| (A) Senile Animal | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 10, 2006 | |||
| Recorded | July 1–14, 2006 | |||
| Studio | West Beach Recorders, Hollywood | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 41:24 | |||
| Label | Ipecac | |||
| Producer | Melvins | |||
| Melvins chronology | ||||
| ||||
(A) Senile Animal is the 15th album by American rock band Melvins, released on October 10, 2006 on Ipecac Recordings. After bassist Kevin Rutmanis' departure the two remaining members of the Melvins joined forces with Big Business, a duo consisting of Jared Warren on bass and Coady Willis on drums.
On the line-up change, frontman Buzz Osborne spoke to Kerrang! in 2008, stating:
When it became obvious we wouldn't be working with Kevin again, me and Dale were very discouraged fellows – I was bummed out for 18 months! We didn't know what we were going to do, but we knew we were going to do something. We'd played with Big Business and Jared [Warren]'s name had been batted around when we were thinking of bass players but I thought instead of just getting him, why don't we just get both those guys? We thought about two drummers a long time ago and messed around a little bit but [getting Coady Willis, Big Business' drummer] was the best decision we could have made. I'm not afraid of making changes and everything's worked out perfectly for everybody including Kevin. This record is one of my favourites and I think we're just scratching the surface of what we can do with these guys. [1]
A music video for "The Talking Horse" was made and shown in 2007.
The song "A History of Bad Men" appears in the film I Know Who Killed Me and in the TV show True Detective .
(A) Senile Animal features Melvins' signature sludge and stoner metal sound. [2] AllMusic critic Greg Prato noted: "Although they started out primarily as a punk band that slowed down the riffs, the Melvins have also always mixed in prog rock-like bits, such as the tricky rhythms of 'Blood Witch' and the King Crimson/Tool-ish 'The Hawk.' The album also contains some of the group's most straightforward compositions in some time, including the metallic/new wave-ish ditty 'A History of Drunks.'" [3]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Drowned in Sound |   [4] |
| Pop Matters | [5] |
| Stylus Magazine | B− [6] |
| Pitchfork | (7.3/10) [2] |
AllMusic's Greg Prato wrote: "The transfusion of new blood has made one of rock's gnarliest beats even -- gnarlier!". [3] Drowned in Sound's Grant Purdum stated: "In lieu of live albums and collaborations aplenty, A Senile Animal couldn't have snarled to life at a better time." [4]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Talking Horse" | 2:41 |
| 2. | "Blood Witch" | 2:45 |
| 3. | "Civilized Worm" | 5:57 |
| 4. | "A History of Drunks" | 2:20 |
| 5. | "Rat Faced Granny" | 2:41 |
| 6. | "The Hawk" | 2:35 |
| 7. | "You've Never Been Right" | 2:30 |
| 8. | "A History of Bad Men" | 6:43 |
| 9. | "The Mechanical Bride" | 6:26 |
| 10. | "A Vast Filthy Prison" | 6:44 |
| Total length: | 41:24 | |
The vinyl edition was released as a 4-LP box set from Hydra Head Records. Each LP featured music on one side and an etching on the other. This was limited to 300 copies in a variety of colors and designs.
Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Heatseekers | 6 |
| Year | Chart | Position |
| 2006 | Independent Albums | 20 |
Melvins are an American rock band formed in 1983 in Montesano, Washington. Their early work was key to the development of both grunge and sludge metal. Primarily a trio, they have also performed as a quartet, with either two drummers or two bassists. Since 1984, vocalist and guitarist Buzz Osborne and drummer Dale Crover have been constant members.
King Buzzo is an EP by Melvins' guitarist Buzz Osborne, which was released in 1992 through Boner Records. Osborne recruited Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl for the project. Grohl is credited as "Dale Nixon", in reference to the pseudonym Greg Ginn adopted for playing bass on Black Flag's My War.
Houdini is the fifth studio album by American rock band Melvins, released on September 21, 1993, by Atlantic Records. The album was the band's major label debut after releasing their previous albums through the independent label Boner Records.
The Maggot is the tenth studio album by American rock band Melvins, released in 1999 through Ipecac Recordings. It is the first part of a trilogy followed by The Bootlicker and The Crybaby. The Trilogy was later released on vinyl by Ipecac Recordings.
The Bootlicker is the eleventh studio album by the Melvins, released in 1999 through Ipecac Recordings. The album is the second part of a trilogy preceded by The Maggot and followed by The Crybaby. The trilogy was later released on vinyl by Ipecac.
Pigs of the Roman Empire is an album by the American alternative metal group Melvins and electronic musician Lustmord, which was released in 2004 through Ipecac Recordings. Adam Jones, guitarist for Tool, also makes substantial contributions to the album.
Fecal Matter was a short-lived punk rock band from Aberdeen, Washington. The group was formed in 1984 by Kurt Cobain, the future frontman of Nirvana, along with Dale Crover of the Melvins and drummer Greg Hokanson. Hokanson was removed from the band over his penchant for Schmidt beer and mini thins or "witch speed", and his ensuing negative attitude. Melvins members Buzz Osborne and Mike Dillard appeared in a later version of the band during rehearsals the following year.
Tomahawk is the debut studio album by American experimental rock band Tomahawk. Recorded after a meeting between vocalist Mike Patton and guitarist Duane Denison, the album features members of Faith No More, The Jesus Lizard, Helmet and Melvins. The band toured with Tool in support of the record.
Big Business is an American heavy metal band founded in 2004 by bassist/vocalist Jared Warren (Karp) and drummer Coady Willis. They formed in Seattle, Washington and have been based in Los Angeles, California since 2006. Their music is characterized by a bombastic and frantic style, and for most of their existence Big Business has been a bass-drums duo with occasional other musicians contributing.
Coady Willis is an American drummer and a member of Big Business, High on Fire, White Shit, and the Melvins. He previously played in the bands Dead Low Tide, Broadcast Oblivion, and The Murder City Devils.
Jared Michael Warren is an American musician who is the bassist of Big Business and formerly the Melvins.
Nude with Boots is the 16th album by American rock band Melvins, released on July 8, 2008. A vinyl release was issued on November 3, 2009.
The Bride Screamed Murder is the seventeenth studio album by American rock band Melvins, released on June 1, 2010. It was their first album to hit the Billboard 200 Pop Charts, at number 200, selling 2,809 albums in the first few weeks. In October 2010, they released a music video with Scion Audio/Visual for the song "Electric Flower", directed by Mark Brooks.
Sugar Daddy Live is a live album by the Melvins, released on May 31, 2011. The songs are taken from their 2008 tour, with the majority of the tracks coming from their two most recent studio albums at the time, (A) Senile Animal and Nude with Boots.
The Bulls & the Bees is an EP by American rock band the Melvins, released on March 13, 2012 through Scion A/V for free download. It was also released as a free CD for their May 2012 tour with Unsane and released as a 10" vinyl later that year for the 51/51 tour. On June 2, 2015, an expanded CD containing the Electroretard album was released on Ipecac Recordings.
Everybody Loves Sausages is an album of cover songs by the Melvins, released on April 30, 2013. In similar fashion to The Crybaby it features guests on most of the tracks and even features the Melvins Lite on three tracks.
Basses Loaded is the 21st album by American rock band Melvins, released on June 3, 2016, through Ipecac Recordings. It features every member that has been a part of the Melvins over the previous decade, centered around the many bass guitar players to have passed through the band. Steven Shane McDonald of Redd Kross makes his debut with the Melvins, while Nirvana co-founder Krist Novoselic makes a guest appearance.
A Walk with Love & Death is a double album and the 22nd album by American rock band Melvins, released on July 7, 2017, through Ipecac Recordings. It includes two distinct albums: Love, a fourteen-song soundtrack to a short film by Jesse Nieminen, also known as A Walk with Love & Death, and Death, made up of nine standard songs. This is the first full-length Melvins album to feature bassist Steven McDonald, who only appeared on four of the songs on their previous album, Basses Loaded. Guest musicians include Joey Santiago (Pixies), Anna Waronker and Teri Gender Bender.
Working with God is the 24th album by American rock band Melvins, released on February 26, 2021, through Ipecac Recordings.
Five Legged Dog is the 25th album by American rock band Melvins, released on October 15, 2021, through Ipecac Recordings. It is the first acoustic album released by the band.
