The band Dave Grohl called the “kings” of bratty punk
To grunge fans and rock enthusiasts, Dave Grohl is an undisputed king. After finding his start in the hardcore scene, Grohl met Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic at a gig and eventually landed his place in Nirvana. Pioneering and popularising grunge, they would go on to become one of the most beloved and influential bands of all time, used as a reference point by budding musicians for years to come.
After contributing to the mammoth successes of Nevermind and In Utero, Grohl’s time with Nirvana ended with the frontman’s passing in 1994. The drummer struggled to find his way back into music initially, playing brief stints with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Pearl Jam before eventually landing on Foo Fighters.
Almost three decades later, what began as a temporarily named solo project has since expanded into one of the most formidable forces in the rock sphere. The band have earned worldwide renown and even a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction through all-time great hits like ‘Everlong’, and Grohl has secured his place in music history.
While Grohl found worldwide success through the polished rock stylings of Foo Fighters and the more sludgy grunge of Nirvana, one of the latter band’s biggest influences would, unfortunately, escape similar commercial success. Grohl and Cobain both openly shared their love for Melvins, a fellow Washington-born grunge band whom the drummer once crowned the “kings of that whole bratty nature of punk.”
A driving force behind rock music’s increasing tendency towards grunge, the Melvins found more popularity through the work of those they inspired than they did on their own accord. Their commercial success was minimal, particularly compared to the likes of Nirvana, but that never stopped their rock peers from sharing their admiration for the band’s sludgy sound.
Grohl, it seems, was particularly enthused by the Melvins’ changeability, their refusal to be contained or to play into audience expectations. “The Melvins started off as this fast, hardcore punk rock band,” he once explained during a conversation with Melody Maker, “but then turned into this sludgy Black Sabbath metal militia that they knew everyone would hate.”
Disregarding the incoming hatred from the hardcore fanbase they had honed, Melvins resolved to slow down their playing. “They started playing as slow as they could because everyone screamed for them to play faster,” he recalled, “Just to piss everyone off. They were the kings of that whole bratty nature of punk.”
That bratty punk attitude may have kept them from the commercial success of their grunge peers, but it seems that the Melvins were unconcerned with popular appeal. Their legacy lives on both through their own legendary status and through the future rock kings they inspired.
