Smells like teen ooze

>> The Melvins turn over a new Leif

by JOHNSON CUMMINS

 From their meagre beginnings in Aberdeen, Washington 17 years ago, the Melvins have always gone against the grain in every way. Initially taking hints from Filth-era Swans, San Francisco noise merchants Flipper and side two of Black Flag's infamous My War record, the Melvins created a cacophony of sound played at a torturously slow pace. Early on, this thick, oozing racket was aimed directly at the close-minded punkers who would heckle "play faster."
 Refusing to mellow with age, the Melvins have always enjoyed being the thorn in the side of their enemies (as well as their fans) and have managed to draw creatively from this antagonistic energy. When the band played in Montreal as the sweat act for Primus, the three-piece decided they would drown out the audience's chanting of "Primus, Primus" by blasting through a whole set with a squealing feedback drone. A live recording would later appear on the Prick record, gushingly entitled "Montreal."
 "We don't really plan stuff like that out, it just happens," explains singer/guitarist Buzz Osborne. "That was less of a sense of humour thing and more of a 'fuck you' kind of thing. It was just a bunch of dumb ass morons in the audience--I mean, it was a Primus audience, so what do you expect."
 On their last trilogy of CDs the Melvins' unique sense of humour again rears its ugly head, especially on the final installment The Crybaby. Things are sober enough with guests like Jesus Lizard's David Yow, Mike Patton and Hank Williams III, but the yucks really get going with the guest vocal appearance of junkie du jour, Leif Garrett. The song specifically picked out by the band for this ex-teen idol to sing was none other than Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit." What really makes it a kneeslapper is that they make no embellishments at all and choose to keep the teen anthem true to form. Garrett, apparently oblivious to the joke, actually sings with something resembling conviction.
 "We really liked the idea of him doing it, because he was a teen idol, and the junkie thing was just like an added bonus. Both Kurt and Leif were into the same drugs and idolized by millions so it was perfect. When I coupled the two ideas I just fell on the floor of my kitchen and laughed for hours."
 The Melvins have always prided themselves on smashing expectations to smithereens and stretching their boundaries as far as they can go. "I think we have really covered a lot of ground and that we have a wide variety of stuff but still most people are too stupid to grasp that," says Buzz. "Some people understand what we do and other people are just too dumb, and we rarely do anything to correct that. I would rather sit back and look back at their idiocy." :
 
 

With Get Hustle at Cabaret on Saturday, May 27, 9pm, $12.50+taxes