In the early days of their career their dark, heavy, oppressively slow sound made them innovators of genres like sludge, grunge, and doom metal. The Melvins' music is influenced by Flipper, Black Flag's My War-era hardcore punk and Black Sabbath-style heavy metal, but their idiosyncratic approach, bizarre sense of humor, and experimentation make neat categorization difficult. Singer/guitarist Buzz Osborne (aka "King Buzzo") and drummer Dale Crover are constant members while several bass guitarists have cycled through the group. The Melvins usually performed as a trio until 2006 when two members of Big Business became permanent members of the band.
The band was named after a grocery clerk at the Thriftway in Montesano, Washington where Osborne was employed. Melvin was the most-hated fellow employee and the band felt it to be an appropriate name. Like SF noisenik predecessors Flipper, their love of slow tempos and sludgy sound were a strong influence on grunge music, especially Nirvana and many other bands from Seattle. Their protegés, however, tended to use more conventional musical structures with this sound.
Though the group has received mostly positive critical notice, Crover's drumming has been especially praised; Patrick Kennedy describes his work as "astonishing, powerful, and daring."
While never finding and most likely never even seeking great mainstream success, the Melvins maintain an impressive schedule of new albums and tours, including a collaboration with Fantômas in The Fantômas Melvins Big Band, two releases with former Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra, and in 2004 the Melvins collaborated with ambient artist Lustmord for Pigs of the Roman Empire. In appreciation of their devoted fans, the Melvins have released various collectables through the years that have included two-headed dolls, an eight-track tape, and a plastic fetus in a jar.
Fellow Aberdeen resident Kurt Cobain (a good friend of Crover) was a huge Melvins fan and helped them transport their equipment to a few shows. Cobain also auditioned to join the band on bass, but he didn't make it, reportedly because he was so nervous that he forgot all the songs. Cobain maintained his relation with the band. Later he produced and played on some songs (guitar on "Sky Pup", percussion on "Spread Eagle Beagle") on the band's major label debut, Houdini. Dale Crover is also attributed as playing on the Nirvana debut album, Bleach, and on "Incesticide". In addition, Dave Grohl (ex-drummer for Nirvana) co-wrote and played drums for Isabella on Buzzo's Melvins solo album, King Buzzo.
Evil New War God
Melvins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My monkey boiling me at night
Hole in the heaven and the world
Not likely, not slowly
You and me gotta look dead
The monkey king is mating
Not slowly, not suddenly
What good is a dead beast?
Unleashed you left it following
Hole in the heaven in the world
Not suddenly, not likely
Plebeian, and waiting the harbinger invisible
Last in line, and boring like its heavenly
Right now!
Tired lung, the father what you said to me
My baby
Last in line, and waiting like its heavenly
You're blinded, right now!
The lyrics of "Evil New War God" by Melvins are cryptic and open to interpretation. At the outset, the song talks about a deceptive bird and a monkey that is boiling someone at night. The reference to a hole in the heaven and the world indicates some kind of flaw or imperfection. The repetition of "not likely, not slowly" and "not suddenly, not likely" suggests a state of uncertainty or ambivalence in the singer's mind. The line "you and me gotta look dead" could imply a need for the singer and the listener to fake their own deaths in order to escape some danger or threat. The reference to a monkey king mating with a boy's brain adds to the disturbing imagery of the song.
The middle section of the song talks about the uselessness of a dead beast, as well as the consequences of unleashing it. This could be a metaphor for some kind of violence or aggression that could spiral out of control. The line "plebeian, and waiting the harbinger invisible" is obscure, but could refer to a sense of powerlessness in the face of an invisible enemy. The singer is tired and wants to hear from their father and their baby. The song ends with a repetition of the line "last in line, and waiting like its heavenly", which again indicates a sense of waiting and anticipation.
Line by Line Meaning
Listen to the bird its a lie
Don't trust everything you hear or see because appearances can be deceiving
My monkey boiling me at night
My worries and anxieties are keeping me up at night like a boiling pot of water
Hole in the heaven and the world
A sense of emptiness and lack of purpose in life
Not likely, not slowly
Things will not happen gradually or predictably
You and me gotta look dead
We have to be emotionless and unresponsive to survive in a harsh world
The monkey king is mating
The source of my worries and fears is growing and multiplying
Boy to the brain in the world
We are all vulnerable and naive in this world
Not slowly, not suddenly
Things will change abruptly and unexpectedly
What good is a dead beast?
What's the point of having something that's useless or dead?
Unleashed you left it following
Once you've let something loose, you can't control where it goes or what it does
Hole in the heaven in the world
A sense of emptiness and lack of purpose in life
Not suddenly, not likely
Things will not happen abruptly or predictably
Plebeian, and waiting the harbinger invisible
We are ordinary people waiting for the invisible messenger of fate
Last in line, and boring like its heavenly
We are at the end of the line and life feels dull and monotonous
Right now!
Urgency and immediacy are necessary to succeed
Tired lung, the father what you said to me, My baby
We are exhausted and burdened by our obligations and responsibilities
You're blinded, right now!
You are unable to see or understand the truth because of your current mindset
Contributed by Alexander M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.