Seattle-based THE MELVINS have been around for over twenty years, pounding out their special brand of heavy music without compromising their integrity and staying true to their roots. Guitarist King Buzzo and drummer Dale Crover are pioneers of the Seattle music scene paving the way for the likes of NIRVANA and the thousands of other grunge acts that followed. Unlike their commercial counterparts like NIRVANA and their brethren, THE MELVINS were never signed to a major label and never likely will. They are just too damn ugly and heavy for the mainstream, and that’s what underground rock is all about. Their longevity stems from their unique guitar-driven sound that mixes the anguish of hardcore with the doomy approach of TROUBLE, SAINT VITUS, and THE OBSSESSED (if you’ve never heard of THE MELVINS, that’s about the best I can describe them in one sentence). Buzzo and Crover are the core members of the band, with the bass player slot being filled my various musicians who are up to the task of playing in one of the sweatiest and dirtiest bands in Rock. In 1998, Buzzo and Crover recruited Kevin Rutmanis, bass player for THE MINNEAPOLIS COWS. THE MELVINS consider this current incarnation to be the definitive line-up. The group also wished to celebrate the live MELVINS experience by releasing a home video. Thus, the band teamed with Music Video Distributors to unleash MELVINS LIVE –SALAD OF A THOUSAND DELIGHTS onto the concert-hungry masses.

The main concert portion of MELVINS LIVE – SALAD OF A THOUSAND DELIGHTS was originally filmed on May 16, 1991 at the North Shore Surf Club Hall in Olympia, Washington. During this balls-to-the wall performance, THE MELVINS storm through 11 of their heaviest offerings from their then-10 year career (including Antioxidote, Zodiac, Euthanasia, Anaconda, Hog Leg, Boris, Wispy, and If I Had an Exorcism), much to the delight of the stage-diving daredevils in attendance. THE MELVINS were truly at their creative and physical peak at this point in their careers. If you don’t believe me, just check out the massive doom riffing of King Buzzo and the thunderous drum work of Dale Crover, who provides most of the vocal work for the group here as well. Besides the enormously difficult task of delivering complex drum arrangements and smooth-to-harsh vocal attack, Crover also acts as a frontman, provoking the moshing audience and generally whipping the crowd up into an all-out frenzy. The energy generated by the band and audience is contagious prompting even the most hardened rock haters to tap their their toes or bang their heads in appreciation of THE MELVINS live.

Therein lies the problem with MELVINS LIVE – SALAD OF A THOUSAND DELIGHTS disc. Though the energetic performance and audience participation are second to none, the entire concert is captured on video from a single hand held camera. Yes, this is true bootleg quality stuff we talking about here, with blurry, unfocused precision and color washed visuals. This performance was poorly shot on videotape in 1991, and nearly twelve years later on DVD, the print looks more faded than ever. The camera pans across the crowded dark stage of the North Shore Surf Club Hall, occasionally focusing on the guitar licks of King Buzzo. Perhaps this is what THE MELVINS intended; that by incorporating this poor quality presentation of the band in the pure, unadulterated, raw form is what THE MELVINS (and the music form in general) is all about. But with the modern capabilities of DVD, one has come to expect superior picture and sound quality in live performances, and this one certainly ain’t like that. Music Video Distributors remastered the analog tape into two separate audio options, Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0. Unfortunately, both soundtracks sound like absolute shit. The music here is presented flat and tinny, with layers of distortion. The guitars are simply all treble with no depth. There is absolutely no 5.1 imaging anywhere to be found in the performance. It sounds as if they merely broke up the analog signal and fed it through different speakers. Besides being a completely incoherent mix, the audio itself is extremely low. Cranking it up higher only serves to further heighten the distortion.

From the Bonus menu, you can access several extras, including an alternative fan-shot version of the song Antioxidate, from the same concert at the North Shore Surf Club Hall. Then there is 17 minutes worth of additional live bootleg footage, taped from their performance at the Off Ramp (also from their 1991 tour). The final extra is an early live video of THE MELVINS performing in the studio circa 1985. This early video shows the potential the band had to offer even then, and their reserved performances are quite different from the animated stage presence seen at North Shore Surf Club Hall in this video. Just check out the mellow Ginger Baker-styled approach from Dale Crover in 1985, compared to the Rock n Roll wild man he eventually became.

Great song writing and live performances from one of the underground’s best kept secrets. MELVINS LIVE – SALAD OF A THOUSAND DELIGHTS captures the legends at their grimy best, highlighted by a truly frenzied audience of Seattle surfer dudes. However, the non-existent production values really compromise the potential of this classic performance. When the early 1985 music video features better picture and sound quality than the main feature, you know something is wrong. Music Video Distributor’s audio remastering is a complete joke. I realize that not every concert performance on DVD can have perfect picture quality or DTS surround sound, but this soundtrack is not even as good as my old aunt’s 8-track tapes. If you are a hardcore THE MELVINS fan, though, you’ll probably want MELVINS LIVE – SALAD OF A THOUSAND DELIGHTS in your collection.

 THE MELVINS: SALAD OF A THOUSAND DELIGHTS is available from DVDEmpire.com

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