King Buzzo and Dale Crover, longstanding veterans of Washington sludge-mongers Melvins, return with referentially monikered new album, Pinkus Abortion Technician. The current line-up now features two bass players – just in case they lose one I guess. They are Steven Shane McDonald (Red Kross, OFF!) and Jeff Pinkus (Butthole Surfers); McDonald also contributes frantic punk headbanger ‘Embrace The Rub’.

There are nine tracks, half of them covers. “How does that work?”, you ask. “Who is the mathematically challenged moron writing this review?”, you may also well enquire. Let me explain.

‘Stop Moving To Florida’ couples the ‘70s exuberance of James Gang’s ‘Stop’ with the elephantine start-stop-repeat action of Butthole Surfers’ ‘Moving To Florida’. The Buttholes receive further exposure courtesy of a rendition of ‘Graveyard’ off their third album, Locust Abortion Technician.

The quartet of covers is completed with The Beatles’ ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’. As you might expect, it has been highly Melvinised by jettisoning any superfluous chaff, like melody and structure. If you listen very carefully, you can hear what may be the sound of a pair of granny-specs clattering frantically against the sides of a pine box – although maybe I imagined that.

Elsewhere, we get the low grinding grunge-blues of ‘Don’t Forget To Breathe’; the stoned bass ‘n’ banjo groove of ‘Flamboyant Duck’; plus more monolithic, ‘70s-inspired riff-wrangling on ‘Break Bread’. And always those twin basses – rumbling, harmonising, and at times ignoring each other altogether. All in all, Melvins devotees will have precious little to complain about.

Record label: Ipecac Recordings
Listen to: ‘Embrace The Rub’
Overall rating: 7/10