Shredification: Washington State of Affairs
June 14, 2010
Music writers are suckers for geography. Tying up groups of bands in neat little localized bows makes for easy copy, with the added benefit that once you pigeonhole a bunch of quasi-related groups — the “Seattle Sound,” say — you have that touchstone to deploy next time you feel like phoning in some cheap comparisons.
Seattle bands are the order of the day today, though the comparisons will hopefully be hewn from finer stuff. Specifically, two Seattle bands that have recently released new records: The Melvins, and Black Breath.
Black Breath – “Children of the Horn”
The traditional route here would be to slap these two groups down side by side and make a bunch of comparisons — to bands they both sound like, or to the way the weather in Seattle (rainy, natch) informs their interpollinated styles. In this case, that’s totally impossible. Though they both fall under the general aegis of metal, and play music that is down-tuned, loud, and heavy, the similarities end there. When you put Black Breath and The Melvins side-by-side, all you see is contrasts.
For one thing, The Melvins are roughly six times older. Formed in the early 80′s, the band is now something of a hard rock institution, weathering a generation of music and still out-rocking many of the bands they influenced. A pre-Nirvana Kurt Cobain famously auditioned on guitar, but botched it — a bad case of nerves made him temporarily forget all the songs. Though generally a trio, in 2006 the band absorbed both members of the cult metal duo Big Business, taking the stage with two drummers (right- and left-handed) and a bolstered vocal attack.
Though the music is still built around muscular, inventive drumming and guitarist Buzz Osbourne’s bottom-heavy riffs, the band’s maturation has seen them become increasingly digressive. More and more, they flex their musical muscle during wild excursions into the bizarre and sometimes borderline self-indulgent outer reaches. New release The Bride Screamed Murder features some plutonium-heavy sections that recall the band’s classic material, along with the ever-listenable percussion prowess of drummers Dale Crover and Jared Coady, but it’s hard to wrap your mind around the drill sergeant chanting in “The Water Glass,” the squeaky balloon solo at the end of “Hospital Up,” or the impressionistic “My Generation” cover.
Related Posts:
Totimoshi @ Annie’s Social Club, Saturday
June 26, 2009
Enigmatic but electrifying, Alameda’s Totimoshi turned heads with 2006′s Ladron (Crucial Blast/Volcom). Having released 2008′s Milagrosa (Volcom), the trio teeter on the brink of something bigger, ready to take their idiosyncrasies to the top along with a catalogue full of grungy, jagged stoner rock. Co-conspirators in The Melvins and Helmet are important influences and tourmates, with Melvins producer Toshi Kasai (now of Big Business) presiding over the new record along with Helmet frontman Page Hamilton.
The tunes are an affecting mix of power and subtly, counterposing guitarist Antonio Aguilar’s skittering licks and declamatory vocals against the thrumming bass and booming drums of Meg Castellanos and Chris Fuggit. Employing both crackling fuzz and enveloping warmth, the band is equally adept at stomping riffs and sly interludes, always delivering an entertaining show, particularly during Aguilar’s energetic solos. Annie’s small confines will provide an intimate look at a promising band (with only one show scheduled this summer), so sidle up to the rock while you still can.
w/ Dusted Angel, Black Skies (NC), Hashishians
9pm, $8
Annie’s Social Club
