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.
The Brain Center at Whipples
Melvins Lyrics
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It's in my forced reaction
Doesn't one hand help me read now?
Doesn't one hand help the other one?
Put down the wild
Cooking like the face of banality
I've got it in my brain now
I've got it in my center
What are you talking about?
You started loud
So am I
Is it my woman?
Is it my head?
I hide up wing my motor
And hide up wing my hot goal
Melvins's song, The Brain Center at Whipples, deals with the dehumanization of the workforce by large corporations. The song's title is a reference to a short story by Isaac Asimov titled, "The Bicentennial Man", where a robot company, U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men Corp., gradually replaces its human workforce with robots. This theme is explored in the song's lyrics where the singer laments the loss of control over their own destiny to a faceless corporate entity, represented in the song by the "Brain Center" at Whipples.
The lyrics "Where is my fortune? It's in my forced reaction" highlights the idea that the workers are merely pawns, forced to react to the impulses and demands of the corporation. The reference to "one hand helping the other" suggests that the workers have no choice but to work together, to make the Corporation's goals their own. The next set of lyrics "Put down the wild, cooking like the face of banality" expresses the dull, repetitive nature of the work.
The final lines, "Is it my woman? Is it my head? I hide up wing my motor, and hide up wing my hot goal" seems to suggest that the singer is questioning the importance of their personal life and ambitions in the face of the overwhelming power of the Corporation.
Line by Line Meaning
Where is my fortune?
Where is my wealth or success?
It's in my forced reaction
It's in my ability to respond according to external pressure
Doesn't one hand help me read now?
Doesn't each hand have a specific function in helping me read?
Doesn't one hand help the other one?
Don't both hands work together to perform tasks?
Put down the wild
Calm down or stop being so crazy
Cooking like the face of banality
Performing ordinary, dull actions like cooking
I've got it in my brain now
I understand it intellectually
I've got it in my center
I understand it emotionally or intuitively
What are you talking about?
What is the subject of your conversation?
You started loud
You began speaking forcefully or assertively
So am I
I am also speaking in a loud or assertive manner
Is it my woman?
Is it my significant other?
Is it my head?
Is it just in my imagination or mind?
I hide up wing my motor
I seek refuge within my physical abilities or talents
And hide up wing my hot goal
And also within my passionate desires or goals
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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