Melvins

The Maggot (Ipecac)
by Joe Cardamone

Kings of garage metal! What can you say about the band that’s influenced everyone from Nirvana to Karp? I could say how many seconds it took once the CD began spinning before I wanted to destroy everything in my room except for my stereo. Or maybe that the sludging sounds of The Maggot helped me to focus on the agonizing pain welling up in my neck due to last week’s strep throat infection. I won’t even tell you which songs are the “good ones” because this is a complete album in the truest sense (and also because I lost the CD booklet the day after I got the CD), it must be listened to all the way through. If you can’t listen to it from beginning to end, then wait until you have time to. The Maggot is new metal the way it should be – hard, soft, and smart. Forget Limp Bizkit and Korn, kids, Melvins will make you feel like you’ve been listening to Janet Jackson all these years. As far as specifics, Buzz’s vocal ideas have definitely evolved and become more of a factor, while Dale Crover sounds like he plays drums with crowbars in his hands. Dale knows exactly what a rock drummer is supposed to do; beat the shit out of the drums. Don’t get me wrong, this is a guitar rock record and it does rock, but the Melvins continue to bring new elements to bend their sound. There are terrifyingly loud break-aways during which the Melvins display their anger and fury accompanied by the calms before the storm – the eerie moments when you feel like your backbone could break at any moment. If you’re a Melvins fan, buy this record. If you’re a rock fan, buy this record. If you think you like new school metal but really just like to dress up in hip hop clothing, buy this record and let Uncle Buzz teach you a thing or two. The Maggot is the first installment in a trilogy of full-lengths to be released a month apart on Mike Patton’s Ipecac records. In the one sheet I received with the CD it said that a myriad of special guests would be on the third installment of the trilogy entitled The Crybaby. Guest musicians are said to include members of Tool, David Yow, Leif Garrett, Mike Patton, and other talented outcasts. Stay tuned.
(PO Box 1197 Alameda, CA 94501)