Mudhoney, Koko, September 16 2005
The idea of a band opening a show with their most famous anthem would, under ordinary circumstances, suggest supreme arrogance or a glib dismissal of the very thing that attracted them to you in the first place and yet here are grunge progenitors Mudhoney doing just that as ‘Touch Me I’m Sick’ is gleefully dispatched to a salivating Koko.
Tonight though, neither haughtiness nor rejection play a part as the Seattle quartet re-live their finest hour with a reading of ‘Superfuzz Bigmuff plus Early Singles’ as part of the outstanding Don’t Look Back series.
Mudhoney’s early output in the late 80s sent seismic waves and reverberations from the Pacific North West that are still being felt to this day. Marrying the teeth-grinding nihilism of punk with the down-tuned doom-laden riffs of Black Sabbath, Mudhoney were the point where long hair and guitars were reclaimed from the poodle-permed tossers who’d spent nearly a decade running rock into the ground and in the process helped kick start its re-birth.
Looking great – Mark Arm still stick thin and lean, sporting a mischievous grin throughout – and, more importantly, sounding great ‘Sweet Young Thing Ain’t Sweet No More’’s tar-heavy riffs wade knee-deep in sludge before giving way to the Stooges-like rama-lama of ‘Need’ and a gloriously moronic ‘Chain That Door’.
For all the riffing and knowing dumbness, it’s with ‘Mudride’ that the mother lode is delivered. Like a brontosaurus grooving in swamp with a head full of downers, the thick, textured guitars of Arm and Steve Turner interweave to create a hypnotic and lurching barrage of sound that’s as irresistible as the force of a black hole and twice as devastating.
Amongst Mudhoney’s serrated distortions and unholy howls lies a simple, almost puerile sense of humour and it’s difficult to suppress a laugh at the site of not just crowd-surfing from people who should know better but the rarely-seen sight of a solitary figure stage diving into an unsuspecting audience. Utterly mindless? Without a doubt. Totally fun? You betcha!
What’s clear from the Don’t Look Back series is just how enjoyable these gigs are for the bands as much as they are for the audience. Mudhoney always possessed a sensation of total and utter abandonment, a band for whom playing live was a natural extension of living and breathing. On tonight’s evidence, nothing has changed chez Mudhoney as they still continue to inspire by so clearly loving what they do.
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