Big Business, Melvins & Gay Witch Abortion @ Triple Rock Social Club

Big Business live… somewhere

Adding an additional member to a band is always a somewhat dicey affair, especially for a group as bare bones as the Los Angeles (via Seattle) two-piece Big Business. But Toshi Kasai, the new guitar player for Big Business, is really starting to gel with the duo, and is beginning to leave his indelible mark on the band’s music. And those marks, along with the relentless drumming of Coady Willis and the pummeling bass lines of Jared Warren, were on full display at a packed Triple Rock on Saturday night during a loud, dynamic set that also featured a special Melvins performance during the encore.

Toshi lead the band through a piercing, feedback laced introduction before the rest of the band kicked things in on “Another Fourth Of July…Ruined,” and proceeded to tear through a set filled with tracks from last year’s excellent Here Come The Waterworks, as well as a few new songs from their forthcoming record, which Coady announced that the band just finished recording. The group is now tighter than ever, with each member locked in perfect synchronicity, starting and stopping on a dime, and making one hell of a racket while they’re at it. New songs “The Drift” and “Cold Lunch,” from their Tour EP III have a menacing drive to them that, while remaining heavy and pounding, still remains tuneful, and bodes well for the promise of an excellent new album (set to be produced by Phil Ek, who produced their first two records as well).

This show was another in a string of concerts celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the Triple Rock Social Club, which prompted Jared to express his love of the room, saying it’s the best sounding room of it’s size “West of the Mississippi…(looking around mischievously for support that the club is indeed located West of the river) and East of the Mississippi.” It’s a sentiment that I share completely, and I’ve never heard Big Business sound any better than they did on Saturday. Part of the reason is the addition of Toshi and him getting comfortable with the group, part of the reason is the excellent sound at the Triple Rock, and part of it is the strength and potency of their new songs. Suffice it to say, I’m excited for the new records release in the new year, and think it should be a monster.

Other than the praise Jared bestowed on the club, there was no other chatter during the propulsive set (with Dale Crover watching from the wings-also helping to set up the double drums before the Big Business set), which was sped along to make sure the announced Melvins set could take place during the encore. So, the band steamrolled through “Just As The Day Was Dawning,” “Grounds For Divorce,” “Start Your Digging” and a killer version of “Hands Up,” which no matter how hard it rocks, never really gets the metal heads to throw their hands up. Oh well. The club had reached capacity by the time the proper Big Business set drew to a close, with all in attendance anticipating the Melvins encore set. And we didn’t have to wait long, as Jared announced “Here are some old friends of ours” while the last notes of their set were still ringing in the air.

So with that, out came Buzz and Dale, with Buzz exclaiming “Tonight I just started drinking again after 20 years. I feel pretty fucked up. Anyone know where I can score some pot.” I’m pretty sure that plenty of people in the rowdy crowd could help him out, if he was being serious. And with that, the four of them were off and running, tearing into a fiery version of “Blood Witch” that had the floor awash with a pit that only a combination of alcohol, a Saturday night, and a surprise set by the Melvins could bring. It was a short, ferocious set, consisting of just four songs, all of which were from 2006′s A Senile Animal. “Rat Faced Granny” was incendiary, with the dual drumming of Dale and Coady propelling the song forward, as they did on a crunchy version of “The Hawk,” with Buzz locked in at full encore speed. “You’ve Never Been Right” was raging and intense, and while the band played a noisy outro that saw Buzz and Jared leave the stage, Dale and Coady switched drums (with Coady never touching the ground as he climbed over both sets of drums to get to Dale’s kit) and kept the racket going for a bit longer. It was an emphatic close to a blazing, concise set that found both bands in high gear. The rumor that Tool’s guitarist Adam Jones (who was in town serving drinks with Buzz at Grumpy’s) would play with the band never materialized, but that didn’t take away from a loud and propulsive night that found Big Business sounding better than ever, and the Melvins sounding kick-ass, just like the Melvins always do.

Opening the night was the Minneapolis duo Gay Witch Abortion, who played a rousing, driving set that garnered them a lot of praise from the crowd where I was standing, and hopefully a lot more fans after the night was done. It was amazing to me how guitarist Jesse Bottomley could blend different genres into one guitar riff, brazenly going from a Nirvana sound, to Led Zeppelin, to Slayer all within a short span. And the relentless drumming of Shawn Walker set the stage well for a night where drummers truly dominated. I have to admit I liked their instrumental songs quite a bit more than the songs when Jesse sang, but that’s a small gripe. They were a great opener, and hopefully broadened their fan base quite a bit, with the club filled with like minded music fans enjoying the speed and intensity of their set.

Big Business: Purchase | Official | MySpace | Wikipedia
Melvins: Purchase | Official | MySpace | Wikipedia
Gay Witch Abortion: Purchase | MySpace

Also: Gay Witch Abortion “Maverick” Review