The Melvins will be the last American band to operate guitars after a full-scale nuclear war. They recently recorded and released their latest full-length Pigs Of The Roman Empire and a collaboration with Jello Biafra that starts with an 8-minute Alice Cooper cover. Buzz speaks from a hotel in Redding, California, shortly before heading into town to see if he would get the shit kicked out of him.

Is Jello in the van with you? Or does he have his private helicopter?
He’s in a yacht–he’s touring in a yacht.
I always knew he had ostentatious tastes.
How do you know that?
He carries himself with the obvious dignity of an aristocrat.
I’ll have to keep an eye out for that.
So who is in the band now that Kevin is gone? Are the Big Business guys joining?
Dave Stone, who’s played with us in a variety of different ways and a variety of different settings, both live and in the studio. The Big Business thing will start after the first of the year, so we’re starting over then, in a way.
But at this point the Melvins are unkillable as a band.
I’d like to think so–the last band standing.
Did you record Pigs Of The Roman Empire simultaneously with the Jello album?
That’s absolutely true–we spent the first half of the day doing our stuff, and the second half doing the Jello stuff. They were ten to twelve hour days, but it was OK. It wasn’t the end of the world or anything. We like playing music.
You have picked the right career, then.
Sometimes I wonder. Like today.
Did the two projects cross-pollinate? ‘Pink Bat’ sounds like it could have gone over to the Jello record.
It’s hard not to be influenced by yourself. But Biafra tends to be a little more normal in his song choices than we would be. He’d be less inclined to do something like ‘Pink Bat’–he’s more formulaic. And we’re not at all. Pigs Of The Roman Empire is definitely one of my favorite records we’ve ever done.
A friend of mine says it’s like a Melvins record remixed for maximum listening displeasure.
I totally disagree with that. I have no idea what he’s talking about. I think it’s a great listen–I think it sounds amazing, and if people find that displeasurable, I don’t know what they’ve been listening to. That’s the thing–people think we’re being perverse when we’re not. I actually like that kind of stuff. If they don’t, they have no concept about what we’re about or what we’re into. We’re not intentionally trying to piss people off.
I think he meant it as a compliment.
Everything on that record is very intentional.
Did you really say the only way you’d leave LA is in a box?
I love it there. I can’t see myself living anywhere else.
Where do you take friends when they come to visit?
Depends where they wanna go–you just drive around and it’s fun. You can do a whole murder tour. There’s nothing like an unsolved murder. It’s really the weirdest place I’ve ever lived. I love it. Biafra just hates LA, for whatever reason.
LA is really the weirdest place you ever lived?
By far–somebody should throw a net over the whole place. And that’s not a bad thing. The funny thing is that I’ve lived in California for twenty years, but we’re still considered a band from the northwest. If you talk LA music scene, I wouldn’t know what you’re talking about. I wouldn’t have a clue. We weren’t accepted into any circles and we never have been–whatever the cool people are doing, I don’t know.
You don’t have even like a circle of antiquing friends or knitting friends?
Not musically, no–we play LA as much as any other city, which is not a whole hell of a lot. We’re not invited to the meetings–I kind of like that, actually.
Do you think hanging out with the Melvins has changed Jello as a person?
I think he expected us to be far less aware of punk rock in general.
Black Sabbath and nothing else?
He thought we’d be more Soundgarden-ish, and we were way weirder than he ever expected.
I heard he was pretty weird himself.
I’m normal compared to him.
How healthy for you.
Thanks.