[Concert Review] Melvins (2017)

(The) Melvins have the musicianship and showmanship that could have made them the biggest band in the world. If they cared. They would have been bigger than Nirvana if they removed anything weird about their slightly inaccessible brand of heavy rock. They have the relentless work ethic to compete with The Beatles. Would compromising their sound be worth the money and fame? Would they still be the same Melvins? Or would they fade from relevance?

Rating: ★★★★★ [5/5]

Let’s temporarily compromise this philosophical discussion on autonomy to cover the music.

Spotlight
The opening act started off with an instrumentally dynamic song before tapering off. The sort of atmospheric rock they play, post-rock or shoegaze, is entirely about building up to the crescendo. Better bands like Sigur Rós and Mogwai write their songs like they’re skiers: you ride the lift up along the sides of mountains, then after reaching the apex, you enjoy an exciting ride down. By comparison, Spotlight brought you up a small practice slope.
Rating: ★★☆☆☆ [2/5]

Eagles of Death Metal
The headlining act were equally tame. At least they did have a pulse! The sort of mild punk rock meets garage rock they play isn’t so much about the musicianship. Better bands like The Ramones and Guitar Wolf can disregard complex melodies in favor of exciting showmanship so they must impress with a visceral live performance. By comparison, Eagles… brought just enough energy to appease the parts of the crowd willing to dance to anything.
Rating: ★★★☆☆ [3/5]

Melvins
I’ve seen The Melvins now four times and each performance was vastly different from the others. Each was astounding, unique, and creative. Their 2014 headlining performance was so engrossing and raw that I barely took any photos. Their 2015 Bumbershoot featured two drummers and was so mind-numbing I had to sit down to process what just hit me. Their 2016 tour, with Melt-Banana and Napalm Death, was noisier than the first and not as heavy as the second.

Their 2017 show was the most radio-friendly the Melvins could probably be without compromising their sound. Not just because of their Beatles cover. Their whole sound was much more streamlined, less noisy, and more vigorous than normal. Almost as though they adapted their setlist to reflect the party rock headliner’s sound. They also completely showed up the headliner by outdoing them in every regard. They were more dynamic on stage and with their musical selection.

This performance also provided a good lesson on compromise.

You can adapt to various situations while still not completely sacrificing your autonomy. If you were to work with someone with arguably more money, success, or fame than you, there’d probably be a temptation to completely change yourself to appease them. My thought is you can put on the uniform, clean yourself up, while still not having to cut off your hair. You’ll eventually find an autonomous middle ground that works well for both parties.

The Melvins fortunately didn’t have to put on fancy uniforms.

They just played more danceable music than normal.

Melvins dancing around

My big goal is writing. My most important goal is writing "The Story." All other goals should work toward that central goal. My proudest moment is the most recent time I overcame some fear, which should have been today. I'm a better zombie than I was yesterday. I'm not better than you and you're not better than me. Let's strive to be better every day.