Melvins Rock Granada Theater
It was a stormy Wednesday night in Texas as I approached the Historic Granada Theater to catch another Melvins show! I have been waiting for the Melvins to return to town with more special guests. These guys always put on a phenomenal show and always have some incredible artists with them to help kick things off. Upon entering the venue, you could see fans lined up at the merch booths, trying to get their memorabilia before the show started. As you walked farther into the forum into the main area, fans piled into the front of the stage and anywhere else that had some free space for them to stand during the show to experience the greatness that was about to happen.
As it was time for the opener to get things kicked off, more fans had piled in, filling spots on the floor from the front to the back of the theater. Suddenly, two guys walked out in slacks, dress shirts, and short ties. One grabbed a guitar, and the other sat on his throne behind one of the three drum kits on the stage. Suddenly, singer Clinton Jacobs walked up the stage with his guitar in his hands and said in a strange and high-pitched voice, Hello everybody, we are Mr.Phlyzzz (pronounced Flyzzz) from Chicago, Illinois, and we just want to be friends with you and gave a crazy Ha. From there, the sensational drummer Danny Sein began raining down thunderous blows on the drums, and they jumped off into their first song of the night. Only these two guys were playing in the band, but they had so much energy and a chaotic storm of riffs that it filled the theater. These guys had so much energy between the drummer rocking and moving all over as he struck the drum kit to the singer running and flying all over the stage with his guitar in between singing the lyrics of the songs. It was an incredible onslaught of your senses, and you could not wait to see what they did next. The singer would talk to the fans between songs with a crazy high-pitched voice and then hit them with a deep, low, rumbly one when he would sing certain parts of the songs, showing his incredible vocal range. At one point during the set, the singer-guitarist entered the crowd and played some guitar in the pit. Towards the end of their set, the Melvins and Boris drummers came out onto the stage, and all played a song together with three drummers all playing the same thing in sync. It was simply amazing to witness. The guys in this band are incredible performers who put on an intense and astonishing show from when they walked out on the stage until they walked off.
As it got close to the time for the Melvins to hit the stage, more fans poured into the venue and made their way to the front as close as possible. The lights go down, and the Melvins take the stage individually, grabbing their guitars and the drummer sitting behind his kit in the center. The crowd erupted with applause and cheer as they got set to kick their set off. Their walkout song Take on Me came on, and the bassist, Steven, walked up to the front of the stage and began exciting the crowd before they started their set. King Buzzo stepped up, and they jumped off into Ligature with the heaviness that only the Melvins could bring. I love the slow grunge sludge rock they produce with such heavy thunderous drum strikes, low grumbling bass notes, and catchy guitar riffs with the fans rocking and moving back and forth from the front of the stage to the back wall. A mosh pit broke out in front of the stage a little into their set. Bodies were flying all around, and the fans were smiling and having a great time enjoying the music and being in the moment. Every fan in the building was moving, dancing, and singing along to every song. Cheers and screams of joy are heard between songs and on some of the slower stuff. As they transitioned from one piece to the next, the crowd would erupt with screams and devil horns thrust to the sky toward the stage, showing the band how much they enjoy this assault on your senses with the heavy hits and gritty guitar riffs. The Melvins are some phenomenal showmen who love to interact with the fans and put on a show in the front of the stage within arm’s reach of them. Their regular drummer is not with them because of emergency surgery, so they have Coady Willis filling in for Dale. While Dale was missed not being up there on the stage with them, Coady did an excellent job thrashing on the drum kit and raining down heavy blows as they performed so many of their hit songs. King Buzzo and Steven would take turns running all over the stage and getting up close and personal with the fans as they played their set. It was incredible to see how tight this band is as they all played their parts of the songs while entertaining the fans and never missing a lick or chord as they put it all out there on the stage. The fans had such a great time, and they had them in their hands the entire time they played. They closed out their set with an incredible song titled Boris, and the crowd erupted as they kicked off into the music.
It is always such an incredible time when you witness the magic known as the Melvins and all the history of rock, punk, and grunge on the stage and their performance. They also constantly bring talented artists to provide an incredible experience at their shows. As they finished their set, I knew the fans wanted more and could have stayed there and listened to them play for several more hours. I am already looking forward to my next Melvins show and always have such an incredible time at their shows. I am always in awe of how great they are and how amazing they sound when they play live.
Words and Photos by Craig Youngblood
