Rest of 2004 Tour Dates Cancelled

[blacksanta]

Well wishes to whoever is sick, get well soon.

[Bryan]

Did everybody see on the AT website the confirmation that Melvins will play the halloween show, but with a stand-in bassist? I guess that means some serious shit is really happening.

[DubEMC]

Whoa. Wonder who? I'm sure it won't be Klaus Fluoride!

[steve]

Welllll. you have all probably seen  this - http://alternativetentacles.com/news.php?sd=azKDYD0-k6g7Zxi9aCq - by now... but:

10/08/04: Melvins WILL Play the AT Halloween Show
The Melvins will still play with Jello on Halloween for ATs 25th anniversary show at Slims in San Francisco. They have cancelled all remaining tour dates for the rest of the year due to illness. They will use a stand in bassplayer at the Halloween show, but will definitely be playing.

So.... that's that.

[klump]

hmmmmm, dammit!
i know its not our business really, but cant they give us some details???

is it byebye to kevin?

[Andy]

It better not be goodbye to Kevin, he's definitely my favourite Melvins bassist. I don't think you need to feel too sorry for the Reverend, I mean they did play in the uk twice last year. It sucks for the people who were a bit more 'out of the way' for them than normal; Poland etc.

I wouldn't want to see the Melvins without Dale at this point.

They'll be back. Hopefully with hula dancing.

Sims from the Jesus Lizard would be awesome for the Halloween show. Maybe Dave Stone or Adam Jones could do it? Who knows.

[anaconda]

ya, David Scott Stone came to my mind as well.

[Reverend Ebeneezer]

don't let me down with stupid posts like this, reverend.  i thought you were above that....  

Au contraire. Look, I don't consider my post to be anything near 'stupid'. Perhaps a little based on raw emotion but, y'know whatever. My point is that the Melvins don't tour every year, especially not in England and fair enough, they were over twice last year but that's almost irrelevant at this point. Fact is they've been celebrating their 20th anniversary all over the US all year long and then on the cusp of having to leave the US, they pull the plug. I can't actually believe the cheek of them playing the hallowen show with a stand-in but yet they won't do the European tour.

nobody could replace dale, ever.  any melvins fan knows that dale IS the sound.  (the SOUND, mind you, not the songwriting.)  maybe...MAYBE..someone could learn his parts, but nobody has the same style, drumming isn't just technicality, it is mostly finesse and style.  dale is absolutely irreplaceable.  there is more personality in drumming than there is in any other instrument (aside from vocals).  they are the only acoustic instrument in the back bone of rock.  i don't care how much you finesse say, a keyboard, a digital output signal is a digital output signal.  the same goes, to a lesser degree, for electronic stringed instrument.  i am not saying there is no style involved in guitaring, but alot of the sound manipulation has to do with exactly that, sound manipulation by means of electronics and knowledge of sound behavior and whatnot, as opposed to purely physical manipulation, as is the case with drums.

Look, whilst I'm well aware of the fact that Dale's drumming's pretty unique, the fact remains that someone could simply have learned his parts from the records and not gone for such an improv-heavy show. As it stands, it seems as though Kevin's the problem here so all this talk of Dale's sudenly null-and-void. I know it's all about Buzz and Dale but honestly, I'd prefer to see the Melvins with a stand-in for Crover than to se no Melvins at all.

i understand that you are very upset, and i feel really bad for you in your situation.  i also understand why such an emotional state would make you say the things you had about dale, but i hope that when you come you your senses you will realize that crover is not replaceable (not as "the melvins").  i hope you get to see the melvins this year, no fan deserves to get let down that hard.

I hope to see them soon as well, but I just ain't so sure I shall. The anoying thing is that in this country's music press the gig's still being reported as on and it's just so infuriating that everywhere I look I'm reminded of the fact that my favourite band's bailed on my country only to play an even earlier show in the US again with a different bassist. It's just shitty. I hope Kevin gets his shit together and all that but I stand by my initial reaction - there was no need to cancel the whole tour just for Kevin.

[Joe Deutrom]

Did everybody see on the AT website the confirmation that Melvins will play the halloween show, but with a stand-in bassist? I guess that means some serious shit is really happening.

Well, I guess this basically tells us which one is ill.
If there is anyone here who is going to be at this show, you ought to respectfully ask Buzz or Dale about Kevin and the Melvins' future if you get the chance. Only if you want to of course. And you would be a gentleman if you would post any info.

[FartLips]

put that fuckin hammer down and get up on stage, lukin!

[Metalhead Cow]

Wow.  It sounds like we're going to have to say bye to Kevin.

[EGO the Living Planet]

I don't know Rev, I don't think it's fair to assume that just because they were able to come up with a suitable fill in for one gig (where the set list is probably going to be mostly, if not all, stuff from the Jello record and Dead Kennedys covers) that that fill in would also be available for a tour, especially one that involves going overseas. At a minimum you'd have an aweful lot of trouble gettin' that fill in the proper visas and such (assuming that you could even find one with a valid passport).

[Reverend Ebeneezer]

I'm guessing this wasn't a recent discovery, I mean it's not as if Kevin's just up-sticks and ditched the band is it? If the situation's become so severe that Buzz felt he needed kicking out of the band methinks this would've taken some time, so we have two options, either don't book a tour you can't fulfil or get in a new bassist. Frankly, the Melvins bass parts aren't insanely hard and there are few instances (aside from Botlicker material) where simply root noting Buzz's part wouldn't have done. I say again, if this is something that they've known about for a while, it's just bloody stupid to go right ahead and book tours which are going to leave their wallets lighter in bail-out fees to promoters/venues etc. I wish they'd never anounced this tour.

Personally I know little about the business of finding Visas and whatnot, but surely someone from the UK could have stepped in? I mean, do the Melvins not have any allies over here?

[Sydspunk]

Rev.... as a drummer and multi instrumentalist in a band, UNLESS they find someone that knows Melvins songs by heart, its going to take a good SOLID MONTH to get them up to speed to play a greuling 30+ dates tour. so they still may have had to cancel. especially since the tour had started.

as for the SF show, it will be punk music. i could fill in on bass, plus they have time to work with someone that Jello knows and works with.

It sucks that this happened. I'd like to know why, but i dont fucking care. just as long as they dont have cancer and die.

[participant]

if this is something that they've known about for a while, it's just bloody stupid to go right ahead and book tours which are going to leave their wallets lighter in bail-out fees to promoters/venues etc.

...Which probably points to something sudden.  Something somebody couldn't forestall.  There's that whole thing of being human again.