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an Interview with Dale Crover
by Matt Smith
The Melvins have secured their place in the annals heavy rock n roll history and are not stopping to rest on their laurels any time soon. Their latest release Nude With Boots (see my review here) further cements them as a heavy force to be reckoned with and a yard stick to measure all other heavy bands in the music world by. While on tour in support of the aforementioned release with current bandmates Jared Warren and Coady Willis and their band Big Business, Dale Crover, the pounding backbone of the Melvins, took the time to answer some questions I've been itching to ask. His biting humor comes through loud and clear as you'll see! Here's how the e-mail interview went.
GASP: Hey Dale! I love Nude With Boots, it's got some classic-sounding Melvins songs, but it sounds very fresh. Do you think having Big Business on board again on this album helped create a fresh approach to it?
Dale: Those guys definitely add a new element to what we're doing. Especially in the vocal and drums department.
GASP: Did Jared and Coady contribute to the songwriting process more on Nude.. than on A Senile Animal?
Dale: Jared wrote lyrics for a few things. Jared, Coady and myself came up with "it Tastes Better Than The Truth". That one developed from the end of last years live set. HAZE XXL assembled "The Savage Hippy" from a few bass and drum loops. The rest is all pure Buzz Osborne! Buzz is hardest working song writer in the biz. Not to mention the best singer/songwriter/guitarist alive! Anyone who doesn't agree with me is an idiot!
GASP: Did it take long to get used to playing with another drummer after being the only one for so many years?
Dale: No, I've played with other drummers before. It's easier than you might think. The secret is to practice.
GASP: Do you feel since you've been with Ipecac records it has breathed new life into the Melvins? Personally I feel that with the trilogy release (The Bootlicker, The Maggot, and The Crybaby) you really broke new ground for yourselves.
Dale: Thanks! Those were the first releases we did for them. Ipecac is great! They don't question a thing we do, like three records at once. We've been with them ten years now.
GASP: How has the internet and the whole downloading process of obtaining music affected the Melvins?
Dale: You mean besides taking food out of my kids mouth? We don't have millions of dollars like Radiohead or Trent Reznor! Why should we give you something we've worked hard on for free? But we'll survive. You can't download a live show or quadruple gate-fold vinyl packaging. On the flip side I think the internet is great for info on the band. People can now know when and where I was taking a dump at last night instantly!
 GASP: You've been on many tours and opened for many bands, like for instance, I saw you guys open for L7 and Tool. What's your most memorable tour, whether it was as an opening band or as the headliner?
Dale: I liked the 1999 tour a lot. It was the first tour we did after a bunch of opening slots for bigger bands. We were playing to our own audience and didn't feel we had to prove ourselves to some knuckle dragging simian in a Korn t-shirt. Playing with Kiss and the Stooges was pretty fun too.
GASP: How has the size of your audiences changed over the years? Has it been consistent or have there been spikes or drops in attendance at any point in your career?
Dale: People drop off but we've stayed consistent. There's a new younger crowd every year. I get older and they stay the same age. It is bigger now than ever.
GASP: I was in the Melvins fan club and one time you guys sent me an autographed hotel room key (I still have it by the way!). What was the most outrageous thing you ever sent a fan?
Dale: A restraining order!
GASP: I have a vinyl version of your cover of "Interstellar Overdrive", when Syd Barrett passed away a few years ago, did you guys pay any sort of tribute to him?
Dale: We all dropped acid and cut off our eyebrows!
GASP: You've never hidden you're love of KISS, would you guys ever consider doing the whole KISS The Elder album as a stoner rock opera? I'm sure the royalties Gene Simmons would demand would bankrupt Ipecac.
Dale: I can't say that I've ever heard that record. Kiss was loooong over for me
before that record ever came out.
GASP: The Melvins have quite a legacy in the underground music scene, is there anything else you'd like to accomplish with music or in any other field?
Dale: Let's see? I'd like to be a Duncan Yo-yo pro, the first white Harlem Globe Trotter and musically the fifth Beatle.
GASP: Since this website is dedicated to Metal and Horror, do you have any favorite Horror movies and/or directors?
Dale: I like all the Hammer films, Black Sunday by Mario Bava, Exorcist and the first two Evil Dead films.
GASP: I appreciate you taking the time to answer these questions and I look forward to seeing you and Big Business at the Paradise in Boston this Saturday Aug 9th!
Dale: Hope you liked it! Thanks, Dale
GASP: I certainly did, see my review this issue!
Matt & Dale - hazed and infused
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