Cool Hunting

The Melvins have been around forever. I mean, Kurt Cobain tried out to be their bassist and supposedly got so nervous he forgot all the songs. Heavily influenced (no pun intended) by Black Flag and Black Sabbath, the Melvins’ experimentally-tinged amalgam of early hardcore and stoner sludge has in turn inspired some of the most successful and revered bands on the heavier end of the spectrum—Nirvana, Tool, Boris, to name just a few.

After 20 years building an unequalled discography and a fanatical cult following, the Melvins teamed up with members of Northwest drone upstarts Big Business for 2006’s release (A) Senile Animal. A terse, rugged, muscular effort, (A) Senile Animal moves from Paranoid-esque riff-heavy jams to crushing fuzzed-out stoner dirges. Some critics dismiss bands of this ilk, but (A) Senile Animal is everything I could want in a record—completely intense but incredibly sophisticated.

So why are we so stoked on a two-year old record? Because our pals at hardcore / metal / noise stalwarts Hydra Head sent us over an incredible Melvins box set consisting of a 4XLP version of (A) Senile Animal, a custom Melvins comic book entitled "Your Disease Spread Quick" by Tom Neely and a badass belt buckle. The LP packaging looks amazing and the vinyl is colored and etched on one side.

Even though the Melvins 4xLP is not available from retailers until 21 October, we are giving our set away to one lucky CH reader for free. Just follow the contact link at the bottom of the page, select "Melvins Giveaway" from the drop-down menu and tell us what your favorite Melvin song is and why by Wednesday, 15 October 2008, 11:59 pm EST. We’ll pick our favorite response and get it out to you pronto.