dunn) May 13 Palm Springs, CA The Alibi May 14 Lon...

Photo via Facebook It's December 1st, so I guess it's ok to start posting about Christmas music, right? Amazon is dusting off their "Indie for the Holidays" playlist again this year, and this edition features a version of "Carol of the Bells" by noise rock legends The Melvins. As with most covers by The Melvins, "Carol of the Bells" is equal parts novelty and actual homage. Knowing The Melvins, this cover could have been a LOT heavier and thrashy, but they keep their pounding at a minimum to still be The Melvins but your aunt still might be able to tolerate it. You can listen to The Melvins' version of "Carol of the Bells" below. To check out the entire playlist for "Indie for the Holidays" (the 2016 version will be available on 12/2), head on over to Amazon . To find out what The Melvins are up to, check out their website .

Photo via Facebook The Melvins are always an interesting band. They tend to release anywhere from 1-3 albums per year, with varying results. Some are absolute classics, while others are... interesting. But their live shows are always a must see. I had missed them earlier this year on the Savage Imperial Death March Tour with Napalm Death and Melt Banana. Luckily for me, they swung through New England again and hit Providence. A Melvins show can be quite the challenge for a casual fan. The band open up with an instrumental intro with very minimal bass, drums, and occasional guitar that seemed to last roughly three hours. (Ok, it was probably ten minutes, but that's still a pretty long time.) The crowd was rewarded heavily with a fan favorite set that brushed the majority of the band's career. Despite having just released a new (and pretty great) album, Basses Loaded , The Melvins only played two songs off of it, "Hideous Woman" and "Take Me Out to the Ballga...

The Melvins have to be the most consistently prolific bands in music today. According to the story behind this latest release, back in 1999 the band added Mike Kunka of godheadSilo to the band as a second bassist. That lineup recorded together, but an album was never finished. The group decided to reconvene recently, and 17 years later are going to release Three Men and a Baby.  "Limited Teeth" is a fast, bludgeoning song. It's about as mainstream and coherent as The Melvins are going to get, especially with adding a second bassist. It feels like the best 90s grungy metal could ever have to offer, with killer fuzzy riffs and drums that could destroy a room live. Three Men and a Baby  is due out April 1 on Sub Pop. You can listen to "Limited Teeth" below. No word on if this line up will be included at all on The Melvins' upcoming tour with Napalm Death and Melt Banana, but head on over to their website for dates.

Things are slower than last week, but that doesn't say too much. A lot of interesting releases this week: Sallie Ford - Slap Back : Blog favorite Sallie Ford puts out her first solo album this week, and it's actually a lot more straightforward than I personally expected. The blues/soul stuff that we've gotten used to with her Sound Outside albums is muted somewhat in this album and replaced with a more straightforward rock attitude that has a lot of interesting wrinkles to it. On first listen, I like it but I expected something different. A lot of this, much like her last album, might be a grower, and I'm more than happy to give it an opportunity. Winterpills - Echolalia : I knew I wanted to listen to this one when I saw it on the new release schedule, but I couldn't quite figure out why I remembered this band until I realized that their previous album was on constant rotation for me for quite a while. Echolalia is a covers album, and it wouldn't be im...