Because it actually makes sense.
After all, Buzz has written the vast majority of the Melvins’ songs with a fair amount of them originally written on an acoustic guitar and then simply transferred to electric. "I recorded most of This Machine Kills Artists with my red white and blue Buck Owens American acoustic. It's a great guitar and is pretty much irreplaceable so it's staying home for tours. It's too bad really. Maybe I can paint the Chinese one I use live red white and blue! Ha!"
This Machine Kills Artists is an authentically acoustic album with no electric guitars, amplifiers or direct boxes used during the 17-track release’s recording. Buzz’s live performance, previewed in a brief March tour, is equally raw, with the legendary singer/guitar player armed with only his guitar and his quirky-yet-captivating stories.
"I have no interest in sounding like a crappy version of James Taylor or a half assed version of Woody Guthrie,” explained Buzz. “Which is what happens when almost every rock and roller straps on an acoustic guitar. No thanks... This Machine Kills Artists is a different kind of animal." This Machine Kills Artists isn’t merely Melvins Lite (hey, there already is a Melvins Lite!), instead the album offers a surprising new side to the grunge progenitor, songs when offered naked further highlight what a powerful songwriter the Melvins’ front man is.
Along with the new album Buzz will be hitting the road on a giant tour that will take him all the way around the world! The tour itself will begin in the U.S. with a multi-month outing before winding it’s way throughout the globe. The songs on This Machine Kills Artists were written to be performed live and that's exactly what Buzz plans on doing.
It's all about digging it out of the dirt...
The more you work the luckier you get...
* * * * *
Tour dates:
05/17 Pomona, CA – Scion Rock Fest
06/10 San Diego, CA – The Casbah
06/11 Echo Park, CA – The Echo
06/12 Santa Ana, CA – The Observatory
06/13 Fresno, CA – Strummer’s
06/14 Sacramento, CA – Assembly
06/15 San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall
06/17 Eugene, OR – Wow Hall
06/18 Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre
06/20 Seattle, WA – Neumo’s
06/21 Bellingham, WA – The Shakedown
06/22 Spokane, WA – The Hop
06/23 Missoula, MT – The Palace
06/24 Billings, MT – The Railyard
06/26 Fargo, ND – The Aquarium
06/27 Minneapolis, MN – Grumpy’s
06/28 Milwaukee, WI – Shank Hall
06/30 Grand Rapids, MI – The Pyramid Scheme
07/01 Columbus, OH – A&R Music Bar
07/02 Detroit, MI – Small’s
07/03 Cleveland, OH – The Grog Shop
07/05 Syracuse, NY - The Westcott Theater
07/06 South Burlington, VT – Higher Ground
07/07 Portland, ME – Portland City Music Hall
07/09 Dover, NH - Dover Brickhouse
07/10 Allston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
07/11 Pawtucket, RI - The Met
07/12 Hamden, CT – The Ballroom at The Outerspace
07/13 New York, NY – Santos Party House
07/14 Brooklyn, NY – The Wick
07/15 Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts
07/17 Baltimore, MD – Ottobar
07/18 Charlottesville, VA – The Southern
07/19 Charlotte, NC - Visulite Theater
07/20 Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
07/22 Atlanta, GA – The Basement
07/23 Birmingham, AL – The Bottle Tree
07/25 New Orleans, LA – One Eyed Jack’s
07/26 Houston, TX – Warehouse Live
07/27 Austin, TX – Red 7
07/28 Sam Antonio, TX – Limelight
07/30 Tucson, AZ – Club Congress
07/31 Pioneertown, CA – Pappy and Harriet’s
